Review of Iron Man 2

Iron Man 2 sure delivers the fun but it's such intelligent fun. Honestly, its Stan Lee meets Shakespeare. The Hammer/Stark rivalry is more like Hamlet and Claudius then Superman to Lex Luthor. Iron Man is simply more complex as a character then anything else you'll see in a summer film but it loses none of the spark or none of the pure popcorn fun. How many other films can you say that about? Stark's vulnerability is very much on display here as his personal life crumbles through various unique conflicts. He has to struggle with the government for control of his armor and deal with his growing celebrity. At the same time his personal life takes a turn as a love triangle emerges. He (like soon all of America) becomes attracted to his new aide (the lovely Scarlett Johansson), causing tension with his former assistant but now new Stark Industries CEO Pepper Potts (the also lovely Gwyneth Paltrow). They manage to pull all this off remarkably well and still leave character time for Rhodey and the villains. It's a believable sci-fi story featuring an intellect story that's wild but has the right amount of humor, angst and drama. Like I remember about Iron Man 1, I can't think of a weak moment in the film. The visual effects are incredible. They did the memory of their boss, the great Stan Winston, proud. They set the bar high again. Now the only question is whether they have anything left in the tank for Iron Man 3? I'm betting that they do.