In my book, Superman movies were just below Star Wars in my little guy geek spectrum.   So it was that my dad took me to see what would be Christopher Reeve’s final portrayal of The Man of Steel.

Even as a chunky ten year old kid I knew something was off about this movie.  There was too much humor.  Superman always looked just the same when he came flying onto the screen.  By “looked the same,” I mean that it appeared that someone had cut out a picture of Superman flying and pasted it onto the film.  (Apparently that’s exactly what they did.)

In the years that followed, whenever I talked to friends or fans about SUPERMAN IV, it was always the same thing.  ”That’s the worst Superman movie EVER!”  ”They should have stopped with three.” “It’s sooo bad.”

The problem is I could never not watch it.  If it happened to be on TV, or if it was in a video store to rent, I loved to watch it.  When I finally got the first set of Superman movie DVDs that were released back in 2001 I would often come home on a Sunday afternoon, pop in SUPERMAN IV and watch it again and again.

For a few years, this was something I would never admit to my geekier friends except jokingly.  Why?  Because everywhere I turned, whenever Superman IV was mentioned, it was mentioned in groans and moans.

I refuse to accept that SUPERMAN IV is a movie with NO redeeming qualities, and I refuse to believe that it’s simple childhood memories that fuel my love for SUPERMAN IV.  In fact, I maintain that were it not for the poor special effects, SUPERMAN IV may not be held in such disdain.

Superman IV did have many glaring problems.  If one is going to take an honest look at the film, then that has to be an admission.   Those problems have been dealt with again and again and again.  In the end, I had to wonder, “Why do I keep subjecting myself to this movie?  If it’s so bad, why doesn’t it sit on my DVD shelf in a relatively unwatched condition?”

The answer screams back at me, “The movie has a heart of gold.”  Sure, there’s a nostalgia factor of sitting in a theater in Athens, GA watching this movie with my dad.   Sure, it’s Christopher Reeve as Superman.  Yes, the premise is a classic comic book premise.  There’s more to it than that though.  Unlike it’s predecessor, Superman IV doesn’t feel like a movie made simply to cash in on the name of Superman.  The people involved at the base level seemed to be trying to genuinely recapture some of the magic that made the first movie so special.

In 1978,  Gene Hackman was one of the names attatched to SUPERMAN: THE MOVIE on the basis of his “star power.”  By 1987, Hackman had been solidified as an actor to be taken seriously.   He wasn’t contractually obligated to return to the Superman film franchise.   He wasn’t hard up for work.  There was a reason he slipped back into the role of Lex Luthor.

In fact, as you look around the Daily Planet, you’ll find no roles recast from the original Daily Planet primaries.   Why would these people come back to a film so destined for failure.   Granted, Margot Kidder and Marc McClure didn’t have studios beating down their doors with movie offers, but it’s highly unlikely that those two or Jackie Cooper would have returned to the roles of Lois, Jimmy, and Perry if they had absolutely no desire to do so.

All of these actors had one thing in common outside of sharing the screen in the original two films.  They had only a treatment and a script to go on.   A glorious, aggressive, peace mongering, simple script wherein nothing but the heart of this movie could shine through.  They didn’t have shoddy special effects to sit and watch.  They didn’t have to wonder how Lacey would be able to breathe in space.  They didn’t have to hear the terribly dubbed voice of Jeremy.  (Or see his acting for that matter.) (That’s a little harsh, but director Sidney J. Furie should have coached the kid a little better.)  They didn’t have to see how poorly portrayed John Cryer’s Lenny would be.  (Again, a flaw of direction rather than the caliber of actor…in my opinion.)  What they had was a Superman story wherein Superman deals with the real problems of a world he calls home and is met with resistance not only from Lex Luthor, but a whole underworld conglomerate of arms dealers.  (One of which was Porkins from Star Wars no less.)  They saw Superman struggle with the idea of using his power to impose peace on a planet on the brink of self destruction.  They read about The Last Son of Krypton fighting for his life after being infected with some otherworldly virus by The Nuclear Man, and using the last bit of power from his home planet to save himself so he can save his adopted home.

While the final product lacks the edge it could have with such heavy subject matter, the heart of the film is apparent the minute we find ourselves in Smallville with Clark Kent who is selling the family farm, but rather than sell out to a big developer, he maintains the whimsy that a simple family will one day call the place he grew up home.   Through Jeremy, we have the child’s perspective on all that Superman could be for all of us.  Living in the eighties, nuclear war was much more of a real threat than it is today.  I’m not saying we went to bed every night scared that we would be vaporized in the blast that would kick off the annihilation of all life as we know it, but the Cold War seemed to be far from over.  (Even though it would come to an end in two short years.)  As a kid I often imagined how different things would be if there was a real Superman. How much safer it would be in a world where The Man of Steel watched over us.  We wouldn’t have to worry about strangers kidnapping us.  We wouldn’t have to worry about gang violence.  We may not even have to worry about war.

While the subject of Superman fixing the world’s real problems tends to be a faux pas in the pages of comic books, Christopher Reeve tackled the subject well.  He walked the fine line of what Superman COULD do versus what he WOULD do.  In the end, Superman says it best, “There will be peace when the people want it so badly that their governemts have no choice but to give it to them.”

Quite frankly, while the verisimilitude that Richard Donner preached to his cast and crew while filming the first movie isn’t present in the special effects or some of the characterization of the supporting cast, it is there as far as Superman is concerned.

Then there’s the film’s score.  What a great score.  Of course John Williams’ original music is present throughout, but Alexander Courage did a fine job of composing new music to compliment the themes that Williams already established.  If you’re a movie music fan, seek out the score to Superman IV, you won’t be disappointed.

Watching Superman and Nuclear Man fight, there are two very unfortunate things that come to light.  The first is the most glaring of the entire movie…the special effects.  After the flying sequences of the original films, these effects just don’t stand up.   The second, and less obvious to the casual viewer is that an opportunity was missed in using an established DC villain, namely Bizarro rather than a whole new character.  However, that’s a minor quibble as Mark Pillow did a fine job as Nuclear Man.  His voice was of course dubbed with that of Gene Hackman’s, and maybe the sound editors didn’t need to add all the reverb and stuff to it, but Pillow emoted the raw, nearly unintelligent monstrousness of a villain who could stand toe to toe with Superman.

It’s truly unfortunate that the flaws of this movie have been the focus of what people see over the past twenty plus years.   When I watch the movie, it reminds me of a simpler time.  When good guys were good guys and the bad guys were always trying to stop them.  I’m reminded of how cool it is to see Clark Kent step into a phone booth only to emerge as the world’s greatest hero.  I’m reminded of how much the trials of the world he loves weigh heavy on the shoulders of Krypton’s Last Son.   I’m reminded of just how much Superman serves to inspire humanity to greater things.

In all of the things we as geeks love, there is stuff to complain about, but in most of it, there’s gold to be mined.  This movie is a diamond in the rough that, with a little more money, and little more care by the higher ups, could have launched Superman back into the stratosphere cinematically.   I challenge you to sit down and watch the movie again, and rather than groaning at the things that hurt the movie, laugh.  Approach it with a light heart and maybe…just maybe…you can learn to stop worrying and love a movie that bombed.

The Pixar movies that came after equally impressed me.  From the retelling of  ”The Ant and The Grasshopper” in A BUG’S LIFE to Sully’s fur in MONSTERS INC.  to the Super Hero team movie that showed how other team up movies should be done in THE INCREDIBLES to the very adult themes in UP, Pixar has consistently surprised me with the ability to knock it out of the park everytime the studio steps up to the plate.

Right off the bat, I will tell you that, for me, TOY STORY 3 was no exception.   I would never say that Buzz and Woody are part of my childhood.  I was in college when Toy Story hit the scene.  So, there was no way that the gang from Andy’s room could have been a part of my childhood, but they were a big part of the point in my life when movies began to become something a little more than a distraction to me.  Toy Story was part of a time in my life when I began to watch movies a little more critically, when I began to pay attention to trailers a little more closely, when I began to seek out reviews from respected critics, and when I began to truly define my cinematic tastes.   So, Pixar holds a special place for me inasmuch as in the past 15 years or so, I have been able to point friends and other geeks to Pixar as THE movie studio that “gets it.”

Now, confession time.

Confession 1 – I cringed a bit when I heard that Pixar had made and was preparing to release TOY STORY 2.  When TOY STORY 2 came along, we had seen direct to video sequels for animated films and we all knew how much the quality of said films suffered at the hands of money making tyrants trying to cash in on the success of the predecessor.   Thankfully, Pixar refused to fall into that trap and made a solid sequel geared toward showing audiences young and old what it means to go after a friend who may have lost his way, showing us that even when we feel discarded there is hope and friendship out there if we’ll just look for it, and of course, that the world of Andy’s toys is a fun place to hang out.

Confession 2 – I cringed a bit when I heard that Pixar had made and was preparing to release TOY STORY 3.   Everyone knows that when it comes to animated movies, the third time is NOT the charm.  Was this just  a ploy to finally jump into this popular 3D trend?  Had Pixar finally lost it?  Were they so stretched for ideas that they had to go back to the Toy Story well yet again?

Thankfully, Pixar delivered a story that was not only original, but as heart wrenching as it is heart warming.

TOY STORY 3 breaks the mold of it’s predecessors by being a much more grown up experience.  By now, we all know the premise of the story.  Andy is getting ready to go to college and part of that process is deciding what to keep, what to throw away, and what to take with you.    We are introduced to our characters just trying to get Andy’s attention.  They’ve been in the toy box so long, and all they want is to be there for Andy…and to be played with.  Through a series of events and misunderstandings, the gang ends up in box of toys to be donated to a local day care where all is not as it seems and they find themselves once again trying to get back to Andy.

The journey is fun, but not fun filled.  This is a story for all the kids who grew up with these characters and may be headed off to college in the Fall themselves.  This is a story for anyone who’s ever had to grow up.  This is a story about letting go, but not forgetting.

Confession 3 – I’m tearing up even as I write this.

I denied it to those who saw the movie with me, but I will confess openly and freely, I cried…not choked up, not welled up…CRIED…while watching this movie.   Over the past week since seeing the movie, I get a little choked up thinking about it.

In the world of cinema, we’ve seen coming of age stories, stories about adults finding their inner child, stories about the college kid finally letting go and growing up, but there has never been a movie that shows exactly what it means to grow up and let go as well as TOY STORY 3.   Maybe it’s the kid in me that misses me being a kid, maybe it’s the adult in me that still mourns the loss of my childhood, but TOY STORY 3 found the part of me that misses truly being a kid and wrenched every last emotion out of that place.

I would never spoil the end of this movie for you.  I have seen a lot of places talk about one scene in particular that is very moving and seems like it should be in a much more “grown – up” type movie.   I’ve even seen one review that spoils the end of the movie.   I wouldn’t do that.  I would just say take the ride and enjoy it.  Let your inner kid out to play for a while.  Feel free to laugh embarassingly loud and a moment with Mr. Potatoe Head.  Feel free to cry like I did when you see how things wrap up.  If you’re a parent, feel free to take your kids and let this movie be your reminder to not make them grow up too soon.

I can’t speak to the 3D of this movie, I saw it in a regular old theater.  But this movie is not about the technical aspects of the film.   This movie is about the characters and the story.

I can’t speak highly enough of TOY STORY 3.  I haven’t had the chance to see The A-Team or The Karate Kid, or much of anything else yet, and now I’m scared to because I don’t see how any movie this Summer can top what I saw in a darkened theater last week as I let Pixar bring me, one last time, into this amazing world of toys.

If I am going to rate this movie, I give it a perfect 5 out of 5 rating.  Go see it.

I grew up in Florida, and I have a great deal of family in Tennessee, and there was nothing in this world I hated more than the drive to Tennessee to visit relatives.  It was not because I had to hear about how much I have grown even though I was the same height and weight of my last visit.  It was not that I had to share a bed with who knows how many cousins.  It wasn’t because my cheeks could only take so much pinching.  It was not even because of my crazy Aunt Jo Blair, nor the long drive itself.  I hated going to Tennessee because of my dad’s music collection that we had to listen to for nine hours…there is only so much Porter Wagner, Hank Snow, and others who all sing through their noses, that one man can take.  These old country and western stars of yesteryear drove me crazy.  I begged and begged my dad to listen something current like Def Leppard, Bon Jovi; heck, I would even have listened to New Kids on the Block if it got us off of country oldies for a few minutes.  But of course, I had to hear about the time my dad met this star or that star when he worked at the Grand Ole’ Opry in 1968, and he just cranked the oldies even louder.

I made a vow on one of those long journeys with myself that I would never listen to just oldies.  I vowed that I would always keep my musical taste current.  There was just one problem with that vow.  No one told me that music was going to become horrible at the turn of the millennium.  That whole Y2K business we were worried about missiles, banks, electricity, water and the like, but we totally ignored the music business, and that is where the Y2K bug attacked. and music has never been the same.  Now, in my car, my kids are cultured on good music like Def Leppard, Pearl Jam, Bon Jovi, The Bangles, and even the New Kids on the Block.  Please Don’t Go Girl, I must admit is a great song.  One day as I was teaching my eldest daughter the lyrics to Allison’s Starting to Happen by the Lemonheads…I realized something…I have turned into my father, and you know, as horrible as I thought that was twenty years ago, now, I am kind of proud to be him because music today is just terrible.  We are all products of our upbringing, and since I work with teenagers, I am fascinated about how our upbringings shape us either by imitation or by revulsion.  I find the events that shape people to be fascinating, and that it why the number nine scene made the list of my favorite scenes of all time.

My 9^th favorite scene is when Dewlanna helps a young Han Solo escape his basic slavery aboard the Trader’s Luck.  This scene is the scene that took me from Star Wars book enthusiast to pure addict because it shows the beauty of how the books can meld perfectly with the movies by showing us how Han Solo’s upbringing shaped the man he was in the movies and the novels for that matter.  This scene is from chapter one in THE PARADISE SNARE by Ann C. Crispin, which is still my favorite novel I have ever read.

You hear so much of the famed Solo luck throughout so many novels, but I have always took that comment with a heavy dose of sarcasm because Han does not begin his life very luckily.  He was a street kid for nine years until he was basically enslaved by the evil Garris Shrike.  He did not even know his last name until Dewlanna discovered it for him.  19 years of a hard life, and Han had finally had enough.  He hatches this grand scheme to escape to Yleasia and become a pilot, and this scene opens with Han saying good bye to his only and closest friend.  Han enters the kitchen and sees the Wookie Dewlanna there kneading dough.  He tells her that he is going to escape, and you immediately see the mothering nature of sweet Dewlanna.  She forces him to take some credits from her.  She did not take no for an answer.  She then messes up Han’s hair telling him that he looks better “scruffy.” Han shows his love for Dewlanna by wishing she would join him later.  She is genuinely happy that Han is making a run for a better life and encourages him, and just when Han and Dewlanna are sharing a goodbye hug, the famed Solo luck kicks in and Shrike enters the room with a couple of goons because they have learned of Han’s plan.

This is where you see Dewlanna go from a sweet mother figure who forces Han to take a few credits to a mother Wookie with threatened cubs.  She fights Shrike and his goons, and Dewlanna brings paws to a blaster fight, which is not good for her.  Dewlanna injures the goons enough to protect Han, but she is critically wounded in the fight.  Han and Dewlanna share a heart wrenching last talk where she shares her love for him, encourages him to get on with his life or her sacrifice will mean nothing, and wanted him to know that she loved him as one of her own.  Han shares with her his love for her, he will make her sacrifice meaningful, and that he will always remember her, and remember Dewlanna Han Solo does.

This simple seven page scene lays the foundation for Han Solo in the rest of the Expanded Universe and explains Han Solo’s character in the movies.   This scene is so great because it explains so much.  It gives us a glimpse into Han Solo’s upbringing that shaped Han Solo.

This is the first time I read about Han Solo’s lopsided grin, which lopsided has become the default adjective for Solo’s smile in the books.  I cannot think of any of Solo’s grins being described any other way.

It explains why Han Solo throws away his career and puts his life on the line to save a slave Wookie named Chewbacca because a Wookie saved him.  He was fighting for Dewlanna’s people.

It explains why, of all the things, Leia calls Han out of anger that “scruffy”  is the one that stood out to Han and hit him the hardest because Dewlanna liked him scruffy.

It explains why Han could not leave a teenage pilot to face the Death Star, because he understood what it was like to be a teenage pilot facing evil and had someone put her life on the line for him.

It explains his hatred for slavery because he was raised a slave, and he was so disgusted by the practice, he made and kept a vow against it.

It explains why Han, even though his head tells him otherwise, always fights for and does what is right no matter the odds…because his adoptive mother Dewlanna did what was right even forfeiting her life to do so.  Han Solo is good to his core because of Dewlanna heart for him.

I see all of Han Solo being influenced by the love Dewlanna showed this young slave boy aboard the Trader’s Luck.  This scene beautifully shows how impactful prequels can by giving a foundation for actions taking in later chronologically stories that have already been told.  This back story scene gives so much in so few pages that it is truly a powerful text that helps us to understand the true enigma in the movies of a good hearted smuggler who ran spice for crime lords.  In the movies, there is no reason for Han Solo to have a good heart.  That is a mystery, and Ann C. Crispin explains this mystery in seven simple pages in chapter 1 of THE PARADISE SNARE.

If this was a list of what scenes do I think about the most, this scene would be number one by a mile.  Every time I read about Han’s lopsided grin, I think of Dewlanna.  Everytime Han faces down the odds to do what it right, I think of Dewlanna.  Everytime Han stands against a wrong like slavery in the Han Solo Trilogy and Jedi Academy Trilogy and freedom in The Legacy of the Force to just name a few, I think of Dewlanna.  Everytime Han Solo takes a young boy under his wing like in the movies and in the Jedi Academy Trilogy, I think of Dewlanna.  This scene is the watershed moment that gives us the thinking and foundation for Han Solo, which makes this my 9^th favorite scene of all time, and that is your Star Wars Book Report.

Check out my blog at starwarsbookreport.com and explore the galaxy with me.  Also, send me any suggestions, questions, or ideas tojesse@starwarsbookreport.com I would love to hear from you.

Thanks for reading and a big thanks to Steve for allowing me to share my Star Wars thoughts.

Exploring the galaxy one page at a time,
Jesse

www.starwarsbookreport.com

I have this friend named Crevice.  Well, his real name is Matt, but I call him Crevice.  He calls me Crevice.  It’s complicated.

Crevice knew that I was going to see IRON MAN 2 at midnight last night, so he stopped by today to ask me what I thought.  His main question was, “Is it as good as the first one.”  My answer?  I don’t know.

IRON MAN 2 is a great movie.  The action is ramped up from the first movie.  The characters are all like friends that have been missed for a while.  The story is…well…it’s an Iron Man story.   The story…moves…

I liked the movie.  I really did.  But I think there are a few factors that may play into me being a bit more critical of the movie than I want to be.  Read on after the jump to see what you think.  Spoilers will be present and heavy, so you may want until you’ve seen it to read my full review.  I DO recommend that you see the movie.   Its one not to be missed…flaws and all.

To be fair, I don’t know that the movie has any flaws.   I guess I need to explain where any negativity about the movie may come from before I go on.

First, I think I’m getting too old to go see a movie at a midnight showing.   I was quite tired by the time the movie got going.  I honestly think I could have fallen asleep right there in my chair.  There was a time when I was disappointed if the theatre I frequent didn’t have a midnight showing for a new release.  I loved going to them.  I loved the atmosphere, the excitement, the struggle to hold a place in the front of the line to make sure I get my favorite seat.  Last night, I was just stressed about it all.  I was irritated at people for chattering during the previews.  It was too crowded for my tastes.  All the things I used to love…kinda irked me now.

Add to that the theatre was HOT.  I mean it was a situation where we were cozy when we first walked in, but by the middle of the movie I was uncomfortable HOT.

So, remember those factors as you read the rest of this review.

IRON MAN 2 is great.  You know the players.  Gwyneth Paltrow returns as Pepper Potts and does just as good as she did in the first film.  Robert Downey Jr. IS Tony Stark.   Even John Favreau  gives a good, fun performance as Happy Hogan.   The original cast is great.

Then there are the new additions.

First, there’s Scarlett Johansson as Natalie Rushman/Natasha Romanoff (aka The Black Widow).  While Johansson looks a little younger than I would expect Black Widow to look, she turns in a perfect performance as a high level spy posing as an assistant that rivals Pepper Potts in her ability to remain unflappable in the face of Tony Stark’s excessive lifestyle.   When she goes full on Black Widow, it is a sight to behold.  She is not someone to be trifled with, young or not.

Don Cheadle takes over the reins of Rhodey from Terrence Howard.  As anyone would expect, Cheadle does a great job.  He’s an outstanding actor.  Honestly, this role was the one I was the most worried about.   It’s always jarring when an actor steps into a role that was originally played by someone else, especially when Howard brought such a likeability to the character.   However, Cheadle turns in a performance with the right amount of light-heartedness, gravity, and toughness to the role.  It’s to be expected though.  Cheadle is quite an accomplished actor.

Not necessarily a new addition, but a role that wasn’t explored at all in the first film is Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury.  This becomes the first sticking point to me.  I LOVE Samuel L. Jackson.  I love his look as Nick Fury.  However,  there was just something with Jackson’s portrayal of Fury that felt off to me.  It was too much of what we’ve seen from Jackson before.  He was Sam Jackson…and Sam Jackson’s bad…but he just carried himself differently than I would expect Nck Fury to.

Mickey Rourke as Ivan Vanko (aka Whiplash) was scary.  A physicist that can kill you with his bare hands?  Seriously.  I never gave much consideration to the character of Whiplash.  In fact, the only comic I remember seeing HER (yes there was a female character called Whiplash in  the comics) was a Spider-Man comic in which he fought a group called the Femme Fatales.   There was also a male Whiplash, but I always considered both the male and female versions of the characters pretty throw away characters.  In fact, I don’t know that Whiplash or Backlash (same character different names) have had all that many appearances in the comics.   However, kudos to the writers of  IRON MAN 2 and Mickey Rourke for bringing this character out and making him scary and a worthy opponent to Tony Stark.  In fact, Whiplash becomes one of the more compelling villains that I’ve seen in a super hero movie to date.   He is a classic Marvel “I had a bad day and I intend to make people pay for it” type bad guy.

The story of  IRON MAN 2 is a great follow up to what we’ve already seen.  Essentially, Tony Stark has used Iron Man to bring a security to The United States that hasn’t been seen in years.  While I’m not sure how I feel about this aspect of the character, it certainly fits in with the Tony Stark we’ve been given throughout Civil War and it’s fallout in the Marvel comics.

Not only has Stark been doing great things as Iron Man, he is secretly dying because of Iron Man.  The element he uses to power his mini arc-reactor is poisoning his blood stream and slowly killing him.  So we are introduced to a Stark who is living like every day is his last.  He’s drinking it up, living it up, and eventually it all catches up to him.  It’s through this riotous living that Rhodey obtains the armor that is equipped with the weaponry of War Machine by Sam Rockwell’s Justin Hammer.

Rockwell, turns in a good performance as an industrialist who tries to be everything Tony Stark is, but seems to always fall just short of the mark.  This leads him to team up with Vanko to try and adapt Stark’s technology and turn it against him.  This is the classic Super Villain team up with a twist.  We don’t necessarily have two super villains in this movie, but we have the villain and his financier.

From the trailers, I could never quite tell how this movie was going to play out, and I really enjoyed that aspect of it.  After Whiplash first reveals himself to Tony and is arrested, you may think the rest of the movie is one big Hammer versus Stark kind of thing.  You would be wrong.   Thankfully, the trailers do NOT give away some of the best action beats or too much of the story.

I was pleasantly surprised at Whiplash’s evolution through the film, as well as Tony Stark’s.   Each character moved forward in their development appropriately, and the film felt like the natural next step.

The only issues I had with IRON MAN 2 had to do with pacing and editing.  When things are moving, they are moving, but when it’s time for dialogue and exposition things seemed to get very boggy.  There wasn’t the snappiness to the scenes that the first movie had.  I’m not sure if this is due to the nature of the scripting process of the first movie or the editing in this film, but there were moments where it felt like the movie slowed down too much, but wasn’t trying to.

A perfect example of this is Tony’s senate hearing.  What seems to be a great “gotcha” moment for Tony in the hearing in the trailers is actually a lot longer and Tony has a little less control than it would seem in the trailers.  The scene, while important, could have been edited to be a bit sharper.   This was true of many of the dialogue  scenes.

The other issue I had is just how much everything revolved around Stark’s technology.  We’ve already had the “dark reflection” of Iron Man in Obadiah Stane’s Iron Monger from the first film.  It felt like a bit of a retreading to use the tech all over again as the central point of conflict.

That said, what a great movie that I can’t wait to see again.  I don’t know if it’s better than the first, but it certainly is a great second outing.  I look forward to seeing it one afternoon in a well air conditioned theater with less people attending, and in a few months on Blu-Ray from the comfort of my own home.  If for no other reason that the awesome climactic battle.

IF NOTHING ELSE, Favreau and company nailed what the end of a super hero movie should be.  There was no action beat earlier in the movie that outdid the final “battle.”    That’s as it should be.  Too many movies focus on big visuals and spectacular fights early in the movie only to have a bit of  a disappointing ultimate climax.  Not IRON MAN 2.  From the appearance of War Machine to the take over by Vanko to Vanko’s Whiplash taking on Iron Man and War Machine, and then the explosion…OH MY LANTA!!!! Good Stuff.  Better than the first movie?  I have to go see it again.

Overall, I give the movie a solid 4 out of 5…which very well could change once I get to see it in a way that appeals to the old fogey in me.