| Iron Man 2 | |
|---|---|
Theatrical poster |
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| Directed by | Jon Favreau |
| Produced by | |
| Screenplay by | Justin Theroux |
| Based on | |
| Starring | |
| Music by | John Debney |
| Cinematography | Matthew Libatique |
| Editing by |
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| Studio |
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| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
| Release date(s) | April 26, 2010 (Los Angeles premiere) May 7, 2010 (United States) |
| Running time | 125 minutes[2] |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $170–200 million[3][4][5] |
| Box office | $623,933,331[6] |
Iron Man 2 is a 2010 American superhero film featuring the Marvel Comics character Iron Man, produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Paramount Pictures. It is the sequel to 2008's Iron Man, the second film in a planned trilogy[7] and is a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Directed by Jon Favreau, the film stars Robert Downey, Jr., who reprises his role as Tony Stark. In cinematic canon, it takes place six months after Iron Man, and directly before The Incredible Hulk[8] and Thor.
Stark has revealed his identity as Iron Man and is resisting calls by the United States government to hand over the technology. Ivan Vanko, meanwhile, has developed the same technology and built weapons of his own, creating new challenges for Stark.
Iron Man 2 premiered in Los Angeles, California, on April 26, 2010, and was then released in 54 countries between April 28 and April 30, 2010,[9] before going on general release in the United States on May 7, 2010.[9]
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Russian television shows Stark Industries CEO Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.) revealing his identity as Iron Man to the world. Ivan Vanko (Mickey Rourke), whose father, Anton Vanko (Yevgeni Lazarev), has just died, sees this and begins building a similar weapon.
Six months later, Stark has used his Iron Man armor to help maintain world peace. He re-institutes the Stark Expo in Flushing Meadows to continue his father Howard's legacy. Senator Stern (Garry Shandling) demands that Stark turn over the Iron Man technology to the government. Stark refuses, claiming that foreign nations and business competitors are decades away from successfully recreating his achievements, and that the armor is in fact his own property.
The palladium core in the arc reactor that keeps Stark alive and powers the armor is slowly poisoning him, and he has failed to find a substitute. Growing increasingly despondent and reckless due to his impending death, and choosing not to tell anyone about his condition, Stark appoints his personal assistant Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) CEO of Stark Industries, and replaces her with Stark employee Natalie Rushman (Scarlett Johansson).
Vanko attacks Stark while racing at the Circuit de Monaco, using an arc reactor of his own powering whip-like energy weapons. Stark defeats Vanko with the aid of his portable briefcase armor. He learns that Vanko is the son of his father's old partner, Anton Vanko. Anton collaborated with Howard on the first arc reactor, but was deported to his native Soviet Union following his attempts to profit from the technology and died in poverty, explaining Vanko's desire for revenge on the Stark family. Rival defense contractor Justin Hammer (Sam Rockwell) fakes Vanko's death and recruits him to perfect a line of armored combat suits to upstage Stark.
At what he believes is his last birthday party Stark gets drunk while using the Iron Man armor, forcing his friend, Air Force Lieutenant Colonel James Rhodes (Don Cheadle), to intervene. Rhodes dons Stark's Mark II armor and after battling him, delivers the armor to the military. Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), director of S.H.I.E.L.D., approaches Stark, revealing Rushman as undercover agent Natasha Romanoff and that Howard Stark was a S.H.I.E.L.D. founder that Fury knew personally. Fury gives him some of his father's old material; a hidden message in the diorama of the 1974 Stark Expo proves to be a diagram of the structure of a new element. With the aid of his computer J.A.R.V.I.S. (voiced by Paul Bettany), Stark synthesizes it. Vanko reveals to Stark that he is still alive and seeking revenge so Stark uses the untested element, removing his dependency on the palladium.
At the Expo, Hammer unveils Vanko's armored drones, led by Rhodes in a heavily weaponized version of the Mark II armor. Stark arrives in his new armor to warn Rhodes, but Vanko seizes control of both the drones and Rhodes' armor and attacks Iron Man. Hammer is arrested while Stark's bodyguard Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau) and Romanoff attempt to capture Vanko. He escapes, but Romanoff returns control of the Mark II armor to Rhodes.
After defeating his drones Stark and Rhodes confront Vanko himself, now in a new, very powerful suit of armor. Neither can match Vanko, but Vanko is ultimately defeated when they fire repulsor rays at each other, causing a large explosion. With his suit too damaged to continue the fight Vanko ignites his suit and his drones' self-destruct mechanisms, apparently killing himself in the process. Stark saves Potts from the exploding drones' remains. Potts quits as CEO, but she and Stark kiss.
At a debriefing, while news footage of the Hulk's rampage plays, Fury informs Stark that while Iron Man is a suitable candidate for the "Avengers Initiative", he himself is not. Stark agrees to be a consultant if Senator Stern presents himself and Rhodes with medals for bravery.
In a post-credits scene, S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Coulson (Clark Gregg) reports the discovery of a large hammer at the bottom of a crater in a New Mexico desert.
Jon Favreau reprises his role as Happy Hogan,[14] Tony Stark's bodyguard and chauffeur. John Slattery appears as Howard Stark, Tony's father.[15] Garry Shandling appears as United States Senator Stern, who wants Stark to give Iron Man's armor to the government.[16] Paul Bettany again voices Stark's computer, JARVIS.[17] Clark Gregg reprises his role as S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Phil Coulson from the first film.[18] Leslie Bibb also reprises her role as reporter Christine Everhart.[19] Olivia Munn appears as Chess Roberts,[20] a reporter covering the Stark expo. Munn originally filmed scenes that were later cut from the film but was asked back to film a different role. Robert Downey Jr. praised Munn for her improvisation skills and led the crew in a round of applause.[21] Stan Lee appears as himself (but is mistaken for Larry King).
Additionally, news anchor Christiane Amanpour[22] and political commentator Bill O'Reilly[23] play themselves in newscasts within the film. Adam Goldstein (a.k.a DJ AM) makes an appearance as himself and the film is dedicated in his memory.[8] Further cameos include CEO of Tesla Motors Elon Musk and CEO of Oracle Larry Ellison. Tanoai Reed from American Gladiators appears as a security guard.
Jon Favreau said it was originally his intent to create a film trilogy for Iron Man,[7] with Obadiah Stane (Jeff Bridges) becoming Iron Monger during the sequels. After a meeting between Favreau and various comic book writers, including Mark Millar, Stane became the main villain in Iron Man. Millar argued the Mandarin, whom Favreau originally intended to be the main villain, was too fantastical.[24] Favreau concurred, deciding, "I look at Mandarin more like how in Star Wars you had the Emperor, but Darth Vader is the guy you want to see fight. Then you work your way to the time when lightning bolts are shooting out of the fingers and all that stuff could happen. But you can't have what happened in Return of the Jedi happen in A New Hope. You just can't do it."[25]
Favreau discussed in interviews how the films' version of Iron Man's comic book nemesis the Mandarin "allows us to incorporate the whole pantheon of villains". He also mentioned that S.H.I.E.L.D. will continue to have a major role.[26]
During development, Favreau said the film would explore Stark's alcoholism, but it would not be "the 'Demon in a Bottle' version".[26] Downey said, while promoting the first film, that Stark would probably develop a drinking problem as he is unable to cope with his age, the effects of revealing he is Iron Man, as well as Pepper getting a boyfriend.[27] Before filming began, Downey revealed that while the film was not an adaptation of the '"Demon in a Bottle" storyline from the comic book series, it was more about the "interim space" between the origin and the "Demon" story arc.[12]
Justin Theroux signed to write the script in July 2008, which is based on a story written by Jon Favreau and Robert Downey, Jr.[28] Theroux co-wrote Tropic Thunder, and Downey recommended him to Marvel.[29] Genndy Tartakovsky storyboarded the film.[30] Shane Black gave some advice on the script, and suggested to Favreau and Downey that they model Stark on J. Robert Oppenheimer, who became depressed with being "the destroyer of worlds" after working on the Manhattan Project.[27] Adi Granov returned to supervise the designs for Iron Man's armor.[26] Filming primarily took place at Raleigh Studios in Manhattan Beach, California.[31]
Don Cheadle was cast as Rhodes, replacing Terrence Howard from the first film. Howard said, "There was no explanation, apparently the contracts that we write and sign aren't worth the paper that they're printed on sometimes. Promises aren't kept, and good faith negotiations aren't always held up."[32] Entertainment Weekly stated Favreau did not enjoy working with Howard, often re-shooting and cutting his scenes; Howard's publicist said he had a good experience playing the part, while Marvel chose not to comment. As Favreau and Theroux chose to minimize the role, Marvel came to Howard to discuss lowering his salary – Howard was the first actor hired in Iron Man and earned the largest salary of the cast. The publication stated they were unsure whether Howard's representatives left the project first or if Marvel chose to stop negotiating.[33] Theroux denied the part of the report stating "the role of War Machine was scaled back and then beefed up".[29] Cheadle only had a few hours to accept the role and did not even know what storyline Rhodes would undergo.[34] He commented he is a comic book fan, but had not previously participated in comics-themed films due to the lack of black superheroes.[35] Cheadle said he thought Iron Man was a robot before the first film came out.[11]
Mickey Rourke was cast as Ivan Vanko, a physicist and ex-convict who builds his own arc reactor-based weapon to exact vengeance on the Stark family. The character is an amalgamation of Iron Man villains Blacklash (originally known as Whiplash) and the Crimson Dynamo, and is the son of impoverished Soviet physicist Anton Vanko, the original Crimson Dynamo in the comics.[36] Downey offered Rourke the part during a roundtable discussion with David Ansen at the 2009 Golden Globes, and Rourke met with Favreau and Theroux to discuss his character's role. Rourke almost dropped out of the role due to Marvel's initial salary offer of $250,000, so the studio chose to increase the deal.[37] Rourke researched for the part by visiting Butyrka prison.[38] He suggested half of the character's dialogue be in Russian.[39] Rourke suggested the addition of tattoos, gold teeth and a fondness for a pet cockatoo, paying for the teeth and bird out of his own money.[40] Rourke explained he didn't want to play a "one-dimensional bad guy" and wanted to challenge the audience to see something redeemable in him. Not knowing anything about computers himself Rourke described pretending to be tech-savvy as the hardest part of the role.[11][41]
Sam Rockwell was considered for the role of Tony Stark in the first film, and he accepted the role of Hammer without reading the script.[42] He had never heard of the character before he was contacted about the part, and was unaware Hammer is an old man in the comics, whereas in the film he is closer to Stark's age.[43] Rockwell says his character is "plucky comic relief, but he's got a little bit of an edge".[44] Scarlett Johansson was cast as Natalie Rushman / Natasha Romanoff after a scheduling conflict, a previous commitment to Gulliver's Travels forced Emily Blunt to drop out of the part.[45] Samuel L. Jackson initially balked at the salary Marvel offered and was unsure about reprising the part of Fury until reaching a deal that would entail his appearance in up to nine films as the character.[46]
Actress Olivia Munn said she had been given a different part than originally and that reshoots involving her scenes had taken place: "Actually, they just gave me another role in the film. I had to re-shoot all of my scenes.... as they started to edit they realized it was becoming darker than what they'd expected and what my scenes had allowed for. My parts were lighthearted and comedic. Jon Favreau called and was like, 'I've got good news and bad news: This is what's happening in editing but we all really like you.' Marvel and Jon had to add another character from the Marvel universe to keep me included".[47]
Principal photography began April 6, 2009,[12] at the Pasadena Masonic Temple. The fake working title was Rasputin.[48] Filming also took place at Edwards Air Force Base.[49]
A post-credits scene depicting the discovery of a large hammer was filmed on the set of Thor, and some of it was reused in the film.[8] Jon Favreau revealed that the scene was filmed with anamorphic lenses to match Thor.[8]
The Historic Grand Prix of Monaco action sequence had to be shot in the parking lot of Downey Studios, after permission to film prior to the 2009 Monaco Grand Prix was initially awarded but later retracted by Bernie Ecclestone. The filmmakers did ship one Rolls-Royce Phantom there, and filmed a track sequence in which race cars were later digitally added. Stark's Grand Prix racer was partially based on a 1978 Walter Wolf race car powered by a Chevrolet small-block engine. Tanner Foust took on the role of driving Stark's racing car.
Visual effects and computer interfaces by Perception, including gadgets such as Tony Stark's transparent LG smartphone. They created the backdrops for the Stark Expo as well as the computer screen interfaces such as the touch-screen coffee table, and holographic lab environment.[50][51][52]
An Iron Man 2 soundtrack album featuring AC/DC was released by Columbia Records on April 19, 2010.[53] There are at least three different versions: basic, special, and deluxe. The basic edition includes solely the CD; the special edition contains a 15-track CD, a 32-page booklet, and a DVD featuring interviews, behind-the-scenes footage, and music videos; and the deluxe also includes a reproduction of one of Iron Man's first comic book appearances. Only 2 songs on the soundtrack actually appear in the movie.
Although not included on the soundtrack album the film includes songs by The Average White Band, The Clash, Queen, Daft Punk, 2Pac, and Beastie Boys.[54]
Iron Man 2: Original Motion Picture Score was released on July 20, 2010, featuring 25 tracks. John Debney composed the musical score for Iron Man 2 along with Tom Morello.[55]
At the 2009 San Diego Comic Con, a five-minute teaser trailer for the movie was shown. Actors portraying Stark Industries recruiters handed out business cards with an invitation to apply for a job at Stark Industries.[56] A website for Stark Industries also went online, with an attached graphic of a "napkin memo" from Tony Stark to Pepper Potts announcing that Stark Industries no longer made weapons. Another section featured an online application.[57] It was confirmed that the first Iron Man 2 theatrical trailer would premiere in front of Sherlock Holmes (another Robert Downey, Jr. film). This trailer was released online on December 16, 2009. A new trailer was shown by Robert Downey, Jr. on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on March 7 after the Academy Awards.[58] Promotional partners include Symantec, Dr Pepper, Burger King, 7 Eleven, Audi, LG Electronics,[59] and Hershey.[60]
Author Alexander C. Irvine adapted the script into a novel that was released in April 2010.[61]
A video game based on the film was released by Sega on May 4, 2010 in North America,[62] written by The Invincible Iron Man scribe Matt Fraction.[63] The game's Comic Con trailer showed that the Crimson Dynamo is set to appear as a villain. The Wii version was developed by High Voltage Software and all console versions is published by Sega.[64] Don Cheadle and Samuel L. Jackson voice their respective characters in the video games.[65] The trailer revealed that A.I.M, Roxxon Energy Corporation, and Ultimo (depicted as man named Kearson DeWitt in a large armor) are enemies in the game as well as reveal that the wearer of the Crimson Dynamo armor is General Valentin Shatalov.[66] The game has received generally unfavorable reviews, with Metacritic scores of 46%[67] and 47%[68] for the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions respectively.
Gameloft has published the Iron Man 2 mobile game.[69]
Several months prior to the release of the film, Marvel Comics released a four issue miniseries titled Iron Man vs Whiplash as a tie-in to the movie. The series introduced a new version of Whiplash that was heavily inspired by the movie's portrayal, as Marvel's existing versions of the character had little resemblance to the movie's depiction.A three issue miniseries titled Iron Man 2: Public Identity was released in April which serves as a prequel of the events of the movie.
The international release date of the film was moved forward to increase interest ahead of the FIFA World Cup soccer tournament.[70]
Since the film was included in a premeditated legacy distribution deal that was signed before the Walt Disney Company purchased Marvel, Paramount Pictures was able to acquire 8% of the box office sales, while the remaining portion went to Disney.[3][71]
Upon its release, Iron Man 2 was the first film produced by Marvel Studios to feature a small logo imprinted above its title on the official poster. The logo simply read Marvel Studios'.
The film was released in Blu-ray Disc and DVD on September 28, 2010.[72]
Reception for the film has been positive. It holds a 74% overall approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 264 reviews with an average rating of 6.5/10,[73] with the selected Top Critics giving the film a score of 65% based on 37 reviews[74] and the film is "Certified Fresh", with the critical consensus that "It isn't quite the breath of fresh air that Iron Man was, but this sequel comes close with solid performances and an action-packed plot".[73] Metacritic gave the film 57% based on a normalized rating of 40 reviews.[75]
Positive reviewers include Brian Lowry of Variety who stated, "Iron Man 2 isn't as much fun as its predecessor, but by the time the smoke clears, it'll do".[76] Anthony Lane of The New Yorker said, "To find a comic-book hero who doesn't agonize over his supergifts, and would defend his constitutional right to get a kick out of them, is frankly a relief".[77] David Edelstein of New York Magazine wrote, "It doesn't come close to the emotional heft of those two rare 2s that outclassed their ones: Superman II and Spider-Man 2. But Iron Man 2 hums along quite nicely".[78] Roger Ebert gave it 3 stars out of 4, stating that "Iron Man 2 is a polished, high-octane sequel, not as good as the original but building once again on a quirky performance by Robert Downey Jr".[79] Frank Lovece of Film Journal International, a one-time Marvel Comics writer, said that, "In a refreshing and unexpected turn, the sequel to Iron Man doesn't find a changed man. Inside the metal, imperfect humanity grows even more so, as thought-provoking questions of identity meet techno-fantasy made flesh."[80]
Critics of the film include Kirk Honeycutt of The Hollywood Reporter, who stated, "Everything fun and terrific about Iron Man, a mere two years ago, has vanished with its sequel. In its place, Iron Man 2 has substituted noise, confusion, multiple villains, irrelevant stunts and misguided story lines."[81]
Iron Man 2 launched internationally with number-one openings on Wednesday, April 28, 2010, in six European markets for a total $2.2 million from 960 venues.[82] It earned $100.2 million its first five days from 6,764 theaters in 53 foreign markets for a strong average of $14,814 per site.[4] IMAX Corporation reported that the film grossed $2.25 million at 48 IMAX theaters overseas, for an average of $46,875. This surpassed the previous record-holder for an IMAX 2D release, 2009's Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen ($2.1 million).[83]
The film grossed $128,122,480 in its opening weekend in United States at 4,380 theaters, marked as the fifth highest opening weekend ever, at the time, behind The Dark Knight, Spider-Man 3, The Twilight Saga: New Moon, and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest. It also had the highest opening for a movie in 2010.[84] The film had an average of $29,252 per theater. It grossed $51,239,677 in its opening day and is the eleventh highest opening day on record.[85] Iron Man 2 generated $9.8 million from 181 IMAX venues. This is the highest opening weekend for a 2D film in IMAX, surpassing Star Trek's previous record of $8.5 million.[86]
Iron Man 2 closed in theaters on August 19, 2010. It grossed $312,433,331 in North America as well as $311,500,000 internationally, giving the film a worldwide total of $623,933,331.[4] Iron Man 2 is the third-highest grossing film of 2010 in the United States and Canada, behind Toy Story 3 and Alice in Wonderland.[87] It is also seventh-highest grossing film of 2010 internationally, behind Toy Story 3, Alice in Wonderland, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1, Inception, Shrek Forever After, and The Twilight Saga: Eclipse.[88]
Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige said he is happy with the results of Iron Man 2 and predicted that Iron Man 3 will be in theaters by 2013. "We do have a contract with Robert Downey, Jr. to do it, and it will come after The Avengers", Feige said.[89] Jon Favreau said that although the character may need reworking, the Mandarin would be in the third film. The director said, "The problem with the Mandarin is that the way it's depicted in the comic books, you don't want to see that. He has 10 magical rings – that just doesn't feel right for our [franchise]. So it's either tech-based, or the rings are not really rings."[90]
After the release of Iron Man 2, a conflict between Paramount Pictures, which has distribution rights to certain Marvel properties, and The Walt Disney Company, Marvel Entertainment's new corporate parent, clouded the timing and the distribution arrangement of a possible third film.[91] On October 18, 2010, however, Walt Disney Pictures agreed to pay Paramount at least $115 million for the worldwide distribution rights to Iron Man 3 and The Avengers.[92] Disney, Marvel, and Paramount announced a May 3, 2013 release date for Iron Man 3.[93] Favreau said in December 2010 that he would not direct Iron Man 3, opting to direct Magic Kingdom instead. He remained an executive producer of director Joss Whedon's planned spin-off film The Avengers.[94] Shane Black is scheduled to direct Iron Man 3,[95] from a screenplay by Drew Pearce.[96]
| Year | Award | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Hollywood Film Award | Visual Effects of the Year | Won |
| Satellite Award | Best Sound (Mixing & Editing) | Nominated | |
| Best Visual Effects | Nominated | ||
| Teen Choice Award | Choice Movie Fight/Action Sequence:
Don Cheadle, Robert Downey Jr. (Iron Man & War Machine vs The Hammer Drones) |
Nominated | |
| Choice Movie Villain: Mickey Rourke | Nominated | ||
| Choice Movie Dance: Robert Downey Jr. | Nominated | ||
| 2011 | People's Choice Award | Favorite Action Movie | Won |
| Favorite Movie | Nominated | ||
| Favorite Movie Actor: Robert Downey Jr. | Nominated | ||
| Favorite Action Star: Robert Downey Jr. | Nominated | ||
| Favorite On-Screen Team:
Robert Downey, Jr. & Don Cheadle |
Nominated | ||
| 83rd Academy Awards | Best Visual Effects | Nominated | |
| 37th Saturn Awards | Best Science Fiction Film | Nominated | |
| Best Actor (Robert Downey Jr.) | Nominated | ||
| Best Supporting Actress (Scarlett Johansson) | Nominated | ||
| Best Special Effects | Nominated |
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