Firstly, I should say that I loved first IRONMAN movie. Indeed in many respects it raised the bar for future comic / action hero movies. Like the revised Batman movies it was not afraid to be a bit darker, particularly the origin story at the beginning of IRONMAN 1.

Sadly the sequel has none of that. I'd say the studio executives wanted something that would appeal to everyone and unfortunately they got it. It's a Magnolia paint of a movie.

Why? Well whilst I did care about Tony Stark in the first movie, I did not connect with any of the characters this time around. The director features too much in the movie. The comedy is slightly overdone. Finally, the bad guys: an arms dealing moron and a Cape Fear bad guy reject just did not provide any sense of suspense. Not in the same why Jeff Bridges did. Pity because both actors could do better with better material.

On the whole the special effects are good but the plot, script and story are poor.