---
title: "Iron Man 2"
year: 2010
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/iron-man-2"
fi1m_score: 56
critics_score: 53
critics_reviews: 17
published: "2026-09-19T11:48:43.479257+00:00"
updated: "2026-09-19T11:48:55.246306+00:00"
region: "US"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Iron Man 2 (2010)

Directed by Jon Favreau · 2h 04m · MPA PG-13 · Adventure, Action, Science Fiction

**Fi1m score: 56** · Critics 53 from 17 reviews

*In a sentence:* Tony Stark is being poisoned by his own chest and still cannot get the film’s attention

> Robert Downey Jr. is still the best reason to watch, and Sam Rockwell and Mickey Rourke give him company for a bright first hour. Then Jon Favreau’s sequel stops to introduce people it will need later, and never quite gets going again.

## Synopsis

Six months after telling the world he is Iron Man, Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) opens the Stark Expo in New York and is called before a Senate committee, where Senator Stern (Garry Shandling) wants the armour handed to the government and rival contractor Justin Hammer (Sam Rockwell) waits his turn to testify. Stark refuses, and does not mention that the palladium in the reactor keeping him alive is slowly poisoning him. He makes Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) chief executive, takes on a new assistant, Natalie Rushman (Scarlett Johansson), and drinks more than he should. In a Moscow flat, Ivan Vanko (Mickey Rourke), whose father has just died, builds a reactor of his own and a pair of electrified whips, and takes them to the Monaco Grand Prix, where Stark has decided to drive.

## Review

Jon Favreau’s sequel runs 124 minutes and has, at its centre, a good idea for one. Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) has told the world he is Iron Man, and the reactor keeping the shrapnel out of his heart is now poisoning him with palladium. Nobody else knows, and Justin Theroux’s script lets him behave accordingly: worse than usual, faster than usual, funnier than usual. A film about a showman dying in public would have been enough, and this one keeps wandering off to fetch other people.

For the first hour it hardly matters. The Senate hearing is the best scene in the film: Stark commandeers the committee’s own screens, Senator Stern (Garry Shandling) slowly reddens, and Dan Lebental and Richard Pearson cut the exchange so that Downey’s lines land on Shandling’s face rather than his own. We laughed out loud, more than once, because Theroux writes chatter that overlaps and Downey plays a man being clever to avoid a conversation he cannot have.

Sam Rockwell arrives at the same hearing as Justin Hammer, a rival contractor who has bought all the same things as Stark and cannot make any of them work. Mary Zophres dresses him a fraction too shiny, Rockwell plays him a fraction too eager, and for whole scenes he is funnier than the hero. Mickey Rourke is another matter. The film opens in a Moscow flat, where Ivan Vanko watches Stark’s announcement on television while his father dies in the next room, then spends months building a reactor of his own with a cockatoo for company. Matthew Libatique lights it in sodium orange, Rourke hardly speaks, and we found him the one frightening thing in the picture. The film then forgets about him for long stretches.

Monaco is the other reason to be here. Stark decides to drive in the Grand Prix himself, and Vanko walks onto the circuit with two electrified whips and cuts a car in half. Favreau stages it in hard afternoon sunlight, Libatique keeps the camera low to the track, and for once in this kind of film we can see who is where and what will happen if he is not moved. We sat up, and it was the last time the film asked us to.

After Monaco the film sits down. Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) is made chief executive and given a company to run in the background. Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and Agent Coulson (Clark Gregg) arrive with a box and a lecture. Each scene exists to hand Tony something he will need later, or to hand a film that has not been made yet something it will need. We were bored, and then cross about being bored, because there is a dying man in the middle of this picture and it keeps asking him to wait while somebody reads him a brochure. John Debney’s score fills the gaps with brass that also sounds as if it is waiting.

The rest of the cast do what they can. Don Cheadle plays Rhodey as the only sober person in Stark’s life, and his exasperation is sometimes ours. Scarlett Johansson is given one corridor and makes it count. J. Michael Riva’s production design gives Hammer a factory full of things that nearly work, which is the right joke, and gives Stark a house that looks like an airport lounge. The finale, which we will not describe, is loud, set at night and clear enough about where everyone is, and none of it matters as much as the thing in Stark’s chest, which the film deals with in a hurry.

Favreau’s first [*Iron Man*](https://film.one/film/iron-man), from 2008, worked because it was about one man, first in a cave and then in a garage, building a thing. This one has more of everything and less of him. Most critics landed about where we have, caught between the cast and the plotting, and we do not think they are wrong.

It is a 12A, and younger viewers who liked the first film will be happy enough. Older company should know that the middle hour is mostly people in rooms telling Tony Stark about other people, and that the first hour is the one to give your full attention.

*Fi1m score 56, published 19 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

The reviews lean mixed, and almost everyone agrees on what keeps the film upright: Robert Downey Jr. Critics describe his Tony Stark as the reason to watch, with the banter between him and Gwyneth Paltrow singled out as the liveliest material on offer. Sam Rockwell and Mickey Rourke draw steady praise as the villains, and more than one reviewer names the Monaco Grand Prix sequence as the set piece that works without reservation.

The complaints cluster around the story. Most critics find it overstuffed: too many characters, too many plotlines, and a long stretch of exposition in the middle that exists to prepare for later films rather than to serve this one. Nearly every review calls it a drop from the first film. The spread is wide, from warm notices in The Guardian and at RogerEbert.com to an outright dismissal in The Hollywood Reporter, which finds nothing of the original left.

### Reviews we read (17)

- **RogerEbert.com**, Roger Ebert (3/4): The film is a polished but lesser sequel that succeeds mainly due to Robert Downey Jr.'s cocky, egotistical performance as Tony Stark, whose private health crisis adds tension. It delivers expected action and humor but lacks surprises and raises questions about the suits' physical toll on the wearer. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/iron-man-2-2010)
- **The Guardian**, Peter Bradshaw (75/100, inferred): The critic praises Robert Downey Jr's performance as Tony Stark, noting he was born to play the role, and highlights the film's efficient spectacle and funny scenes, while acknowledging it is a cheerful sequel. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/apr/29/iron-man-2-film-review)
- **Vulture**, David Edelstein (70/100, inferred): The critic describes the film as a stylized screwball comedy that succeeds in delivering entertainment value despite high expectations and a large budget. It avoids the trap of feeling like money was wasted on a subpar movie. [Read](https://www.vulture.com/2010/05/edelstein_on_iron_man_2_a_styl.html)
- **The New Yorker**, Anthony Lane (65/100, inferred): The movie celebrates a narcissistic hero without pandering to him, thanks to alert dialogue and strong comic performances from Downey, Paltrow, Rockwell, and others that turn flirtation and banter into highlights. It stalls under dead plot weight and unnecessary fights, leaving the hero (and viewer) bored despite the fun cast and direction. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2010/05/10/fighting-form)
- **Screen Daily** (60/100, inferred): The critic notes the film's strong box-office potential due to cast and effects but points to a diluted, scattershot story from multiple storylines as a drawback; praises its glossy and noisy entertainment value. [Read](https://www.screendaily.com/iron-man-2/5013179.article)
- **Time Out**, Tom Huddleston (3/5): The review praises the strong opening with crackling dialogue and effects but criticizes the convoluted plot, too many characters, and weak finale that makes the film uneven overall. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/iron-man-2-1)
- **Variety**, Brian Lowry (60/100, inferred): It isn’t as much fun as the first film, with more familiar beats, uneven pacing, and a flabby midsection, but the final action delivers and Downey remains a charm. It feels more duty-bound and industrial than inspired, though it should still satisfy audiences as a money-making machine. [Read](https://variety.com/2010/film/reviews/iron-man-2-1117942625/)
- **Los Angeles Times**, Kenneth Turan (50/100, inferred): As sequels go, this is acceptable but nothing more—a haphazard effort from talented people that benefits from Theroux's humor and strong supporting turns, especially Rourke's scenery-chewing villain and Rockwell's slimeball. Battles feel pro forma, some performers are underused, and it caters too much to the fanboy base at the expense of broader appeal. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2010-may-06-la-et-ironman2-20100506-story.html)
- **Little White Lies**, Dan Brightmore (3/2/2): The critic finds the sequel a below-par follow-up lacking the original's surprise and burdened by setup for future films. They single out the lack of action and excessive exposition as major complaints. [Read](https://lwlies.com/reviews/iron-man-2/)
- **Empire**, Nick de Semlyen (30/100, inferred): The critic calls it one of the breeziest blockbusters but finds it inessential, over-busy and mechanical overall, with little emotional heft despite strong charisma from the cast. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/iron-man-2-review/)
- **Slant Magazine**, Nick Schager (30/100, inferred): The critic argues that the sequel suffers from subtraction by addition, piling on too many incidents, characters, and villains while skimping on meaningful action and emotional depth. The result is a shallow, unfocused spectacle lacking the moral center and inventiveness of the first film. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/iron-man-2/)
- **The Hollywood Reporter**, Kirk Honeycutt (10/100, inferred): The critic finds that everything enjoyable about the first film has vanished, replaced by noise, confusion, multiple villains, irrelevant stunts, and misguided storylines. The sequel relies too heavily on tedious CGI fights and lacks the focus and personality that made the original stand out. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/iron-man-2-film-review-29527/)
- **/Film**, Russ Fischer (7/10): Downey Jr., Rockwell and Rourke bring strong personality that carries the film through its shaky story. The charismatic performances make up for narrative weaknesses in this summer tentpole. [Read](https://www.slashfilm.com/508980/iron-man-2-review-downey-and-rockwell-power-through-a-tangled-tale/)
- **Den of Geek**, Simon Brew (3/5): The critic says it can't quite recapture the first film's magic but is still a fun, ambitious blockbuster with strong action sequences like the Monaco GP one and solid performances from Downey Jr. and others. Praise for Favreau's handling of action. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/iron-man-2-review-2/)
- **HeyUGuys**, Gary Phillips (60/100, inferred): The film just about pulls it off despite being strangely paced with long exposition and contrived storylines aimed at setting up The Avengers. Mickey Rourke and Sam Rockwell stand out as the best elements in an otherwise uneven sequel. [Read](https://www.heyuguys.com/review-iron-man-2/)
- **NME**, Stuart McGurk (6/10): The film puts too much emphasis on witty script and character development at the expense of action set pieces, leading to a sagging middle; it has a strong start and finale but feels overlong and like an ad for The Avengers. [Read](https://www.nme.com/reviews/reviews-movie-11259-310466)
- **Digital Spy**, Simon Reynolds (40/100, inferred): It is flabby, unfocused and dull in places due to too much plot and set-up for Avengers, though entertaining in parts like the Monaco sequence and Johansson's action. Significant drop from the first film. [Read](https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a217005/iron-man-2-review/)

## Details

- **Director:** Jon Favreau
- **Director:** Jon Favreau
- **Screenplay:** Justin Theroux
- **Cinematography:** Matthew Libatique
- **Editor:** Richard Pearson, Dan Lebental
- **Music:** John Debney
- **Production design:** J. Michael Riva
- **Costume design:** Mary Zophres
- **Producer:** Kevin Feige
- **Cast:** Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark; Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts; Don Cheadle as Lt. Col. James 'Rhodey' Rhodes; Scarlett Johansson as Natalie Rushman / Natasha Romanoff; Sam Rockwell as Justin Hammer; Mickey Rourke as Ivan Vanko; Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury; Clark Gregg as Agent Coulson
- **Runtime:** 2h 04m
- **Certificate (MPA):** PG-13
- **Release (the US):** 7 May 2010
- **Genres:** Adventure, Action, Science Fiction
- **Budget:** $200 million
- **Box office:** $624 million
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fUQkLdJ2kE

## Where to watch in the US

- Disney+: streaming, uhd
- Hulu: streaming, hd, leaving 2026-10-01
- Apple TV: rent $3.99, hd
- Amazon Prime Video: rent $3.99, uhd
- Amazon Prime Video: buy $19.99, uhd
- Apple TV: buy $19.99, hd

*Checked 2026-09-19.*

Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EC, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HR, HU, IE, IL, IS, IT, JP, KR, LT, MX, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PE, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, SI, TR, UA, US, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## Awards

- Academy Awards 2011: Best Visual Effects (nominated)
- BET Award for Best Actor 2011: BET Award for Best Actor (nominated)
- EDA Special Mention Award for Sequel That Shouldn't Have Been Made 2011: EDA Special Mention Award for Sequel That Shouldn't Have Been Made (nominated)
- Film and Television Music Award for Top Box Office Films 2011: Film and Television Music Award for Top Box Office Films (won)
- Golden Reel Award for Best Sound Editing - Sound Effects and Foley in a Feature Film 2011: Golden Reel Award for Best Sound Editing - Sound Effects and Foley in a Feature Film (nominated)
- Golden Schmoes for Best Sci-Fi Movie of the Year 2011: Golden Schmoes for Best Sci-Fi Movie of the Year (nominated)
- Golden Schmoes for Best Special Effects of the Year 2011: Golden Schmoes for Best Special Effects of the Year (nominated)
- Golden Schmoes for Best T&A of the Year 2011: Golden Schmoes for Best T&A of the Year (nominated)
- Golden Schmoes for Biggest Disappointment of the Year 2011: Golden Schmoes for Biggest Disappointment of the Year (won)
- Italian Online Movie Award for Best Special Effects 2011: Italian Online Movie Award for Best Special Effects (nominated)
- Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Butt Kicker 2011: Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Butt Kicker (nominated)
- MTV Movie Award for Best Villain 2011: MTV Movie Award for Best Villain (nominated)
- People's Choice Award for Favorite Action Movie 2011: People's Choice Award for Favorite Action Movie (won)
- Saturn Awards 2011: Best Actor (nominated); Best Science Fiction Film (nominated); Best Special Effects (nominated); Best Supporting Actress (nominated)
- SFX Award for Best Actor 2011: SFX Award for Best Actor (nominated)
- VES Award for Outstanding Created Environment in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture 2011: VES Award for Outstanding Created Environment in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture (nominated)
- VES Award for Outstanding Models and Miniatures in a Feature Motion Picture 2011: VES Award for Outstanding Models and Miniatures in a Feature Motion Picture (nominated)
- Visual Effects Society Award for Outstanding Visual Effects in an Effects Driven Feature Motion Picture 2011: Visual Effects Society Award for Outstanding Visual Effects in an Effects Driven Feature Motion Picture (nominated)
- Best of 2010 Award for Best Comic-Book Adaptation 2010: Best of 2010 Award for Best Comic-Book Adaptation (nominated)
- California on Location Award for Location Team of the Year - Features 2010: California on Location Award for Location Team of the Year - Features (nominated)
- Hollywood Film Award for Visual Effects of the Year 2010: Hollywood Film Award for Visual Effects of the Year (won)
- HPA Award for Outstanding Compositing – Feature Film 2010: HPA Award for Outstanding Compositing – Feature Film (nominated)
- People's Choice Award for Favorite Action Star 2010: People's Choice Award for Favorite Action Star (nominated)
- People's Choice Award for Favorite Movie 2010: People's Choice Award for Favorite Movie (nominated)
- People's Choice Award for Favorite Movie Actor 2010: People's Choice Award for Favorite Movie Actor (nominated)
- People's Choice Award for Favorite On-Screen Team 2010: People's Choice Award for Favorite On-Screen Team (nominated)
- Satellite Award for Best Sound 2010: Satellite Award for Best Sound (nominated)
- Satellite Award for Best Visual Effects 2010: Satellite Award for Best Visual Effects (nominated)
- Scream Award for Best Cameo 2010: Scream Award for Best Cameo (nominated)
- Scream Award for Best Comic Book Movie 2010: Scream Award for Best Comic Book Movie (nominated)
- Scream Award for Best Ensemble 2010: Scream Award for Best Ensemble (nominated)
- Scream Award for Best F/X 2010: Scream Award for Best F/X (nominated)
- Scream Award for Best Science Fiction Actor 2010: Scream Award for Best Science Fiction Actor (nominated)
- Scream Award for Best Science Fiction Actress 2010: Scream Award for Best Science Fiction Actress (won)
- Scream Award for Best Science Fiction Movie 2010: Scream Award for Best Science Fiction Movie (nominated)
- Scream Award for Best Superhero 2010: Scream Award for Best Superhero (won)
- Scream Award for Best Supporting Actor 2010: Scream Award for Best Supporting Actor (nominated)
- Scream Award for Best Villain 2010: Scream Award for Best Villain (won)
- Scream Award for Fight Scene of the Year 2010: Scream Award for Fight Scene of the Year (nominated)
- Scream Award for the Ultimate Scream 2010: Scream Award for the Ultimate Scream (nominated)
- Teen Choice Award for Best Villain 2010: Teen Choice Award for Best Villain (nominated)
- Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Actor - Sci-Fi/Fantasy 2010: Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Actor - Sci-Fi/Fantasy (nominated)
- Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Actress - Sci-Fi/Fantasy 2010: Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Actress - Sci-Fi/Fantasy (nominated)
- Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Dance 2010: Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Dance (nominated)
- Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Fight/Action Sequence 2010: Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Fight/Action Sequence (nominated)
- Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie - Sci-Fi/Fantasy 2010: Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie - Sci-Fi/Fantasy (nominated)

## If you liked this

- *Iron Man* (2008), Fi1m 80: The one where he builds it in a cave; smaller, and better for it. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/iron-man.md)
- *Kiss Kiss Bang Bang* (2005), Fi1m 79: Downey talking his way out of trouble in a plot that actually holds together. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/kiss-kiss-bang-bang.md)
- *RoboCop* (1987), Fi1m 91: A man in a metal suit, a corporation that owns him, and real jokes. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/robocop.md)
- *Tucker: The Man and His Dream* (1988): Coppola on an American showman-inventor undone by the men in suits.
- *Tetsuo: The Iron Man* (1989), Fi1m 82: The other Iron Man, from Japan: no quips, no money, and considerably more frightening. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/tetsuo-the-iron-man.md)

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© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/iron-man-2