Even Robert Downey Jr Thought IRON MAN 2 Was Disappointing

Great piece running over at the LA Times website with Robert Downey Jr revisiting and commenting on the most memorable movie roles of his now nearly forty year career (dude’s first appearance was in POUND way back in 1970). Fun stuff and highly suggest you click HERE to check out the entire article.

Bit that interested me the most, however, was RDJ admitting that IRON MAN 2 was a disappointment. Cribbed the quote for your reading pleasure. Here goes:

"The first one changed everything for me and with the second 'Iron Man' there were certain aspects that were dissatisfying and disappointing to me but at least they lit me right.... [The first one] was a meditation on responsibility and an exploration of how a small group of people can take a two-dimensional idea and, if the winds are right, create something that makes people say, 'That was my favorite movie of the year.' To me, Tony Stark's story is a karma story and a technology story. I love a good action movie - a Steve McQueen or Tom Cruise or Clint Eastwood, Bruce Willis or Mel Gibson in the right spot, and you smile and say, 'That's what this kind of movie is all about.' There were two times in my life I prepared for something manically, it was this and 'Chaplin.' I became the expert on this guy."

Yee-ouch. “Dissatisfying and disappointing“? “Least they lit me right”? That’s hard, but the man is entitled to his opinion.

The behind-the-scenes trouble on that flick was reportedly epic and actually led to a falling out between Downey and director Jon Favreau. Did you know that RDJ was the first choice for Favreau’s COWBOYS AND ALIENS? Yeah. Fights they had on the set of IRON MAN 2 led to RDJ dropping out and them not talking to each other until earlier this year. They’ve supposedly ironed (ha) out their problems ...but I doubt highly they’ll be working together again anytime soon.

Personally, I think IRON MAN 2 gets a bad rap. There was no way that it was going to be as good as the first film. The first IRON MAN was lightning in a bottle. There’s something magic about it that just connected with audiences. AngieBee (who loves the original with an unholy passion) and I actually went and saw it at theater eight times that year. Eight times! That’s crazy even by insane movie geek standards.

When the sequel rolled around, the hype was massive and audiences just didn’t go in with the right expectations. Well, to be more precise, comic geeks and movie nerds didn’t go in with the right expectations. I’ve spoke to a good deal of average moviegoers about IRON MAN 2 and most of them loved it as much as the original. Hit a nerd, geek, critic or fanboy up with it and they’ll start spouting off about how the S.H.I.E.L.D stuff didn’t mesh well and that the “Demon In The Bottle” storyline was truncated and disappointing. Nag, nag, nag.

I say get the f**k over it and be glad we got an IRON MAN sequel in the first place. First one could’ve tanked and ended the entire Marvel film series. IRON MAN 2 doing big business paved the way for THOR, CAPTAIN AMERICA and even THE AVENGERS. The time has come to recognize and respect.

And no offense to RDJ, IM2 rocked and he rocked in it. He needs to accept his awesomeness and quit whining.

[via LA Times]