'Iron Man 2' is another high-quality, comic book-based movie

A few days ago, I had the pleasure of finally getting to watch “Iron Man 2,” and I enjoyed seeing another high-quality, comic book-based movie on the big screen.

Released nationwide on May 7, this movie is the sequel to 2008’s “Iron Man,” and the events in “Iron Man 2” take place about six months after the events in the first movie.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with the comic book hero, Iron Man, he was created by comic book legends Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, Don Heck and Jack Kirby and first appeared in March 1963 in Issue No. 39 of “Tales of Suspense.” Iron Man’s “real” name is Anthony “Tony” Stark, who’s not only a billionaire industrialist playboy, but also an engineering genius. Stark’s greatest invention is a suit of body armor that gives him superhuman strength, the ability to fly and a wide variety of high tech weapons.

In “Iron Man 2,” Stark has revealed his secret identity to the public, which makes his a target by a few of the bad guys he’s cross paths with in the past, including a rival industrialist who wants to bring down Tony’s company, Stark Enterprises. This rival defense contractor, Justin Hammer, recruits Stark-hater, Ivan Vanko, who does battle with Iron Man with his signature whip-like energy weapons.

In this movie, Robert Downey Jr. returns in the role of Tony Stark/Iron Man. Other stars in the movie include Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Samuel L. Jackson, Garry Shandling and Mickey Rourke. There were also a number of other cameo appearances in the movie too, including Stan Lee and Seth Green. Jon Favreau directed the movie, which was based on a screenplay written by Justin Theroux, who is best known for his work on another Downey film, “Tropic Thunder.”

“Iron Man 2” was a huge financial success. The shooting budget was somewhere between $170 and $200 million, and the film brought in estimated gross revenues of $621.8 million. The film grossed $128.1 million in its opening weekend, making it the fifth highest opening weekend movie of all-time.

For those of you who enjoyed this movie, you’ll be happy to hear that plans are in the works for “Iron Man 3,” which will likely be released in 2013.

“Iron Man 2” also included a number of references to other upcoming comic book-based movies, including “The Avengers” and “Thor.” “The Avengers” is scheduled for release in May 2012, and “Thor” is scheduled for release in May 2011. In fact, if you watch “Iron Man 2” through the end of the final credits, you’ll see an after-credits scene in which S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Phil Coulson discovers Thor’s hammer, the mythical “Mjolnir,” in the middle of the desert.

In the end, I really enjoyed “Iron Man 2.” It’s action-packed and chock full of cutting edge, sci-fi special effects. If you liked the first “Iron Man,” you’ll love the second one, and if you’re like me, you’ll be eagerly awaiting the release of “Iron Man 3.”

How many of you have had a chance to see "Iron Man 2"? What did you think about it? What did you like about the movie? What did you dislike? Let us know in the comments section below.