Iron Man 2: At the Core of It

I quite enjoyed the original cut at the time, but this edit strengthens the narrative, diminishing the nagging from Pepper and the more obnoxious Hammer moments. The deleted scenes and audio mixing are very well integrated...some scenes transition through weird Star Wars-like wipes which feel out of place in an MCU film (it's weird the editor chose not to run these other moments by the suppor in his project's main thread, when they had been instrumental in getting him to sort out another transition, dropping the wipe altogether for that one scene), there was nothing visually or audibly wrong here regardless, but it is a bit funky. There are ways in which to transition spotlessly without resorting to wipes, but I'll let it slide if he had no alternative.

Massive improvement over the original! Keeping the focus on the main issue of Tony and his heart really helps this movie. I really dislike the abundant marvel-humor and this cuts it down just right. The deleted scenes could use some color correction as it was pretty easy to spot, but n0t a huge deal. This was a great experience that absolutely replaces the original.

I've always struggled with Iron Man 2 as it always felt overly bloated, long and a slog to get through. Thanks to this edit, the pacing is improved significantly and is alot more enjoyable and overall fun. The increased focus on Tony's condition gives the film a little more heart and motivation to keep watching, but I'll argue that I'm against the exclusion of so many iconic Justin Hammer lines, but this is a nitpick as I have a soft spot for the absurdity of that character. Also, Pepper does receive less of a spotlight which makes the kiss at the end have less impact. The only bit of editing I had issue with was with Stark and Pepper on the rooftop as the cut dialogue came across as janky and jumpy, making their eventual kiss feel a little rushed. I understand the intentions though. Overall, a superior edition of a very flawed film.