First off, we met at a Chevy’s across the street from the Times Square AMC theater. Me, the aforementioned well connect Marc, and my other buddy Sherm. Our fourth buddy, Jay the comedian, was running late and was planning to meet us at the theater. We decided on Chevy’s, since it was Cuatro de Mayo…(Happy Cinco De Mayo everyone – one of my favorite non-universal holidays). We got there and saw a line around the block that lead all the way to the Port Authority. Good thing we had reserved tickets (did I mentioned my friend Marc was well connected. I might have to start calling him Marc Walnuts). Anyway, we grabbed some appetizers and drinks while we waited for our final party member. At a quarter to seven, we got the phone call. Jay the comedian is waiting on line. We had a quick laugh and then told him to get off the line. We had guaranteed seats baby. Otherwise, I think Jay would still be in line waiting.
We got out ticket passes and made our way to the theater. Little did we know we were walking into Iron Man 2: The Game Show. Scary Jones from Z100 was there along with several other marketing partners and Paramount staffers getting the crowd warmed up. Trivia, jokes, and costumes was on the lineup…here are the highlights.
1. Prizes were awarded to people who had to answer the following hard questions:
- a. Who wrote the original comic book?
- b. Who plays Iron Man in the movie? (Followed by my buddy Jay taking out the complimentary poster and pointing to the name Robert Downey Jr - Did I mention he was a comedian).
- c. What is the name of Tony Starks’s assistant?
- d. Then they threw a curveball and asked what was the numbered edition of the comic book that first premiered the Iron Man character? A few people had no clue. I felt sorry for these people. It’s like one of the SNL skits where everyone around you gets easy questions like, “Where are you now”, while you have to answer “what is the distance from the Earth to the Sun”. After three tries, somebody finally knew the answer. You know what answer that guy didn’t know…what a girl’s breasts feel like.
- e. And then to make matters worse, the next question was another easy one - who played Tony Starks friend Jim Rhodes. This one actually has two correct answers. Where’s the consistency and fairness with the questions people?
- a. One guy came dressed up as Tony Stark (you know minus the Robert Downey Jr. looks and build). This prompted my two buddies, Marc and Sherm, who work corporate jobs to ponder getting up and trying to pass off a button down shirt and a tie as “dressed like Tony Stark”.
- b. Two people dressed up as Iron Man. One guy who would qualify for the joke, “I’m in shape…I’m round.” And a little kid who had to go down as one of the cutest ever. If you were a single guy and you brought that kid to the park, you’d walk home with at least seven phone numbers. And yes, I just pimped out that kid dressed as Iron Man. Anyway, the crowd in attendance had to vote for the winner. Guess who won?
- c. I kept waiting for somebody dressed up as Whiplash to get up and beat up the guy (not the kid) dressed up as Iron Man. That would have made my day.
4. As the lights went out, the screen expanded. Let me say that again. The screen EXPANDED. That’s how you get the crowd excited for a movie.
5. I won’t spoil the movie for you. Most of you probably plan on watching it regardless of what I say. If not, it’s well worth your time and money. I’d say it was a great movie. Not better than the first one, but just as good. And that’s quite an accomplishment. I’ll just say a couple of things about the movie.
- a. In the first movie, I was surprised by Gwyneth Paltrow. I have to admit, I was never a huge fan of hers and never thought she was all that. But something about her role (and her wardrobe) in Iron Man made me walk out with a huge crush on her. Paltrow was so sexy and hot in that movie that I had to bump her up a few hundred spots in my own personal unbiased rankings. Well, I got the same reaction after watching Scarlett Johansson absolutely kill it in the sequel. Like most people, I had my doubts when I heard she was cast. But she was sexy, funny, and had one of the best fight sequences ever. Ryan Reynolds is one lucky SOB.
- b. The ending action sequence is absolutely crazy. It caused my buddy Sherm to jump out of his seat when it was over. The buildup was so good and it totally hit every spot with the payoff. I’d put it up there with the ending action sequences of Avatar, Kick Ass, and even last year’s The Incredible Hulk.
6. When the movie ended everyone clapped as if they made the movie. But nobody left. Nobody. All the seats were still filled waiting for the credits to roll and for the extra scene to begin. All I can say is that the crowd geeked out at the bonus scene. It was perfectly executed.
7. The movie was so good, we’re going to watch it in IMAX. Now, that’s the best recommendation I could ever give a movie. See it.
8. Thank you Marc (and Sherm and Jay for your comedic contributions).
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