I remember the first time I saw Ant-Man. I went in with no expectations, as I'm sure many did. Then by the credits I was short of breath, had a thirst for Paul Rudd and was bald. So needless to say that I was here for a sequel.
Ant-Man and The-Wasp is kinda everything you want in a sequel. A film that gives you a lot more of what you got before. But with the breakout success of the first film and a well received stint in Captain America: Civil war cementing his mainstay in the MCU - there's a lease of life that this film has. The first film was fuelled by nobody really having anything to lose by working on this off-beat superhero story based on a character that nobody really knew. Its sequel is propelled by knowing it has an audience, knowing its going to get a sequel and the fun it can have building the world of Ant-Man and co. But the essence of what made the first film so fun is still here in spades. Just...shinier spades.
This may be spoilery, but Ant-Man and The Wasp isn't tied into any of that Infinity war nonsense. One of the post credit sequences clearly acknowledges that shit IS happening, but nothing in the film itself alludes to any of it. I for one, am glad that the film doesn't bother wedging itself into that story. It's nice to watch a Marvel film that is so separate from it all. Because quite frankly, I'm a little fatigued with all that coloured stone foolishness and I didn't think that highly of Infinity war.
The low-ish world-not-being-in-mortal-peril stakes of the Ant-Man films is what makes them so compelling, because the characters aren't ever saving the world. They don't need to. That's what the Avengers are there for. They're just trying to protect the ones they love. Parental bonds were the catalyst for the first film and it's still the case here, just from a different perspective. Ant-Man was about Scott's family. Ant-Man and The Wasp is about Hope's, which we kinda see is now Scott's too. This makes the story so much more grounded, because it negates the sense of righteousness that many of the other Marvel films sometimes have with their heroes. Nobody in this film is destined or fated. They're just trying to get through life.
Villains in superhero films have become sticking points and they're seldom done right. But Marvel are getting better with them. Ant-Man and The Wasp is a weird one, because it doesn't have a clear villain, per se. Marvel's villain angles as of late seems to be tortured souls - those who have been hard done by inadvertently by one of the protagonists, giving them reason to hate them and carry out acts of malice. This is pretty much the case with Ghost. But the film curve-balls you by throwing in another character who is much more villain-esque in the more typical sense. Ghost doesn't have a great deal to her (pun kinda intended), but her phasing ability gives her a Terminator like vibe and makes for some set-ups during fights to match Ant-Man and The Wasp's shrinking. And the way she gets woven into the lives of the characters and enriches the MCU with further reference to Quantum physics and the Quantum realm itself, makes her character work and feel worthwhile in the currently unseen 'grand scheme' of things. Because there is every chance that the Quantum realm will play a part in the next Avengers movie. What also makes Ghost's inclusion so inoffensive, despite her flaws as a 'villain', is that Scott, Hope and Hank would have done what they needed to in this film regardless of whether she was around or not. Ghost just made it a little more difficult for them to do it. Nothing that they set out to do is because of her or in spite of her. To even call her a villain seems wrong, because by all accounts, she actually isn't and we see a couple of tables get turned the more we learn about her. It's just nice to see the MCU populated by another woman and one of colour at that.
Ant-Man and The Wasp is a film full of charm. Part of what I love about the film is that it taps into the 12 year old kid in me who grew up loving the Power rangers, in an era of animatronics and dodgy special effects. Seeing Ant-Man grow in size and kick push a flat back truck, giant ants scuttle around a lab, little Hot wheels zipping through the streets of San Francisco - everything about the world of Ant-Man is fun, magical and nostalgic. Of course, it all looks a lot better than you remember when you were young and watching Saturday morning TV. But it retains that same type of charm, and you have that same level of bewilderment and wishful thinking that you could be a part of that world. I genuinely felt like I was transported back into my childhood, and this is what I loved about the film more than anything. You sometimes forget you're watching a big budget film, because everything about Ant-Man and The Wasp feels so fucking grounded and low key for a film which features a guy that can supersize and a woman who can shrink herself to open large sized cans of whoop-ass. It also speaks a lot to the pace of the film, which for the most part, is deft. The first act drags on a bit as we see Scott on house arrest. But once he jumps back into being Ant-Man, the film moves at a brisk pace.
Ant-Man and The Wasp does a stellar job of building a world of characters, now that the team behind the film know that there's room for them to grow not only in future Ant-Man films, but potentially in MCU cross-overs too.
Michael Peña steals every scene that he's in, just as he did the first time around. But we get new characters introduced into the mix and each of them have their own history. We know Scott and his posse has a history as thieves, but they now work as security experts in their own business. We also get to see more of Hope and we finally meet her mother played by the OG that is Michelle Pfeiffer, who I have stanned ever since her turn as Catwoman in Batman returns. I damn near fucking choked when she turned up on the screen, because it's been so long since I last saw her on the damn thing. We're also introduced to Bill, played by Laurence Fishburne - who we learn has quite a colourful past as both a superhero and an ex-friend / rival of Hank. We see Scott making his new blended family with his daughter, ex-wife and her husband work. Each pairing could easily have their own little serialised spin-off series, because each has their own shit going on, their own baggage and things to work through. Everybody is woven into the story so seamlessly. The same goes for the technology and the science that is at the heart of the plot of this film. There aren't any obvious 'TA-DAH', 'GOTCHA BITCH!' or wink wink, nudge nudge moments. But in the wake of Infinity war and also knowing that this film is clearly going to get a sequel, you do start to wonder what parts these will play; whether it's in another Ant-Man film or elsewhere in the MCU. Ant-Man and The Wasp is very much it's own thing, but it quietly embraces its potential and that it's a part of something bigger.
Paul Rudd is the leading man. There's no mistaking that. After all, this character gets top billing int he film title. But there is definitely an ensemble cast situation here, which is becoming more of a theme with Marvel's films, pushed to extreme's in Captain America: Civil war which was pretty much an Avengers movie. Every character in this film plays a part and contributes, and it's the collective efforts of EVERYBODY that gets shit done in the end. It's not a case of Ant-Man going off on his own, whilst everybody sits idle. It's a team effort and it's a beautiful narrative to see in a superhero movie. That you don't have to be super to be a hero.
But what sweetens the deal of the cast is the scale of representation. I love that the main hero of the film is a father in his forties who is a felon, with 3 best friends of varied ethnicity and backgrounds. I love that Hope is a bad ass fighter and an amazing physicist, who happens to be a woman. I love the inclusion of Michael Douglass, Laurence Fishburne and Michelle Pfeiffer; a clear example that your career doesn't end once you hit your 60's and that you're not destined to only star in political themed motion pictures and period pieces based on some book. You can still play key parts in a Marvel movie without having to put on some tight-ass suit and go on stunt wires. Michael Douglas' turn as Hank is one of the best roles he's played in his career as far as I'm concerned. His comedic timing is perfect, and whilst the grumpy old know it all is cliched, he plays it perfectly.
I was initially unsure of how I felt about Kate from Lost co-headlining the film, because I didn't like her in Lost and she wasn't wonderfully likeable in Ant-Man. But The Wasp gets some of the best action scenes in this film, and as women do, she is often cleaning up everybody else's mess and saving the day. But the issue isn't Evangeline Lily. It's how her character is written. Hope's character made me realise that Marvel aren't the best at writing women in films. The women in Marvel films are always present and always end up saving someone's ass. But their characters lack depth and layers, and just don't feel as complete as characters as some of the guys. Black Panther was one of the first Marvel films to come along and change this. The character of Okoye could not have been written or portrayed any better. But Black Widow, Scarlet Witch, Gamora, Pepper Potts and Hope - they all fall short. The Wasp is a great action hero, but Hope as a character lacks depth. But hopefully, we'll see this change in the inevitable sequel, given how the film ends. I fucking hope so, because Evangeline Lily was a hoot on the press tour and she has a great energy and warmth to her that we get flecks of in this film, but not enough.
Ant-Man isn't a film that you'll come out of thinking looks spectacular, because everything feels so practical. But it is a great looking film. The action sequences are brilliantly shot and make for some amazing set pieces. The car chase sequences are fantastic, as cars shrink down to Hot wheels and zip under other vehicles, motorbikes are made to shrink with their riders on them and Hello Kitty candy dispensers are tossed and then supersized to deter chasers. Every time you think the film can't throw anything more ridiculous at you, it goes and does as such. But there are some stunning visual moments in the film. Any scene with Ghost looks really cool due to her phasing which has her constantly shifting in and out of focus and existence. And when we get a good look at the quantum realm, there's one particular scene where we see it being traversed and everything is fractured like broken glass, with light hitting it and shining through it like a kaleidoscopic prism. It's a stand out moment, because it's literally the only moment in the film that's somewhat of a visual effects spectacle.
I mean, I honestly didn't need to write all this. I may as well have just written 'WATCH THE FUCKING THING' in point size 120 and left it at that. But this is a really good film. The Marvel machine is well oiled at this point, to such an extent that they can take risks with little side films like Ant-Man and then shake the table with a sequel like Thor: Ragnarok to not only completely re-program a character, but also redefine what our perceptions of what a superhero movie should be. Ant-Man and The Wasp honestly doesn't feel like a typical superhero movie in the best possible way. It feels like a TV movie or back-to-back episodes of some suited hero Saban shit with a really good ass budget. I loved watching this on the big screen, but I can't wait to watch this at home. I can imagine this film gaining itself a new wave of fans when it goes on home release.
Ant-Man and The Wasp cements its own brand and tone, the same way that Guardians of the galaxy has done. Yet another shining example that you don't need a well known superhero to deliver a great superhero movie.
RATING: WATCH IT, BITCH.