You know what they mean when they say “less is more?”
Well, in the case of Peyton Reed’s “Ant-Man And The Wasp” little is more. Or bigger. Well, you get the drift.
Anyway, this latest installment in the ever-evolving (and exciting) Marvel Cinematic Universe, our tiny superhero is back, albeit reluctantly, not to save the world, but to save his sanity and bring back order into his life.
This is actually one of the awesome things in this movie. It’s not cut out from the usual Marvel movies where the superheroes are out to save the world–the universe, rather–from total destruction. “Ant-Man And The Wasp” plays a different tune: it’s not about saving the world. It’s about saving one’s own world.
There is no big bad here. The closest thing we have to a villain is a girl, whom they call Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), who is only trying to survive, hence her morally questionable decisions.
There’s only people trying to save themselves–and unintentionally hurting others in the process.
That’s kinda sad.
And that’s courageous for a film in this genre. There’s a risk of becoming underwhelming with this kind of theme, especially after the successes of “Avengers: Infinity War” and “Black Panther.”
Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) is still reeling from the consequences of his actions and is only a few days away from getting out of house arrest. He’s so bored at home that he’s done pretty much everything from learning magic to building an enormous maze inside his house. He can’t wait to go back to his normal life and be a dad to his cute and insightful daughter, Cassie (Abby Ryder Fortson).
But there’s one problem: he’s quantum-ly entangled with his the mother of his former fling’s, The Wasp or Hope (Evangeline Lilly). It turns out to be a message from Janet (Michelle Pfeiffer) from the quantum realm and Hope and her dad, Hank Pym (Michael Douglas), need him to tell them that.
He doesn’t want to leave the house out of fear of being incarcerated for a long time but the situation presents him with a moral dilemma. He’s done the Pyms a huge wrong and this is the only way he can make up for it. But he also needs to think of his daughter. So what does he do?
“Ant-Man And The Wasp” is entertaining. It’s scaled down, which is a nice respite from the ginormous, explosive and action-packed Marvel movies. But it doesn’t mean it’s short on action. The movie has one of the most impressive action sequences especially since they involved shifting from one size to another. We’ve got to tip our hats off to the cinematographer, stunt choreographers, and the special effects team for the nice fight scenes.
Lilly as The Wasp is fierce. She is great shape and definitely held her own.
It’s funny as well. Rudd’s stint in “Friends” definitely paid off because he is–without even trying–hilarious here. That’s the humor we like in a movie. “Thor: Ragnarok” might want to take some notes from Ant-Man.
And then there’s T.I and Michael Pena. These guys are hilarious sidekicks. You gotta watch Pena’s scene.
Reed has done a great job with the sequel. Everything is just right; equal doses of humor, action, and drama make up for a really tasty film. And since we’re all expecting that the plot is entangled with the other storylines in the MCEU, fans will be pleased to know that it offers some hope (and disappointment). So, make sure to stay for the post-credits!
Michael Douglas and Michelle Pfeiffer’s presence definitely provided star power to the movie. And you can’t say that their roles are forgettable. In fact, their characters are vital to the current and future storylines. That ending, though, is something. It’s going to hit you in the gut.
Photo credits: Marvel Studios
