‘Ant-Man and the Wasp’ Review
Peyton Reed follows up one of the biggest movies of the summer with a fun little romp!
When Marvel originally parted ways with Edgar Wright, I was convinced that Ant-Man was going to be the MCU’s first financial and critical flop. I was quite delighted, however, to find that Ant-Man was an entertaining movie that fit perfectly into the Marvel universe. Though I still remain curious as to how much material in Ant-Man was directly taken from Wright, Ant-Man and the Wasp proves that Peyton Reed’s direction over the Ant-Man character was not a fluke.
Two years after the events of Civil War, Scott Lang is under house arrest for not abiding by the Sokovia Accords. When his served time is nearing an end, he is once again approached by Hank Pym and Hope van Dyne to aid in an urgent mission. Scott then dons the Ant-Man suit to fight alongside the Wasp and face a mysterious enemy known as Ghost. Though he means well, Scott realizes he must choose between being a good superhero and being a good father.
Since the title implied Ant-Man and the Wasp was going to be about both Scott Lang and Hope van Dyne, I was surprised to learn that the movie is far more Scott-centric. Though van Dyne gets plenty of screen time, has her own emotional storyline, and kicks ass on her own, I suppose I just expected her to have a larger character journey with Scott. Instead, Scott is the main focus of the movie and Hope simply plays a big part in his story. Maybe I just read too much into something as trivial as a title. If the movie had officially been called Ant-Man 2, for example, I don’t think I would be having this issue because there would be no difference in the story.
Yet, with all that being said, I thought Paul Rudd and Evangeline Lilly had excellent chemistry together. I liked Lilly’s performances in the first film, but she often came across to me as a bit flat. This time around, I believe she’s gotten much more comfortable in the role, as she can even outshine Paul Rudd at times. Whether they were in a fight together, or just sitting in a car talking to each other, I really enjoyed their dynamic. Some people may disagree, but I bought the relationship that was built between Scott and Hope. Their relationship in Ant-Man felt a bit rushed, but the sequel seems to take the time to gradually (and wisely) develop that relationship. I just didn’t care for whenever another character had to point out to the audience that the two clearly had an attraction for each other.
Michael Douglas, along with the other returning cast members, are great as well. I enjoyed how much time Douglas gets to shine as Hank Pym, but I don’t quite buy some of the more emotional scenes he is in. At least his very presence is fun and entertaining. Though Judy Greer and Bobby Cannavale get sidelined a bit, T.I, David Dastmalchian, and Michael Peña are utilized brilliantly. The trio of ex-cons are absolutely hilarious, with Peña specifically still being the funniest scene stealer.
Aside from Randall Park’s humorous role, I was quite disappointed by the new cast members. I enjoyed Laurence Fishburne’s portrayal of Bill Foster, and how complex his character ended up being, but I didn’t care for the execution of certain reveals that were made in relation to Bill’s character. Walton Goggin’s performance felt a bit more flat to me however, since his character felt unnecessary to this story altogether; Sonny Burch seemed to exist simply to place trivial obstacles in the way of our heroes, but if he was taken out of the movie entirely, more time could have been devoted to developing the main villain. Speaking of which, Ghost is a conceptually interesting character but her actions and motivations are quite underwhelming. Her powers are unique and her backstory is tragic, but Hannah John-Kamen isn’t given enough screen time to fully flesh out Ghost/ Ava Starr as a character.
Michelle Pfeiffer also doesn’t have a lot of screen time. I thought the original Wasp would have had a bigger role in a movie with her name in the title, but the return of Janet van Dyne is merely a plot point that our heroes have to eventually cross. I sat in the theater waiting and waiting for Pfeiffer to appear, only to be disappointed by how small her role is in the film. Pfeiffer’s performance is great, and she is undoubtedly the best addition to cast, so I’m unsure as to why she didn’t have a larger presence in the story as a whole. It’s a shame that an actress like Michelle Pfeiffer was underutilized and a character like Janet van Dyne was reduced to one of the film’s many MacGuffins. Hopefully Pfeiffer will get to showcase her talent in a future Ant-Man installment.
Though I may forever be curious to see what an Edgar Wright directed Ant-Man movie would look like, Peyton Reed was clearly capable of filling in those shoes. Ant-Man and the Wasp is fun, humorous, and energetic; what more could you ask for in a movie about a superhero that can control ants? The film may not be as sharp or as witty as an Edgar Wright movie, but there are enough ant-themed jokes to make you chuckle. More importantly, Reed made sure to give this movie some heart. I absolutely loved the connection between Scott and his daughter Cassie. Abby Ryder Fortson was adorable in Ant-Man, and she’s even better in Ant-Man and the Wasp. The chemistry Paul Rudd had with Fortson was undeniably heartwarming.
For how much praise I could give to Peyton Reed for making a weird character like Ant-Man work for general audiences, I will admit that Ant-Man and the Wasp doesn’t feel as streamlined as the first film. Though I think that may be more of a writing issue than a directing one. Ant-Man and the Wasp does have five writers credited on its script after all. Ant-Man may have felt like a generic MCU film, but at least it was more cohesive. Conversely, Ant-Man and the Wasp has a unique identity all of its own, but it does lack some structure. Your personal preference for the original or its sequel will depend on what you like seeing more.
I would probably contend that Ant-Man is a better film overall, but I personally enjoy the simplicity of a straightforward narrative. Ant-Man and the Wasp started to lose me whenever it tried to make small changes to the original film, add in new rules with shrinking technology, and force the audience to accept unexplained powers within the MacGuffin Realm. But I can totally see how other audience members could find those elements to be cool and interesting.
For those wondering where Ant-Man and the Wasp takes place in the Marvel timeline – in relation to Infinity War to be specific – wait for the post credit scenes. There are two after credit sequences, one of which is a funny throwaway gag, but the other is the scene that fans will be talking about until Avengers 4.
Much like how Solo was a good little palate cleanser after a weighty film like The Last Jedi, it’s nice to have a smaller adventure with Ant-Man and the Wasp after a huge movie like Infinity War. The returning cast is great, the humor works well, the visual effects are outstanding (Disney is getting unbelievably realistic results with this de-aging technology), and it was even nice to have Christophe Beck return to score the movie and bring back Ant-Man’s theme from the original film. With how well the movie is doing critically, and how successful I’m sure it will be at the box office, it’s only a matter of time before Marvel announces a sequel to Ant-Man and the Wasp.
