REVIEW - Ant-Man

July 19, 2015

"WHAT IS THIS? A MOVIE FOR ANTS? THE FILM'S GOT TO BE AT LEAST... THREE TIMES BIGGER THAN THIS"

Zoolander reference aside, being the 12th effort from Marvel Studios' long running Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), Ant-Man is the first non-Marvel sequel since last year's massively popular Guardians of the Galaxy, and the first solo Marvel film since 2011's Captain America: The First Avenger. If people thought GOTG was a risky property to bring to the cinema screens, Ant-Man probably felt worse off, no less due to its obscure source material and being further compounded by its own production problems right before cameras started rolling.

Edgar Wright, a personal favourite director of mine with efforts such as Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz and Scott Pilgrim vs the World, had been working on an Ant-Man standalone film way before Jon Favreau's Iron Man came to fruition. However, with the Marvel franchise ever expanding by the 2010s, the need for connections with every subsequent Marvel film was in order, Ant-Man included. Friction between Wright and the higher-ups at Marvel eventually came to a boiling point which prompted the director to leave deep into pre-production (and most of the cast members confirmed already). 

Peyton Reed, whose directorial portfolio includes comedies such as The Break-Up and Yes Man, was quickly drafted in the director's seat, while script revisions were conducted by Adam McKay (another comedy director of Anchorman and The Other Guys) and even Paul Rudd himself. So, with its chief designer gone and the behind-the-scenes trouble, is Ant-Man destined to underwhelm under Wright's shadow, or is it more of a blessing in disguise and another feather in Marvel Studios' feather-filled cap?


Shifting away from the other saving-the-world plotlines in his Marvel B-list colleagues, Ant-Man retrenches by setting the story within the suburbs of San Francisco. The film is also rather stringent in the subplots department, making it more simplistic from other films in the franchise (that's a positive note, Age of Ultron becoming a victim of multiple storylines), functioning as a heist film in the vein of Ocean's Eleven and The Italian Job. Scott Lang, an estranged thief who dons the Ant-Man suit to reunite with his daughter. By his side are another father-daughter duo, Hank Pym (the OG Ant-Man played by Michael Douglas) and Hope Pym (Evangeline Lilly), who attempt to save the world from weapons of mass (or tiniest) destruction. It's a very similar premise to Iron Man, but in the shoes of an everyday guy becoming a hero it's charming and believable, save for that Interstellar-ish ending. Compared to Marvel's recent slate, Ant-Man is that sweet tea time snack between the heavy lunch (Avengers: Age of Ultron) and a filling dinner (next year's Captain America: Civil War).

Paul Rudd, who has been mainly acted in comedies and TV shows (PARKS & REC!), steps up the mantle to become the next in line of Marvel beefcakes. Just like Chris Pratt before him, Rudd offers both humour and charm as Scott Lang, a thief who becomes the second incarnation of the Ant-Man. Michael Douglas, portraying a sort of mentor figure to Paul Rudd, and serves up one of the most satisfyingly surprising scenes in the film (think tank), while his on-screen daughter, played by Evangeline Lilly from The Hobbit, has a rather small role as Hope Pym (with bigger things expected beyond Ant-Man). 

The shining beacon of this film however is Lang's trio of petty thief's, led by the often humourous Michael Peña (also starring T.I. the rapper, and yes, you read that right). The gang steals every scene they're in, from Pena's montage of tips to their contributions to the heist itself. The final piece of the puzzle was Corey Stroll as the villainous Yellowjacket, who plays out a lot like a younger Obadiah Stane in Iron Man (disgruntled second-placed who eventually dons their own suit), and just like most villains in the MCU feels unfortunately undercooked, though it's still one of the better lots out of Phase 2 (looking at you Malekith). Also, Thomas the Tank Engine's appearance in the Marvel universe was long overdue.

Though he left before cameras even started rolling, Wright's 'might' can be felt in most scenes of the movie, with most of the script by him and Joe Cornish (director of Attack the Block) seemingly kept intact, with Ant-Man being primarily a heist film. Some quick cuts seen in the film were also reminiscent of Wright's film-making style (a fight scene was directly lifted from his test footage in 2012), though Michael Peña's tips montage was Reed's own addition to the film (the film's funniest highlight). 

Meanwhile, scenes incorporating the wider MCU (of which Wright reportedly disapproved of) was blatantly inserted, with plenty of cameos (with one whole scene involving a new Avenger) plus name drops, to both enjoyable and unnecessary results. Outside of the main film, the two mid and post credit scenes serve up a look into the future of the franchise, and are of the greater ending teasers in recent Marvel efforts.

The film also incorporates an interesting macrophotography technique, where shrunken characters are imposed into an enlarged portions of small areas, and this is a time where CGI is actually necessary. This brought to life some of the more peculiar fight scenes in Ant-Man, from a model building being destroyed (a center for ants!?) to the final showdown... atop a child's play table. Speaking of necessary CGI, while the ant armies assisting Ant-Man felt gross, it justifies the CGI overload this sort of film demanded to good effect, while the four types shown with each having its own abilities gives a nice characterisation for these microscopic sidekicks (RIP Ant-Thony ;/).

Despite the early production problems with Edgar Wright leaving, but in the hands of Peyton Reed and the chaps at Marvel Studios, Ant-Man manages overcome its setbacks with a straightforward story and enough charm to rank as one of the better MCU films since 2008. Filled to the brim with a likable ensemble casts we'll be looking forward to in further installments, Ant-Man also tries its earnest to be a standalone film away from the Phase 2 sequels, no less to its smaller setting and bite-sized adventure. It ain't Guardians of the Galaxy, but Ant-Man proves to be yet another well-received hit on another obscure comic character. Bring on Civil War.

8.0/10

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