When you think MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe), you think big blockbuster action dramas. Then last year, we got Guardians of the Galaxy, which introduced a little bit of comedy into those kinds of blockbusters. However, Ant Man is a complete comedy. I’d even say that it’s the first small movie comedy by Marvel. We follow Scott Lang (Paul Rudd), a burglar who just got out of prison, who’s going to find himself in a path of crime again when he receives a special suit from a wealthy millionaire.
I love Ant Man, he’s one of the original Avengers and with the Wasp they formed the best crime-fighting couple ever. When I heard that Ant Man was going to be about Scott Lang and not about Hank Pym, I was a little disappointed but still pretty much excited. The movie lived up to what I thought it would be, considering the team behind it (Paul Rudd, Peyton Reed, Edgar Wright…) but nothing more. You know from the start that it is not going to be a Winter Soldier or an Iron Man 3.
It’s basically a heist movie, with all the codes of a heist movie. To be honest it’s a bit predictable, so predictable that I think Ant Man was thought as a small parody of superhero movies, from the father/daughter double plot that gets resolved a bit too quickly, to the montage of failed and then succeeded trainings. It’s nothing original or nothing we’ve never seen before, they played it safe, but it’s familiar enough to be interesting and it’s quite entertaining!
I didn’t really see Ant Man as a superhero movie or a Marvel film at all. It’s so different from what we’ve seen in this universe, but so close to so many comedies we can see each year that it’s hard to understand where they are going with that. Knowing that he is going to be included in bigger films in the MCU (that second post credit scene you guys, we were all screaming!), is very confusing.
The cast is good but not remarkable, I felt like it wasn’t anyone’s big breakout part. They all portrayed characters they had already played in the past, in movies or on tv. Particularly Paul Rudd and his particular humor that transpires into Scott Lang making him a safe and known new character. However, like always, there are some exceptions like Corey Stoll, who is perfect in the part of the evil and charismatic Darren Cross, or Scott’s rather clichéd trio of friends, whom are hilarious (are you in the system?).
I thoroughly enjoyed Ant Man but it’s true that it was lacking an element, Edgar Wright’s visual touch. He stepped down as director and participated only as co-writer, and it shows quite painfully. What’s good is that the comic book aspect is present, it’s funny and rather light, but I cannot shake the thought that if Edgar Wright had directed it, it would have been a little more energetic.
All in all, Ant Man doesn’t take itself too seriously and it’s great. I think it’s time for lighter Marvel movies to balance the darker and more political ones.
Rating: 3.5/5
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