Well, Marvel did it again. I was never one of those people who thought Ant-Man would be a bad film, but I never imagined I would enjoy it more than Avengers: Age of Ultron. Yep, there I said it: “This film is better than Avengers: Age of Ultron“. Is it Marvel’s best film? No, but it is definitely up there are one of their finest accomplishments.
It’s Not About Saving Our World
There is a lot to love in this film, but what I love the most is the comedy. I was laughing consistently throughout this film. Everyone from the cast contributed to some hysterical scenes. The standouts for me were both Paul Rudd and Michael Peña. They both definitely had the funniest scenes in the film, and always delivered great laughs. However, what surprised me about the film was how much drama it had. There were several very dramatic moments that worked well with the film. Other dramatic moments did not work very well, but more on that later. The entire cast is truly top notch. I have already praised Peña and Rudd for their comedic performances, but they just did a good job elevating the film on another level. Rudd in particular did a phenomenal job because he had to convey a wide range of emotions, and did a great job doing so. The rest of the main cast did a great job as well. Michael Douglass, Evangeline Lilly, T.I, David Dastmalchian, and Corey Stoll all contributed quite a bit to their roles. Along with a top notch cast, and a good mix of comedy and drama, the film has some great writing. This is really key because the writing is the reason for the comedic and dramatic moments, but if the actors are not up for the task, then these moments would fall flat. Thankfully the actors proved their worth and brought this fantastic script to life. The script does not take itself too seriously (nor should it) which really adds to the tone that Marvel was going for with this film. Finally, the film truly succeeds with the visuals and the action. This is one good looking film. I was fortunate to see this in IMAX 3D and it looks absolutely stunning. I have seen Avengers, Jurassic World, and Terminator Genisys in IMAX, but none of them looked this good. There is a vibrance in the neon colors when Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) shrinks down, and the entire world just looks magical. Along with those great visuals, the action is awesome. I love how Ant-Man is able to shrink down and grown during a fight. It created some really fast paced action sequences that were also visually stunning.
It’s About Saving Theirs
Before I mention my problems with the film, I want to also mention how much I love the approach to the plot. It is not your typical origin story, it is more of a passing of the torch. I think that is very creative, and hopefully the new Spider-Man film does something like that where it is not just a straight up origin. Alight, so the bad: The pacing is inconsistent. The first 15-20 minutes of the film felt very rushed for me. I never felt like I did not understand what was going on, but they crammed in too much information in a short amount of time. After that the pacing felt right, but the film still felt like it rushed through several other scenes throughout. Particularly there is a dramatic scene between Evangeline Lilly and Michael Douglass that felt like it should have more time devoted to it. It just sort of happens, and therefore it felt a bit sloppy to me. Finally, the villain played by Corey Stoll is absolutely rushed. This is a common theme with Marvel films, and it really needs to end. Marvel has only one good villain (for now) which is Loki. Loki is a good villain because the audience spent plenty of time with him to understand him motivations. While Darren Cross (Corey Stoll) has motivations, the origin of his evilness is glossed over. I still think Stoll gave a great performance, but he was not given a very good role. This is something Marvel really needs to improve in the future because it is becoming a major low point in all of their films.
Closing Remarks
I had a feeling I would like this film, but did not think I would like it quite this much. Sure it has problems, but nothing too bad. This is a very entertaining film that has great action, memorable characters, and some laugh out loud moments. This is summer entertainment at it’s best, and Marvel at the top of their game. I also suggest you stay after the credits. Completely. There are a couple of surprises in store.