Ant-Man and the Wasp. Reviewed by Karl Watts

Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018) ***½ /5: Good film that establishes the importance of the Wasp to the marvel universe. The film is a bit too small scale for its own good.

Ant-Man and the Wasp is a pretty good film and does not even aspire to reach the shocking high of Avengers: Infinity War or the cultural high of Black Panther. It is the third marvel film to be released for 2018 and will be the one that least inspires major discussion on social media. In some ways that is a good thing but the latest box office numbers for the film suggests that it won’t add much to the Marvel studios behemoth.  Relatively speaking it will still be counted as a success regardless. The film doesn’t have such a massive budget anyway and that is reflected in the overall presentation.  The only question is that based on the smallness of the film with very few giant moments is it really worth the price of a movie ticket. 

Ant-man and the Wasp  is the follow up to the minor Marvel hit Ant-Man. It continues the adventures of Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) as Ant-man after the events of Civil War where he is currently under house arrest after cutting a deal with the government. On the other hand Hope Van-Dyne/the Wasp (Evangeline Lilly) and Hank Pym (Michael Douglas)will need Lang’s help in navigating the quantum realm. Added to the mix are villainous characters seeking to gain access to Pym’s cutting edge quantum technology for various reasons.

Positives

The primary positive of this film is the contained atmosphere that allows for a different perspective to the grand Infinity War episode.  Eventually it does cross paths with Infinity War with the first post-credit scene but up until that point it has its own story to tell. It’s a very personal story that is much less about Scott Lang and more about Hank Pym and Hope/the Wasp and their relationship with Janet Van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer), the original Wasp. Lang’s story is pretty straightforward and not much is added to the original in that regard but the story of Hope/the Wasp is much more affecting. She is the star of the show and the film is appropriately titled Ant-Man and the Wasp as opposed to Ant-Man 2.  The Wasp genuinely adds to the direction of this small franchise and should be a mainstay going forward. There are also some great moments between the two leads which demonstrate why it’s natural that they come together (apart from the usual romance).  This contained atmosphere which focuses on the very personal story of Hope-Hank-Janet is a welcome deviation from the major epic drama of Infinity War. There is also the addition of new characters which also expand the small world of Ant-Man in their own way.  It remains to be seen if the mainstays of the franchise will be given the chance to add to the grander Avengers 4 saga.

One other thing which also stood out was the quantum realm. The quantum realm as it is discussed and portrayed  does add a crucial dimension to the film and, by extension, the franchise  and the wider marvel universe. It makes the small world of Ant-Man and the Wasp more than just a Tv sitcom. Eventually if Ant-Man is going to contribute to the efforts of the Avengers in Avengers 4 then the quantum realm will play some role. The film got me very interested in reading up on quantum mechanics and it made me realize why it fits perfectly with the world of Ant-Man and the Wasp. The quantum realm was briefly featured in the original Ant-Man but here it takes centre stage and knowing marvel studios this means that it will play a major role going forward.

The franchise continues the same comedic streak which began with the original. Obviously we now realize that the Ant-man side represents the comedic elements whereas the side of the Wasp represents the more serious or dramatic side. How the two sides come together is the real strength of the partnership and the film.

Lastly, I appreciated seeing how everything comes full circle with the two generations of Ant-man and the Wasp. This should mean good things going forward for the franchise

Negatives

The primary negative of this film was the very small scale of it all. Apart from the few giant moments the overall film has a smallness which borders on the inconsequential.  The action is not great, the villains aren’t impressive and the atmosphere is isolated from the grand scheme of things. At times while watching the film there were lapses that made you feel you were watching a regular TV series. The small scale of the film is not radically removed from that level of production in parts. Things really got going when the quantum realm came into play and the personal moments came to the fore. So it’s not a surprise that the film isn’t lighting up the box office. At times it didn’t feel like it was  worth the price of an admission ticket although it is a well made film.  It was the post-credit scene which featured the tie in to Infinity War which really got some members of the audience going. So hopefully we will finally get to see Ant-man play a crucial role in the wider marvel universe apart from turning big.

The comedy was a drag and makes you wonder how relevant Ant-man is as a character. Still looking forward to the time when he’s truly tested or when he reveals his more dramatic or serious side. This is why I am glad that they included the side of the Wasp. She should bring out more of the serious moments going forward and so make the franchise relevant. I am still looking forward to the time when they blend more effectively but based on what I’ve seen from the opposition I’m not so sure that any of their villains will truly test their resolve.  The franchise will need to bring out moments that make these characters resonate and so far only the moments with the Wasp have done that so far. A bit more will be required for this franchise to remain relevant. This franchise needs its own serious moments (without tie ins to the grand marvel universe) to get the people talking.  This is a good start