REVIEW: ‘Ant Man & The Wasp’ is another hit for Marvel
Marvel continued their seemingly unending box office dominance with yet another perfectly placed film in their latest summer blockbuster entry, “Ant-Man & The Wasp.”
Following the events of 2015’s “Ant-Man” and the Steve Rogers/Captain America showdown of his team against the Avengers at an German airport during “Civil War,” Ant-Man/Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) finds himself under house arrest by the FBI for three years, currently nearing close to his freedom.
Meanwhile, the efforts of Hank (Michael Douglas) and his daughter Hope/Wasp (Evangeline Lilly) to find a way to rescue her long lost mother Janet (Michelle Pffeifer) from the ever highly energetic Quantum Realm are as close as they have ever been.
Notably, the film is gut-bustingly funny with its well-placed humor and no opportunity missed for some welcome comedic relief. It does a fantastic job of reminding fans of a lighter Marvel tone after the grim, high stakes ending to the colossus “Infinity War.”
Additionally, it gives the audience a villain to understand and almost root for in Ava Starr/Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen) and her partnership with Bill Foster (Laurence Fishburne), as they seek to cure her constant molecular phasing caused by a catastrophic adolescent accident before her body deteriorates completely.
The interwoven storylines of Ava, Hank and Hope, and Scott, surrounded by the flailing criminals after their quantum access and a fumbling FBI agent make for a solid film that balances the action and emotional pull near perfectly.
With strong performances all around, particularly those given by Rudd, Lilly, Douglas, and a breakout for John-Kamen, these characters are ones that you’ll certainly pull for.
Paced evenly and providing good-intentioned sides to the chase make for a great plot that will entertain fans fully. And with a credits scene that you will never believe, because it is so unexpectedly insane, the Marvel cinematic universe train keeps rolling, and Captain Marvel and the untitled fourth Avengers film cannot arrive soon enough.
The Quantum Realm is tricky, and one must surely be careful whenever dealing in it; this film teaches that misdirection can be a path that pays off and that the right thing to do is not always as clear as it may seem or should be.
Alex Novak is an entertainment reviewer. Contact him at [email protected].