Marvel may look as if it runs like a well-oiled machine, but on
occasion an army of ants have spoiled the picnic. Marvel's Ant-Man has been developing around the offices
since before 2008's Iron Man,
with fan-favorite director Edgar Wright having spent the most time working on
the diminutive Avenger's story. But the Marvel Universe grew in that time into
a Hollywood-dominating behemoth, and Wright's quirky, standalone vision no
longer fit. In came Peyton Reed as director, followed by universe-connecting
rewrites from Adam McKay and star Paul Rudd. It may sound like a messy
situation and possibly Marvel's first dud, but Ant-Man turns out to be a funny and
offbeat heist film that stands up well to last year's Guardians of the Galaxy.
Who knows where Wrights' story ends and
McKay/Rudd's begins, but chances are the weirdness belongs to the former while
the jokey Avengers cameos (which won't be spoiled here) to the latter. It makes
for an interesting hybrid of styles, bringing a little bit of Mission:
Impossible to the Marvel Universe for the first time. Rudd plays Scott Lang, a
petty thief with an ex-wife (Judy Greer) who has moved on to another man (Bobby
Cannavale), taking Lang's daughter Cassie (Abby Ryder Fortson) with her.
Freshly released from prison and ready to keep clean, Lang discovers that
nobody wants to hire an ex-con. Not even Baskin-Robbins. So he hooks up with a
trio of fellow crooks (Michael Pena, T.I., David Dastmalchian) for an easy job
busting into some old rich guy's safe. What he finds inside isn't what he
expected...it's some kind of suit.
Basically there are two major narratives
at play in Ant-Man, and
both have to do with fathers redeeming themselves in the eyes of their
daughters. The suit belongs to inventor Hank Pym (Michael Douglas), who created
a formula called "Pym Particles" that allowed him to shrink in size
while packing a superhuman punch. SHIELD wanted the formula for themselves, but
fearing it would be used for nefarious purposes, Pym hid the formula and
quietly retired, leaving his company in the dubious hands of former protégée
Darren Cross (Corey Stoll) who has created a version of Pym Particles for
himself. Fearing the worst, Pym teams up with his estranged daughter Hope
(Evangeline Lilly) to recruit Lang for a not-so-simple job: use the Ant-Man
suit to bust into Cross' lab and ruin his plans.
Ant-Man fits neatly into the overall Marvel
formula, even though it follows the beats of a traditional heist movie, only
with superpowers, six-legged bugs, and Rudd's natural charm. The film is
undeniably goofy, perhaps the silliest Marvel movie yet, and for that reason
one never feels like the stakes are too high. But it fits the overall tone
which is bouncy and geared toward kids who will probably love his insect
sidekicks. They'll also get a kick out of the final battle, a visually
inventive throwdown in which Reed skillfully plays with perspective. When the
camera pulls back from the tiny fight to show how it looks to normal eyes, the
result is often hilarious, especially in one sequence involving a Thomas the
Tank Engine toy. While modest compared to some of the larger-budgeted Marvel
films, there are still a number of striking images. A mind-warping trek into
the Microverse is especially impressive, and it's undeniably cool whenever Lang
is flying alongside his insect pals. Reed, who directed comedies like Bring It On and Down with Love, has a good
handle on the unorthodox tone.
As a character, Lang is perhaps the least
interesting lead Marvel hero. It has nothing to do with Rudd, who adapts to the
film's strangeness like a champ and nails the earnest, emotional bits just as
well. It has to do with Lang not being especially developed as a hero, and that
he's somewhat muted compared to the characters around him. He's already got
three bumbling buddies, a stern female love interest and one anguished mentor
vying for screen time. Lang's dominant personality trait is that he's
well-meaning, which isn't particularly engrossing. Douglas brings his veteran
heft to the role of Pym, and he scores some strong heart-tugging scenes with
both Rudd and Lilly. Stoll unfortunately was saddled with one of those
forgettable tech-baddie characters, the kind we'll never see again like Jeff
Bridges and Sam Rockwell in Iron
Mans 1 & 2. Remember them? If there's a standout it's Pena as
Lang's over-eager, excitable cohort. Somebody get that guy a super powered
suit, STAT. Maybe he can be Ant Machine?
Despite a forced attempt by Marvel to fit
Ant-Man into the larger Avengers universe, the film still feels like a somewhat
disconnected piece of the puzzle. That's not necessarily a bad thing as it
allows a certain degree of creative freedom. While hardly the most astonishing
of tales, Ant-Man is a gratifying story that has stolen
a unique spot in the Marvel Universe.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
