Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania – Film Review
Phase Five of the Marvel Cinematic Universe kicks off with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. I hate to be the bearer of bad news but it’s not the strongest start to a new saga.
In the third Ant-Man movie, once again directed by Peyton Reed, Scott Lang’s daughter Cassie (Kathryn Newton) creates a device that can transmit signals between Earth and the Quantum Realm, where Janet van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer) was stuck for 30 years. Cassie accidentally communicates with somebody down there and she, Scott (Paul Rudd), Hope van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly) and Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) get sucked into the realm. Its ruler Kang (Jonathan Majors), an old enemy of Janet’s, has been trying to leave for many years but he needs their Pym Particles to do so.
If you’re a fan of Star Wars, you’re in for a treat – this movie looks more like Star Wars than Ant-Man. So many times during this film, I thought, “OMG, this literally looks like Star Wars” – whether it be a shot of a landscape or a weird and wonderful creature, modes of transport or rebels in beige rags. There is also the classic Star Wars storyline of the rebels (so the Rebel Alliance) trying to overthrow their oppressor Kang (a stand-in for the Galactic Empire).
It’s bad enough that it borrows another franchise’s identity, but the visuals are also not great. It is murky and essentially one big CGI mess. The action is not executed particularly clearly either. There is also one character I couldn’t stand the sight of (I won’t spoil) because it looked like Humpty Dumpty or Krang, the weird brain dude from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
I really loved the first Ant-Man movie because it was a light-hearted, irreverent and comedic film among the serious ones. The character is a little silly and the film knew that and leaned into it. It also let Paul Rudd do his thing and be funny. Ant-Man and the Wasp didn’t quite hit the mark but Quantumania is waaay off. It doesn’t feel like an Ant-Man movie at all – the light-hearted moments are in short supply and Rudd isn’t given enough opportunities to give us comedy gold. I still laughed out loud a few times but this story is far too serious.
Plus, Ant-Man is rendered less unique and cool considering Hope and Cassie can do almost the same things, while Hank and Janet (the original Ant-Man and Wasp) also know how to use the Pym Particles to manipulate an object’s size and communicate with ants. It’s a team effort, which was nice at times but I felt like it isn’t Scott’s movie anymore. The story is also generic and bland and lacks stakes and substance.
But the film gets something very right – Majors. He is a captivating, foreboding villain and a worthwhile nemesis of the team. It’ll be interesting seeing where his arc goes from here. Plus, Pfeiffer gave her character depth despite all the exposition she was dumped with and Newton was perfect for Cassie – she was so personable and formed a great father-daughter relationship with Rudd.
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania has some really good moments here and there but I never felt excited by it or particularly invested in it. What a disappointing start to a new phase.
In cinemas from Friday 17th February