Ant-Man and the Wasp review: spoilers
So, a little late to the party, but this weekend I saw Marvel’s newest entry to the MCU, Ant-Man and the Wasp…and I loved it! (Rambling ensues now, beware of spoilers).
The superhero genre has gotten, shall we say, very touchily self aware of the danger of superhero fatigue. Some of the latest entries to the genre have felt like they’ve needed to justify their existence, to ramp up the drama and the seriousness of storylines, but Ant-Man and the Wasp is never so phased, which is great. Ant-Man and the Wasp knows exactly what it is from the moment go; a fun, superhero action movie about family.
The family dynamics of the story are the absolute core, and they shine as such. Scott and his daughter are sweet and real, Hank and Hope and Janet are so hopeful and bittersweet and lovely (curse you Thanos!!) and Ava and Bill are touching and strong. I’ve said before that Guardians of the Galaxy was Marvel’s “Fast and Furious IN SPACE,” and Ant-Man and the Wasp makes a great arguement for being “Fast and Furious WITH ALL THE SHRINKING” which just, A+. Sure, there is a little dramatic angst thrown in there, for the momentum, but the movie never sinks into melodrama or action schlock, and rides that wave well.
The character depictions, especially Hope and Hank and Scott are also so amazingly refreshing. Hope Van Dyne as Wasp could have easily have been “Action Girl,” the “strong, badass woman who don’t need no man,” but instead she gets to show real vulnerability, with her father, her mother and Scott, while also kicking ass and taking names. The Wasp is undeniably my favourite female Marvel superhero right now, a crown I think will be hard to take from her.
More so, the way the movie just hardcore dismisses toxic masculinity is so, so important. Scott and Paxton (his ex-wife’s husband) have one of the best on screen ex-husband/new husband dynamics; no macho posturing or feeling threatened, but instead a combined goal to parent Cassie and a real respect for each other. Scott and his ex-wife’s relationship is also so well done; no overdone “shrill harpy of an ex-wife” here; rather we getMaggie passionately defending Scott’s right to privacy because she objects to his treatment and the way it portrays him in front of his daughter which is just so god damn refreshing. Hank, as well, gets softened; he’s still a cranky old man, but it’s touching to see how he was never threatened by his wife’s brilliance, and the sheer depth of that love he has for her. I’ve said it before, the snap in Infinity War didn’t really get me that emotional (because it’s so obviously how and that they’ll undo it) but seriously, after being so freaking invested in getting Janet back to Hank and Hope, to have it end like that, fuck that purple ballsack, for real.
The movie does sort of suffer from the “Marvel villain deficiency” in that it has two villains but also none. Ava Starr, the daughter of a previous work associate of Hank’s who is left with a phasing ability that is killing her, and that black market guy Walter Goggins played (I cannot remember his name) are both technically villains, but neither are truly either. That might bother some people, but it worked well for me; I didn’t need another “moustache twirling guy in version of the heroes super suit,” and Ava’s family driven arc worked well with the driving theme, with Goggins adding some needed momentum and comedic relief.
The movie isn’t without flaws of course; although I give the movie all the props for having characters pay the consequences for their actions (the house arrest thing was actually perfect, and I’d like Civil War to now be referred to as that movie where Ant-Man went to Germany with Captain America to draw on the walls please), the Hank/Ava/Bill tension was especially thin. Hank handwaves away Bill’s accusations that Ava’s condition is somehow his fault as “filling her head with lies” and we never get any deeper, or have any more fallout, than that. It very much feels like the screenwriter wrote NEED AVA TO HAVE PERSONAL VENDETTA AGAINST HANK BUT NOT ENOUGH TO MAKE HANK UNLIKABLE and then just kind of left the outline as the plot. It’s not a deal breaker or anything, but it is undeniably a weak spot that could have been used to add some interesting moral complexity to the story. Janet’s assertion that “I’m not the same woman you knew/this place changed me” was another cliche that was a little on the nose, especially since we, the audience, don’t know who Janet was before. It’s about as subtle as a truck for saving Ava, and I snorted a little out loud at the line, and the cheese inducingness of it.
Still, I truly enjoyed Ant-Man and the Wasp. The new cast, especially Michelle Pfieffer, Hannah John-Kamen and Jimmy Woo all killed it, and the retuning cast were also fantastic. I’d absolutely recommend the movie to anyone whose a Marvel/superhero fan, or even just someone who wants to watch a funny action movie about family (and giant ants) that will make them feel good (AS LONG AS YOU SKIP THE END CREDITS SCENE MARVEL YOU ABSOLUTE BASTARDS). But seriously, 8/10 for me, would definitely watch again!
Some highlights;
– The Micheal Pena “sped up narrated scene” was well down in a way that didn’t make it feel gimmicky
– the hot wheels case I’m dying
– Janet-as-Scott was the greatest and Paul Rudd is seriously an amazingly talented actor because he had Pfieffer’s body mannerisms down
– no but seriously your daddy went to Germany and drew on the walls with Captain America is the greatest thing ever
– Jimmy Woo and the school of close up magic
– the roller suitcase lab absolutely delivers
– Ant-tonio Banderas and “murderers”
– Janet and Hank in the subatomic my heart
– Hank and the would you please stop starring lovingly at each other so we can save my wife and escape from these nice policeman vibe was just absolutely hilarious
– “it is truth serum!”
– “Baba Yaga!!”
– Kid sized Scott and his juice box and string cheese
– Hope frantically trying to save giant Scott and then surfacing with tiny Scott in her palm like he’s the most precious thing ever 😍
As amazing as the Wasp is, remember that Captain Marvel is coming up next. I wouldn’t count on Hope remaining your favorite female superhero for long… 😉
But yeah, fuck me, this was by far one of the best Marvel entries in a while!
Published
Don0303 