A new origin story is told in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and it doesn’t arrive in theaters without its own bit of controversy. After eight years in development under the care of Edgar Wright, the co-writer and director parted ways with Marvel after it was Wright that reportedly convinced the studio the story of a man that shrinks down to the size of an ant could make for a viable feature film. Thus, Ant-Man was without a leader… for about two weeks.
Peyton Reed (The Break-Up), a self-described “Ant-Man” fan, took over for Wright while Adam McKay and star Paul Rudd reworked the script to meet Marvel’s supposed needs. The end result is a film where you can feel the influence of its original leader as much as you can the formulaic touch of a studio ensuring its brand never strays too far off track. Ant-Man is, therefore, just as much fun as it is stilted. The idea of a tiny superhero that can talk to and control ants is unique enough to offer a feeling of something we haven’t seen, but, as is the Marvel way, it can’t be done without focusing heavily on narrative aspects that don’t necessarily pertain to the story being told, though do help in maintaining continuity within the larger Marvel universe as a whole.
Getting the details out of the way, we must endure the pouting of scorned prodigy Darren Cross (Corey Stoll) who took over for his mentor, genius scientist Hank Pym (Michael Douglas), when Pym was voted out of his own company. It’s also of minor interest to know Pym’s daughter, Hope van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly), was the deciding vote and remains a part of the company to this day while Pym has retired to his San Francisco home, still maintaining something of a combative relationship with his daughter.
The idea of the Ant-Man revolves around Pym’s developing (discovering?) the “Pym Particle”, which, when used in conjunction with the accompanying suit can shrink a person in scale while at the same time increasing their strength. Pym sought to keep this secret from the world for fear of how it would be used and now, in Pym’s absence, Cross is attempting to recreate the “Pym Particle” from scratch for financial gain and Pym, along with his daughter, will attempt to stop him.
Enter the lovable rogue and thief, Scott Lang (Rudd), who’s just getting out of prison and is targeted by Pym as the one man capable of wearing the Ant-Man suit, infiltrating Pym Technology and stopping Cross. Why is Lang the right guy? Well, I don’t really know, something about hacking an unhackable system, but it doesn’t matter. Pym’s recruitment of Lang is a stroke of good fortune for the audience, and not because Lang is all that interesting a character (though Rudd is perfectly adequate in the role and his daughter, played by Abby Ryder Fortson is cute as can be), but because his friends are so damned entertaining.
Will Scott, Hope and Hank stop Darren Cross? I’ll let you answer that one on your own and it doesn’t take seeing the movie to come to the correct conclusion. The bigger question is just how much screen time will Lang’s friends get, because without them and the excellent casting of Michael Pena, T.I. and David Dastmalchian, Ant-Man would have been a complete waste of time.
Always grinning, Peña as Lang’s long-time friend, Luis, is the film’s life force. From the first moment we meet him his positive vibes radiate from the screen and then he talks and the words remind us of who fathered this film into being. Whether everything involving Peña and his pals was written by Wright and his then co-writer Joe Cornish (Attack the Block) I’m not sure, but an early monologue from Pena is written and edited like everything great we’ve seen from Wright over the years. Then comes the film’s climactic battle scene, taking place in a little girl’s room, and again we’re reminded of Wright’s influence over this film and only left to question what might have been had Marvel not felt it necessary to wedge S.H.I.E.L.D. and the promise of more story to be told into a film that very easily could have been a singular product all its own.
A training montage and a cameo appearance from a certain Avenger are all examples of scenes that didn’t need to take place. But without the battle with the Avenger how do you ensure Ant-Man becomes a part of the larger universe? I get it, and I don’t necessarily condemn Marvel when it comes to what they’re doing. With Iron Man, Captain America, Hulk, Thor, Black Widow, Hawkeye, Scarlet Witch, Loki, the Guardians of the Galaxy and now Ant-Man along with a bevvy of several heroes yet to be added to the mix you have to keep careful control over your properties, but that doesn’t mean the overall films aren’t hurt as a result.
I don’t want to sound too down on Ant-Man, though, there’s a lot to like. The effects are wonderful and the fact it doesn’t necessarily take itself too seriously, nor does it set out to lampoon this idea of a man that shrinks down to the size of an ant, is an overall win. The “Benjamin Button” effect done on Michael Douglas at the beginning is fantastic and the climactic fight scene is as fun and inventive as could be imagined.
The performances beyond Pena are, for the most part, decent. The chemistry between Evangeline Lilly and Paul Rudd is non-existent and, overall, Lilly’s character seems so stiff for the majority of the film she doesn’t necessarily fit. I get Hope has gone through a lot and been hardened by her past (and she does have one great emotional breakthrough scene), but I do wish she could have exhibited a little more levity.
Overall, Ant-Man works and you can see signs of a straight-forward heist film that wasn’t dependent on establishing connections with the Marvel Cinematic Universe that would have been singularly great. I guess in this current era of multi-film universes that’s about the best we can expect.
