MadCap At the Movies - "Ant-Man and the Wasp"

Just a few short years ago, you were made to believe a man could ant. But the question remained from the post-credits scene of that movie, can a woman wasp?

The answer is yes. And you did believe it.

Spoilers here follow on from both the first Ant-Man film and Captain America: Civil War as well as some late-game spoilers for Infinity War. So, if you've not seen any of those films (and I congratulate the three of you on discovering the internet!) turn back now. After the jump, anything goes...

We start with a short recap of events - namely that Janet Van Dyne (Michelle Pfeffier) was lost in the Quantum Realm following a successful attempt to disarm a Soviet missile. Until Scott Lang managed to return from the Quantum Realm at the end of the first film, Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) believed that doing so was impossible. But after that, he and his daughter Hope (Evangeline Lily) became to work on a way to bring her back.

Meanwhile, Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) isn't doing so well. Following the events of Captain America: Civil War, his plea bargain has him stuck on house arrest where he tries to make the best of it with his daughter, Cassie (Abby Ryder Fortson) and is trying his best to be a responsible parent. He's even destroyed the Ant-Man suit (or so he claims) and is on the straight and narrow. However, just three days before retirement before his house arrest is over, he has a bizarre dream in which he is Michelle Pfeffier...and calls up Hank and Hope to tell them about it.

Because of Scott's use of the Ant-Man suit in Civil War, Hank and Hope have been on the run from the feds as well since it was Hank's tech and they violated the Accords by Scott possessing it. Scott's call came right after Hank and Hope apparently opened up a gateway into the Quantum Realm...which shut down immediately after. They believe that Scott may hold the key to saving Janet. However, they find themselves at odds with a shady black market weapons dealer (Walton Goggins) and a woman who wears a white suit and can phase in and out of reality (Hannah-John Kamen).

One of the main criticisms that I've seen about the film before viewing it myself is that there's too much action and not enough humor. I completely disagree on that notion. The first film was largely Paul Rudd having very Paul Rudd reactions to things, which helped out quite a bit in that department, and here we have much the same. Scott's three sidekicks are back (Michael Peña, Tip "T.I." Harris, and David Dastmalchian) as employees in his security firm, and they all do an excellent job, really bringing in the humor even more than before with a bit more for both Harris and Dastmalchian to do this time around.

Going through the dramatis personae, you have Scott, Hope, and Hank as well as Scott's aforementioned associates from the first film. Paul Rudd, for starters, is Paul Rudd and I find him absolutely impossible to criticize. The guy's only flaw is that he's too damn likable and he takes to the role of Scott Lang so well that it's almost seamless. Rather like Ryan Reynolds and Deadpool, it becomes a question of where Paul Rudd ends and Scott Lang begins. You can't answer that, and neither can I.

Evangeline Lily is given more to do as Hope, as well as getting top billing alongside Scott. The film is really more a film about her and Hank than it is about Scott, although it does well to balance it all. As we saw in the first film, Hope is very confident and capable and shows that skill in a way most believable. It is stated as well that she and Scott did some off-screen training together (as well as hinting at...other things...bowchickawowow) and it shows. The two of them work awesomely as a team in combat.

Then you have Michael Douglas as Hank. He's pretty much the same guy he was in the first film: gruff, a bit egotistical, and no-nonsense. The film does give him some more layers, however, as we see more shades of a man who clearly loves his daughter and misses his wife dearly - absolutely elated at the prospect of seeing her again.

Which brings us to Janet Van Dyne herself. Now, before I get into Michelle Pfieffer's performance (which, as always, is sublime), I want to get into the notion that some people seem to have that Janet Van Dyne is some sort of damsel in distress.

I'm not saying who.

Just some people.

People have said this.

These people clearly are so woke that they fell asleep in the movie theater and did not watch the actual film.

Janet Van Dyne has been stuck in the Quantum Realm since 1987. A realm that completely distorts the human mind. In the first film, Scott was there for maybe only a few minutes and would have lost himself had it not been for his daughter calling him back. Compared to that, thirty-one years is just horrifying to contemplate. And yet...not only does Janet survive but she also manages to get a message to Hope and Hank through Scott and is essentially the only reason she is rescued at all since she manages to correct some mistakes in the work of her husband and daughter.

She literally saves herself. I thought that was what you wanted, Anita. A woman who is not a damsel and saves herself. Or did you lie on the Colbert Report? Oh, you don't remember that?

Well, I do. Oops.

Needless to say, the only thing that I can complain about with Janet is that she just has too few scenes. Michelle Pfieffer is a welcome addition to the MCU and I would love to see more of her and Hank running support for Scott and Hope...or, considering how well CGI was used to de-age both Michael Douglas and herself, maybe a nice period piece of them kicking ass in the Seventies and Eighties?

C'mon, Marvel. Get on this!

We also get a welcome addition in Bill Foster (Lawrence Fishburne), a scientist and former colleague of Pym's.  Again, like Michelle Pfieffer, Lawrence Fishburne is pretty much always awesome in everything. No complaints.

And then we come to the villain of the piece, Ava Starr, otherwise known as "Ghost". I'm not as familiar with her as some, though I've read that Ghost before has only been male...which I don't really have much opinion about one way or the other, frankly. The character design is good and she's good enough as villain. Her motivations are relatable enough - nobody wants to disappear into a cosmic void, after all - and she does very well in providing a good match against both Ant-Man and the Wasp.

Also, she's Egghead's daughter.

This has been another in the "list of characters you never thought would get into the MCU".

Whereas the first film followed the structure of Iron Man, Ant-Man and the Wasp does feel very much like it's own thing. There are sprinklings of the original film in there, but otherwise it pretty much has everything you could want in an Ant-Man movie. It's fun, and that's really the idea behind a summer blockbuster...and especially one that follows on from Infinity War.

...which the consequences of are followed up on in a post-credits scene...which I was ultimately dreading with this movie.

The film ends with Scott trapped in the Quantum Realm (Hank and Janet have continued work to help Ghost with her healing) while Hank, Janet, and Hope all disappear in the Thanos snap...leaving us on a cliffhanger and a rather humorous "Ant-Man and the Wasp will return" and a question mark suddenly being snapped onto the end.

In summation Ant-Man and the Wasp is another solid offering from Marvel. It's not the best, but it's definitely one of the good ones and is very enjoyable. Go and see it!

Ant-Man and the Wasp is now in theaters from Marvel Entertainment and Walt Disney Motion Pictures.

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