"Blu-ray or Bust"
ANT-MAN (2015, PG-13, 117 minutes, MARVEL STUDIOS/DISNEY)
I understand now why Marvel saved ANT-MAN as the big ending
to “Phase Two”.
Borrowing a page or two from IRON MAN by making an everyman
actor into a larger than life hero, ANT-MAN is an origin story with a bit more
panache to it than some of the other prior attempts. (I’m referring to Sam Raimi’s SPIDER-MAN, which, at the time,
seemed pretty cool, but now just seems pretty corny) The polished Marvel Studios,
which occasionally stumbles (THOR: THE DARK WORLD), played it smart this time
by bringing the storytelling a bit more down to earth.
Ex-con Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) can’t hold a job due to his
criminal record, until he is convinced by retired scientist Hank Pym (Michael
Douglas) to don the suit he once wore himself to fight evil. An easy enough synopsis to write, but, oh,
does Scott have some issues. An agile
cat-burglar, he seems to lose much of his finesse once he dons the suit which
shrinks him down to the size of a pesky picnic crasher, which is one of the few
details of an otherwise tight script that seems to get lost in the
shuffle. At one point, we see Scott
performing a form of parkour, but then has problems with agility once he goes
all micro-Scott.
And the villain, scientist Darren Cross (an over-the-top
Corey Stoll), plays to stereotype too easily.
Another mad scientist, Marvel, really?
Yet it is Rudd’s performance as a dad trying to reconnect
with his young daughter that grounds you to his character, no matter how shady
his past. Rudd possesses an ability to
make you like him; there is a charm and twinkle to his eye that belies the
gravity of his situations. If you were
ever in a tight spot, this is the guy you want on your side.
Hopefully, there will be another solo ANT-MAN film, because
lemme tell ya’, if they don’t make another movie with Michael Pena, I’m going
to be a wee bit pissed. As Lang’s
ex-con buddy “Luis”, Pena, like the world’s greatest thief, steals every
frickin’ scene he is in. Writer Edgar
Wright (whom bowed out of the directorial chair during production) may have
written a great comedic character, but the life with which Pena infuses said
character is a feat which solely belongs to him. If there were a Super-hero Academy Awards, he would win Best
Supporting Character. He’s that good.
The special features are what you come to expect from the
great machine that is Marvel, including an interesting doc on
micro-photography. And it is nice to
see the studio still keeping things honest; in an age where other studios make
you purchase the 3-D version to get all of the special features, I’m happy to
say that Marvel is still including the same features on each release.
You would think that AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON would have been
the big finale, but, once again, the studio ended its second bout of super hero
flicks with a bang, and with intelligence.
ANT-MAN may not be bigger than ULTRON, but it is, thankfully, better.
Film Grade: B+
Special Features: B+
Blu-ray Necessary: Most Definitely
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