Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania

#Review: Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania

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It’s time for the little guy to take on his biggest villain yet, as Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) goes up against Kang the Conqueror (Jonathan Majors) in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. In this latest adventure, Scott is living the life now as a celebrated Avenger. He saved the universe, has a loving girlfriend and has written a book. Nothing can stop him now, well except maybe a multidimensional despot out to conquer the known multiverse. Luckily, Scott has the whole Pym family and his daughter by his side.

You’re an interesting man, Scott Lang

Honestly, I’m disappointed in this film. Touting itself as the beginning of a new dynasty, setting up a threat that rivals Thanos and all it does is remind me, that Jonathan Majors is a gem. I don’t like Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, it’s toothless and feels like a Disney ride instead of an actual story with stakes and characters.

The film is also riddled with a universe of plot holes. From character motivations to the rules established in previous films, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is surprisingly dull. The world that Scott, Cassie, Hope, Janet and Hank find themselves in is filled with character archetypes. There’s a bunch of uninteresting rebels, there are literal faceless minions so you don’t have to worry about the moral ambiguity of a young teenage girl killing. On top of this is a film fighting against its best aspect, its villain.

Kang the Conqueror is outstanding, he lives up to the hype set up in Loki and then some. Majors is firing on all cylinders and dominates every scene he is in. It’s unfortunate on so many levels though. First of all, the film has no idea what to do with such a powerful character. He seems completely unstoppable in the beginning, then by the end of the film, they literally pull something out of their ass and I found myself, internally screaming, how? This comes down to the film not giving a compelling and well-written way to defeat him.

The film also has a design that is nothing particularly engaging. If you’ve watched a recent Star Wars project or you’ve watched Disney’s Strange World, you will recognise a lot of what is going on here structurally and design-wise. On top of that, the CGI is inconsistent. Sometimes it looks decent, at other times you can tell something is off. The best example is the cartoonish M.O.D.O.K. At times he looks fine, most of the time though he looks goofy, which is a real shame because M.O.D.OK. can be a visually impressive character.

I will say on a rare positive for this film, there are interesting moments dotted within the film. Kang’s backstory is compelling, Majors and Pfeiffer work well together and have a great rapport. Rudd also has several great moments, that showcase how sweet a person Scott is. The other two Pyms in particular Michael Douglas’ Hank Pym, have nothing to do. Hank is used as a deus ex machina and Hope (Evangeline Lilly) is an extra gunslinger in the final battle.

Ultimately, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is an unimpressive mess of a film, that fails its villain, perhaps one of the best villains in the MCU.

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