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Ant-Man and the Wasp – Quantumania Movie Review: Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania broke me. I don’t know if it’s the superhero fatigue kicking in or just a general lack of competent filmmaking in Marvel’s last few projects, this was like watching my favourite burger joint burn down. Swapping the heart and low stakes of the previous Ant-Man films for a grand spectacle, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is very much a setup film where quite a lot happens in for two hours with the feeling of nothing. Its sole purpose is to set up the upcoming phase of Marvel films, and that’s inherently a problem that brings this down so much. Ant-Man and the Wasp - Quantumania: Paul Rudd's Marvel Flick Becomes Second MCU Film After Eternals to Receive 'Rotten' Rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
The story picks up after the events of Avengers: Endgame. Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) has become somewhat of a celebrity and is having a wonderful love life with Hope Van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly). Being wrapped up in fame and unfortunately ignoring his daughter Cassie (Kathryn Newton), Scott tries to reconnect with her when he learns that she has been working on a device alongside Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) that sends down signals to the Quantum Realm. However, someone villainous picks up that signal and sucks down the entire Ant fam to the Quantum Realm, and hence begins Quantumania.
Now, I am a huge fan of the first Ant-Man, and also enjoyed Ant-Man and the Wasp in doses, even though it wasn’t perfect by any means. These films thrived on having low stakes and made for fun adventures that had a bit of heart as well. So, with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania you would expect a more conclusive feeling because it’s kind of ending a trilogy, right? Well, nope, buckle up because this a two-hour trailer for a film that you’ll probably see in the next two years.
The immediate problem with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is just how bland it feels in execution. There is literally no setup here to our group being sent down to the Quantum Realm. In those first few minutes I did receive the shades of the previous Ant-Man movies, but it was so short-lived as director Peyton Reed straight wants to get into the meat of the movie, and that creates for an underdeveloped narrative, which Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania has in plenty. It’s a setup film in the definition of the term, and the screenplay never truly presents any stakes.
Watch the Trailer for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania:
Paul Rudd is as charming and goofy he has been in the role of Scott Lang, yet the writing always portrays him as a bumbling idiot who can never go without cracking a joke in a serious moment. Then you mix in the dynamic he has with Kathryn Newton’s Cassie, who again has no development throughout, and the movie just sacrifices that plotline for more Quantum Realm shenanigans. Cassie also feels like an entirely different character than what little we saw of her in Avengers: Endgame, and it’s an oddball feel, which also makes sense considering they booted Emma Fuhrmann out of the role here.
You also have Michelle Pfeiffer’s Janet Van Dyne who is having similar parental issues as Scott. Not telling Hope about her experience in the Quantum Realm, there is a rift in their relationship, which again is completely disregarded in the film and never paid off. Evangeline Lilly also gets nothing to do, and she just stands around and punches some folks at the end. This is weird to see because it’s not just the Ant-Man show, it’s the Ant-Man and the Wasp show. And then you have Michael Douglas’ Hank Pym here who seems like he is acting in a completely different film than the rest of them.
But that’s not all, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania introduces Jonathan Majors’ Kang the Conqueror as the next big bad of the MCU, a man out of time, who never feels threatening in the slightest. Majors tries his best to steer this sinking ship, but the writing makes him feel like a one-note villain that I never truly cared about. His motivations are abstract and I don’t know anything more about him after this. MODOK (Corey Stoll) is here too… yeah… and he is just a big head that I wanted to laugh at whenever he was on screen. Liberties with his comic book counterpart are taken here, and the MCU just runs this rich character down to the ground.
It's not just the plot though that’s underdeveloped, the filmmaking as a whole feels quite undercooked too. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania has a backdrop that feels ripped straight out of Spy Kids 3D. There is such a huge visual drop in quality from the first two Ant-Man movies, because there never really is a scene that utilises the shrinking powers of these characters in a unique way. Director Peyton Reed brings no visual flair to the table here, and it just looks like a mess at times.
Muddy backgrounds and character blending in to the environment of the Quantum Realm, it’s so visible that the actors here were just standing in a box. The action in the film too is so barebones where nothing really feels hard-hitting or impactful. It’s just the big guy punches the small guy and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania calls it a day. No urgency at all, and I couldn’t be more over the experience of a big final third act battle where the heroes punch faceless goons in the face for the umpteenth time. Ant-Man and the Wasp Quantumania: Paul Rudd, Michelle Pfeiffer, Jonathan Majors and More Arrive in Style at World Premiere of Marvel Film (View Pics).
It just ends in such a mundane way where no character makes a hard decision. It’s the safest MCU film to date, and the mid-credits was laughably bad with a post-credit that, again, sets up another project. The only thing I came away with from this movie was a headache.
Yay!
Jonathan Major Tries
Nay!
Underdeveloped
Bland
Purely a Setup Film
Final Thoughts
Watching Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is the equivalent of witnessing your favourite athlete be on a career decline after reaching their peak. It’s a soulless movie that encompasses everything wrong with blockbuster filmmaking nowadays. I couldn’t have walked away more disappointed. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is playing in theatres right now.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 17, 2023 10:00 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
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