a fun, well-made B movie from Marvel

Rating: 7/10 (17 July 2015)

Ant-Man delivers much of the fun, good (if silly) stretches of the comedy, and the wacky comic-book science fiction stuff that many of us come to expect from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It's also a movie that caused some movie people to raise their eyebrows when the original director Edgar Wright parted ways with Marvel over some "creative differences". What was it exactly, we may never know, though there's been speculation about the studio and producers like Kevin Feige forcing on the other aspects of the MCU onto what is an origin story mostly unto itself about Dr. Hank Pym restarting his Ant-Man design with thief Scott Lang (Michael Douglas and Paul Rudd, both cast by Wright). Whatever the case, we now have the movie we have in front of us. For me, I saw little things that did indicate it was still Wright's work (and he shares script and story credit with Joe Cornish, along with Rudd and Adam McKay), while still being basically a fairly safe comic-book movie.
What I mean by comic-book movie isn't meant to be a put-down, though with the deluge we've been getting in theaters (or it feels like that due to the over-marketing of them) there's always the possibility of fatigue from all of the explosions and daring-do. At the heart of Ant-Man is lots of goofy science that is explained in the way that it is through these kinds of movies, not just of the Marvel kind but just of any goofy sci-fi flick (atoms, and things becoming Sub-Atomic as well, which I'll get to later). At the same time it's also a father-daughter story, as both Pym and Lang are fathers who have to do right by them - it's what drives them both, and the scenes between Douglas and Evangeline Lilly feel strong enough in that regard (her mother, Hank's wife and the original Wasp we learn, died due to an accident in the 80's).
We only see so much of Rudd and his daughter, and for me that was kind of perfunctory for the story: his drive to do right by his daughter is mentioned repeatedly, not least of which by his ex-wife and the girl's new father (Bobby Cannavale, always a welcome presence), but we only see so much of that bond between them, given that Lang's just gotten out of jail. But it's fine - the desire to see her will, I guess, drive him to have better control over his ant army (no kidding) to get into places and "steal stuff" as the trailer says. And for what he's asked for, Rudd makes this a fun, likable anti-turned-real hero, and delivers the quips and one-liners given with the comic umph that they're needed.
The action moves swiftly enough and is directed competently. I mention 'competently' not to make Peyton Reed seem like some kind of hired hack - hired, though he was, he shows some visual flair, most notably when a character finally becomes "Sub-Atomic", which is as much a credit to the VFX wizards at Marvel studios, but is probably the highlight of the movie for me, when things story-wise get most desperate too - but is it missing its original director? This could be a good example to show in film schools down the line of how a script can have solid comic beats and unexpected moments for characters (primarily the wildest and funniest lines are given to Lang's co-horts in crime, most especially Michael Pena), while still missing a real visual edge. Again, this isn't badly directed exactly, and I'm sure things like the Thomas the Tank Engine gag, and not just what you see in the trailer but everything else, could have been screwed up in even more incapable hands.
But maybe there could've been more to the villain. Here we get Corey Stoll as Cross, a pretty terrific actor (Midnight in Paris, House of Cards especially) and here we know who this character is - Pym's former protégé gone corporate criminal mastermind - from minute one, without any ambiguity. But it didn't make him very interesting, and I felt kind of sorry for such a guy as good as he is to be given a character who is at best two dimension if not less ("I saw too much of me in you," Hank basically says to Cross to explain to the audience why he is the way he is, the bad parts magnified). There's also some science with the character and the Yellow-Jacket suit that get rushed in the third act, but really it is another example of a Marvel villain getting the short-shrift; maybe not to the extent of Ronen in 'Guardians', but close enough.
Still, the heroic side is what is most often strong in these MCU movies, and Rudd and Lilly deliver for the characters solid acting chops, and you care (up to a point at least) about the conflicts. Douglas does too, and maybe gives the most... most character, I guess (interesting, captivating, troubled, you pick). Pym has so much that has happened in his life, much heart-break, lost scientific dreams either stolen away from him or, worse, it went to his head. It makes me want to see an Ant-Man pre-origin movie, albeit with another actor (and no more weird CGI to make actors look younger, like in the opening scene of this - weird).
He's the kind of star a film like this needs alongside the other capable and ready-to-do-this players, and makes Ant-Man a fun experience with its complex heist involving (yes) a fleet of ants, and the ability of the hero to shrink and grow large with the push of a button. A cool power, which I hope to see more of in these movies. But top tier for this studio? Not quite.