Has it's weak spots, but enjoyable nonetheless

Rating: 7/10 (25 July 2015)

I hadn't paid too much attention to Ant-Man during the run up to its release, mainly because I'm not a Marvel super fan, so I went into this film without too many expectations. But I have to say, I was fairly surprised at how the movie turned out.
There's a lot to like about Ant-Man; it's a witty, fairly fast paced and well designed film, with a predictable but good story, typical characters and plenty of charm. To say the least, it's no more than a simple blockbuster summer movie, but it fits that mold excellently. It's easy to watch and flows nicely from scene to scene.
Probably the best aspect of the film is its key prop - the suit. As far as superhero flicks go, the Ant-Man suit is a really fun idea that is used to its full potential. The transition sequence is done well and it's not over dramatised as I feared it might have been. Its also well described; the exposition used to explain how it works fitted into the film without a hitch.
Michael Douglas's character is probably the next best thing about Ant- Man. He really picks up his role as Hank Pym with ease, and much of the film revolves around his actions. He's also one of the more expanded characters, with clearly defined weaknesses, which were lacking from others. Although the scene where he gets shot is a bit hard to believe, he's the main component in driving the story.
One of other aspects of Ant-Man that I particularly liked were the ants themselves; Pym's control device helped to add a bit more to capabilities of Scott Lang - the 'Ant Man' himself - and they helped to provide a bit of comic relief, especially during the training montages in the middle of the film.
Lang's three friends - Luis, Kurt and Dave - also helped with the comedic aspect. Although a bit boring at the start of the film, their role in the heist ensured things didn't get too serious, which was important in keeping Ant-Man from verging into the wrong territory.
Paul Rudd, who played Scott Lang, was also good. He was a bit on the simply side, but he played the role of Ant Man rather well. He didn't have a proper fatal flaw (which I would have preferred), but the next best thing - the relationship with his daughter and ex-partner - was used to good effect. It gave him the emotional depth that he lacked in other parts of the film.
That said, there were plenty of weak spots. The biggest one for me was Hope van Dyne; she was way too one sided as a character to justify some of the emotional scenes in the film. This was particularly apparent when Pym explained how her mother died. When she broke out into tears, all I could think of was how cheesy this scene was.
This also relates to another negative point; the back story. A lot of it simply isn't explained enough, and when characters start getting emotional about past events, it just didn't carry the weight it needed to really make those scenes effective. Probably the best example of this is Darren Cross's relationship with Pym. It just wasn't fleshed out enough, and when he got angry at Pym while revealing the Yellow Jacket to the Hydra agents, it felt flat and stereotypical.
The first act of the story was also a bit stodgy; it was noticeably slower than the rest of the film and didn't engage me much. It was only when Lang found the suit that things started to pick up.
The final act too left me a bit confused as to what I thought of it. It was, without a doubt, very enjoyable and genuinely funny in many places. But it was so frantic and ridiculous that made it feel fairly silly; certainly good to watch, but a bit out of place.
Regardless, however, I did enjoy Ant-Man. I don't feel it's a film I'm going to remember for any reason, mainly because it's just big screen, pop-corn action, but as far as that role is concerned, it does it brilliantly. And as far as Marvel films go, it keeps its references to other MCU movies limited, meaning anyone can enjoy it without a problem. In short, it's a fun, get-what-you-pay-for summer superhero movie that does things a little bit differently.