Phase 3 of the MCU goes off with a bang!

Rating: 9/10 (17 July 2015)

I would not say this lightly: this film easily rivals Captain America: The Winter Soldier in the Marvel Cinematic Universe in terms of quality and fun.
I can't, however, say that they are equal because they are opposite ends of the spectrum. The Winter Soldier is a very serious action film with a little bit of wit and humor thrown in to break things up. Ant-Man is a very witty and fun film with a little action thrown in to justify it being called a superhero film.
The story revolves around Scott Lang, an expert cat burglar just released from prison struggling to regain his place in his daughter's life. Dire circumstances and a little unseen intervention forces Lang into meeting Dr. Hank Pym, who in the late 1960s discovered the Pym particle, a particle that decreased the distance between atoms, and was the original Ant-Man. Now older and unable to use the suit, Dr. Pym prepares Lang to step into his suit at the cusp of a dire situation.
This film has just enough Avengers tie-ins to firmly establish it as a piece of the MCU, but it also stands apart. We as an audience has gotten used to the same three (or four) characters interacting in the same universe after having their own origin films. We've forgotten how to react when a new character of equal stature is introduced.
This film is carried by the stellar performance of Paul Rudd as Lang as well as a great supporting cast, especially Michael Douglas's Hank Pym. However, the main villain, Darren Cross, seems a bit shallow in his performance and even the climactic battle lacks a sense of large stakes. Rather, the entire last part of the film seems to just happen with no real emotional investment. It just, is.
Nevertheless, Rudd's Ant-Man is a great summer blockbuster sure to rake in millions for Marvel and Disney and it cements itself as a firm anchor for Phase 3 of the MCU to expand. Can't wait for Captain America: Civil War and Thor: Ragnarok!