Dustin: 4 of 5 stars Nick: 3.5 of 5 stars Average: 3.75 of 5 stars (Live canary)
Dustin: Ant-Man is the latest of many Marvel superhero movies. This time a plucky Paul Rudd, fresh out of prison for burglary and trying to go straight, is unwittingly recruited to don the iconic Ant-Man suit and save the world.
Nick: Ant-Man is the silliest of all the Marvel Universe films. I don’t mean in its ridiculous nature, but more in that every scene ends with a joke. The movie is very funny and seamlessly puts itself into the Marvel Universe. It doesn’t try too hard like some previous installments, which is a relief, but there are also less stakes and very dull exposition leading to a story that would land somewhere in the middle of my favorite Marvel film.
Dustin: I enjoyed the lighter tone of this movie. A lot of it was played for jokes, and it was effective both as a superhero movie and as a comedy. I liked the stakes were smaller (ant-sized!), which was also something of a running joke, when we’d get a distant shot of the action, and we see how small it is. The stakes were only large when you considered the large-scale implications of the villain’s scheme, which was to steal the Ant-Man technology (this seems lifted from Iron Man). But there was also some very wonderful scenes in the movie, such as when Ant-Man shrinks to sub-atomic size, and we see a more abstract world. Hometown boy Paul Rudd was perfectly cast, as he has both the comedic chops and the physicality to pull off the character. I’m glad to see him finally make it!
Dustin: I enjoyed the lighter tone of this movie. A lot of it was played for jokes, and it was effective both as a superhero movie and as a comedy. I liked the stakes were smaller (ant-sized!), which was also something of a running joke, when we’d get a distant shot of the action, and we see how small it is. The stakes were only large when you considered the large-scale implications of the villain’s scheme, which was to steal the Ant-Man technology (this seems lifted from Iron Man). But there was also some very wonderful scenes in the movie, such as when Ant-Man shrinks to sub-atomic size, and we see a more abstract world. Hometown boy Paul Rudd was perfectly cast, as he has both the comedic chops and the physicality to pull off the character. I’m glad to see him finally make it!
Nick: I considered Rudd to have made it in 1995’s Clueless! I enjoyed the tone, but each scene being played for a joke hurt it in the end. The little girl being kidnapped and other people being “in danger” never felt truly in danger, and that is what I mean by stakes. When even one person’s life doesn’t seem like a stake what’s the point? I might be the only one to have felt this way and I say it with even having enjoyed the film quite a bit, but the movie had quite a few parts that made me roll my eyes. Why did Michael Douglas finally feel like now was the time to inform his daughter how her mother died? It seemed so forced at the moment so it could have some emotion and even though it was some pointless drivel it was then interrupted by Rudd ending the scene with a joke. There was nothing forcing Douglas to finally tell Hope, but I guess they needed some emotion. I don’t understand what would have been wrong with telling her the truth earlier, but I guess he didn’t think his 40-year-old daughter was stable enough till now?
Dustin: I also didn’t care that every scene needed to end on a comedic note. That scene in particular definitely missed the mark, but I’d say 95 percent of the jokes landed.
I liked the angle of him doing this all so he could be with his daughter. There was also a strained father/daughter relationship between Michael Douglas and his daughter. I thought it added a realistic dimension to the characters and made them more relatable in a movie about a man who shrinks to ant-size to fight crime.
Nick: I like the idea of a strained father/daughter relationship, but the thing that made it strained and the way it was played off was the bothersome part.
I love the supporting players in the film. While it’s nice to have Michael Douglas back, it’s great that Michael Pena plays Ant-Man’s best friend. His pointlessly long stories and the way they were shot were pieces of brilliance. Made me think of Edgar Wright who was set to direct the movie but dropped out and was only given a writer’s credit.
Dustin: Michael Pena definitely delivered the laughs. I thought they did a good job too with Michael Douglas’s CGI age-reversal at the beginning. I suspected what they had done, but I wouldn’t have thought anything of it if I weren’t looking closely. I only got a little bit of the uncanny valley around the mouth when he was talking. Very convincing effect, though.
I also liked the villain, who kind of looked like Kojak. He has a ray gun that when pointed at someone who is not wearing the protective shrinking suit, turns them into a tiny glob of pulsating goop. It was definitely a creepy and evil idea.
Nick: Corey Stoll definitely has the intense face of a villain with his bulging eyes and all around physique that reminds me of Lex Luthor.
Nick: I like the idea of a strained father/daughter relationship, but the thing that made it strained and the way it was played off was the bothersome part.
I love the supporting players in the film. While it’s nice to have Michael Douglas back, it’s great that Michael Pena plays Ant-Man’s best friend. His pointlessly long stories and the way they were shot were pieces of brilliance. Made me think of Edgar Wright who was set to direct the movie but dropped out and was only given a writer’s credit.
Dustin: Michael Pena definitely delivered the laughs. I thought they did a good job too with Michael Douglas’s CGI age-reversal at the beginning. I suspected what they had done, but I wouldn’t have thought anything of it if I weren’t looking closely. I only got a little bit of the uncanny valley around the mouth when he was talking. Very convincing effect, though.
I also liked the villain, who kind of looked like Kojak. He has a ray gun that when pointed at someone who is not wearing the protective shrinking suit, turns them into a tiny glob of pulsating goop. It was definitely a creepy and evil idea.
Nick: Corey Stoll definitely has the intense face of a villain with his bulging eyes and all around physique that reminds me of Lex Luthor.
While the film may have one too many jokes, its overall purpose is to entertain and in the Marvel Universe that is what’s most important, and that Ant-Man does splendidly. Whether a fan looking for action or comedy, you’ll get a healthy dose of both here!
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