Maybe the movie should have been called The Wasp and Ant-Man...
Saw Ant-Man and The Wasp this weekend. The theatre was not packed, but I think that had more to do with the fact that it was a nice day outside rather than a lack of interest in the movie. With the way Infinity War ended, I'm sure there were some people who went to this movie just to see if there were any hints about what's to come.
But more on that later. I have to say, I liked the first Ant-Man movie more than this one. The plot was tighter in the first one. You knew what the objective was and what the bad guy wanted and the resolution made sense within the rules they established for Scott's little slice of the MCU. Ant-Man and the Wasp is a little less focused. The main thrust of the plot is trying to find Janet and rescue her from the Quantum Realm, but there's a lot of back and forth before anyone enters the Quantum Realm. There are some awesome set pieces along the way - the ways they do the growing and shrinking in this movie is incredibly fun - but the narrative isn't always the greatest at linking everything. The villain is a bit ho-hum, as well. They try to tie in Ghost's backstory with mistakes Hank made in the past, but the emotional impact isn't as strong as it could have been. Ghost just looks cool when she's phasing through stuff. Burch is the secondary villain, but he's more a crook who causes additional complications than a big bad.
And then there's the whole thing with Janet and the Quantum Realm. The Quantum Realm is the place past sub atomic when you shrink down, but the rules of how things work down there are kind of slap dash. I get that the Quantum Realm also exists in a universe with aliens and gods and magic, so there is some suspension of disbelief, but I still don't understand how Janet survived there for thirty years and how the energy from there can cure Ghost of her condition or how siphoning off the energy would tear Janet apart. I guess you need to just go with it, but the heist plot from the first movie was much more precise.
It's the characters who are the best part of the movie. Civil War threw everyone for a loop. We knew that Scott was caught and thrown into the Raft, but I never stopped to think how that would affect Hope and Hank. Having the team at odds with each other was interesting place to start from. Scott has to work hard to get into Hope and Hank's good graces again, but he also doesn't want to risk his chance of freedom, too. That's the thing that's different about Scott. He's a dad. He has Cassie to worry about, as well. I liked that she's the one to encourage him to help his friends, even if it might mean her dad gets thrown into jail forever. There's also the family dynamic with Hank and Hope. They're a lot closer in this movie, so they're this great father-daughter team. And it's no brainer that Hope is a bad ass as Wasp. Her wings make her more mobile than Scott, so she can do things he's not able. Though, are they still playing her as Scott's love interest? I would really prefer it if they just stayed crimefighting partners and not romantic partners. I also like that they kept Luis, Kurt, and Dave, Scott's ex-con friends. They don't add much to the story, but they are amusing characters to have around. And with Janet in the mix now, it will be cool to see the Pym-Van Dynes working all together.
But oh wait. A certain someone snapped their fingers, so the happy family unit barely has five minutes together before they're all ash. The mid-credit scene is just a killer. You think it's about some weird science with team Ant-Man/Wasp, but nope. Hope, Hank, and Janet get wiped out and Scott is stuck in the Quantum Realm. Even the end credit scene is a downer. Sure, you have a giant ant playing the drums, but in the background, you have the ominous emergency messaging tone. I guess there was no way around it. You can't have a fun scene, not when half of the world is gone. At least you find out why Scott and Hope didn't show up in Infinity War; they were too busy dealing with Ghost. This does leave an opening for Scott to show up in Avengers 4, though (amusing he finds a way out of the Quantum Realm). Janet mentions a Time Vortex or Funnel or something that exists in the Quantum Realm, so maybe some time travel is in the Avengers' future?
Random: Thank you, Marvel, for continuing to have superfluous shots of the male superheroes with their shirts off. :-D Hank's past with S.H.I.E.L.D. comes up a few times in the movie. I wish we could see more of his early adventures, though that might mean more de-ageing CGI effects and I don't know if you could sustain that for more than a short flashback. If Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. weren't always telling such a tight arc each season, that would be a perfect place to drop in one of Hank's Ant-Man exploits. They found a moment to work in Luis' voice over gag from the first movie, but it was definitely shoehorned in because fans loved those elaborate sequences from last time. Are they setting up Cassie to be a superhero? She was part of the Young Avengers in the comics. She definitely has a moment when she sees Scott as Giant Man and you can tell she's thinking, "I could do that." The actress is still young, but it'd be neat if, later down the line when Paul Rudd's contract is up, she could replace him. I'm glad they haven't run out of shrinking gags. The cars in the Hot Wheels case and the ants in the breath mint tin was pretty smart, kind of like the tank from the last movie. The shrunken building was fun, too, if only because you had characters running around with it in their arms. And I normally don't care about the design of the end credits, but they were really clever this time around. Instead of animated end credits, they used miniature sets and figures to recreate scenes. It totally makes sense for Ant-Man.
Oh man, I can't wait for next year. Captain Marvel and the conclusion to Infinity War.
But more on that later. I have to say, I liked the first Ant-Man movie more than this one. The plot was tighter in the first one. You knew what the objective was and what the bad guy wanted and the resolution made sense within the rules they established for Scott's little slice of the MCU. Ant-Man and the Wasp is a little less focused. The main thrust of the plot is trying to find Janet and rescue her from the Quantum Realm, but there's a lot of back and forth before anyone enters the Quantum Realm. There are some awesome set pieces along the way - the ways they do the growing and shrinking in this movie is incredibly fun - but the narrative isn't always the greatest at linking everything. The villain is a bit ho-hum, as well. They try to tie in Ghost's backstory with mistakes Hank made in the past, but the emotional impact isn't as strong as it could have been. Ghost just looks cool when she's phasing through stuff. Burch is the secondary villain, but he's more a crook who causes additional complications than a big bad.
And then there's the whole thing with Janet and the Quantum Realm. The Quantum Realm is the place past sub atomic when you shrink down, but the rules of how things work down there are kind of slap dash. I get that the Quantum Realm also exists in a universe with aliens and gods and magic, so there is some suspension of disbelief, but I still don't understand how Janet survived there for thirty years and how the energy from there can cure Ghost of her condition or how siphoning off the energy would tear Janet apart. I guess you need to just go with it, but the heist plot from the first movie was much more precise.
It's the characters who are the best part of the movie. Civil War threw everyone for a loop. We knew that Scott was caught and thrown into the Raft, but I never stopped to think how that would affect Hope and Hank. Having the team at odds with each other was interesting place to start from. Scott has to work hard to get into Hope and Hank's good graces again, but he also doesn't want to risk his chance of freedom, too. That's the thing that's different about Scott. He's a dad. He has Cassie to worry about, as well. I liked that she's the one to encourage him to help his friends, even if it might mean her dad gets thrown into jail forever. There's also the family dynamic with Hank and Hope. They're a lot closer in this movie, so they're this great father-daughter team. And it's no brainer that Hope is a bad ass as Wasp. Her wings make her more mobile than Scott, so she can do things he's not able. Though, are they still playing her as Scott's love interest? I would really prefer it if they just stayed crimefighting partners and not romantic partners. I also like that they kept Luis, Kurt, and Dave, Scott's ex-con friends. They don't add much to the story, but they are amusing characters to have around. And with Janet in the mix now, it will be cool to see the Pym-Van Dynes working all together.
But oh wait. A certain someone snapped their fingers, so the happy family unit barely has five minutes together before they're all ash. The mid-credit scene is just a killer. You think it's about some weird science with team Ant-Man/Wasp, but nope. Hope, Hank, and Janet get wiped out and Scott is stuck in the Quantum Realm. Even the end credit scene is a downer. Sure, you have a giant ant playing the drums, but in the background, you have the ominous emergency messaging tone. I guess there was no way around it. You can't have a fun scene, not when half of the world is gone. At least you find out why Scott and Hope didn't show up in Infinity War; they were too busy dealing with Ghost. This does leave an opening for Scott to show up in Avengers 4, though (amusing he finds a way out of the Quantum Realm). Janet mentions a Time Vortex or Funnel or something that exists in the Quantum Realm, so maybe some time travel is in the Avengers' future?
Random: Thank you, Marvel, for continuing to have superfluous shots of the male superheroes with their shirts off. :-D Hank's past with S.H.I.E.L.D. comes up a few times in the movie. I wish we could see more of his early adventures, though that might mean more de-ageing CGI effects and I don't know if you could sustain that for more than a short flashback. If Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. weren't always telling such a tight arc each season, that would be a perfect place to drop in one of Hank's Ant-Man exploits. They found a moment to work in Luis' voice over gag from the first movie, but it was definitely shoehorned in because fans loved those elaborate sequences from last time. Are they setting up Cassie to be a superhero? She was part of the Young Avengers in the comics. She definitely has a moment when she sees Scott as Giant Man and you can tell she's thinking, "I could do that." The actress is still young, but it'd be neat if, later down the line when Paul Rudd's contract is up, she could replace him. I'm glad they haven't run out of shrinking gags. The cars in the Hot Wheels case and the ants in the breath mint tin was pretty smart, kind of like the tank from the last movie. The shrunken building was fun, too, if only because you had characters running around with it in their arms. And I normally don't care about the design of the end credits, but they were really clever this time around. Instead of animated end credits, they used miniature sets and figures to recreate scenes. It totally makes sense for Ant-Man.
Oh man, I can't wait for next year. Captain Marvel and the conclusion to Infinity War.