



★ ★ ½ ☆ ☆





Ant-Man would be this year’s Guardians of the Galaxy: a diamond in the rough, a unique and unexpected gem that used wit and charm to become a surprise hit. This seemed a lot to expect of a film with such a troubled history: Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz writer/director Edgar Wright had been working on the project for years when ‘creative differences’ with Marvel led to his departure and a new script co-written by leading man Paul Rudd was cobbled together using both old and new material. But let’s face it; no-one expected a film featuring a talking tree and a gun-loving raccoon to be a hit, so how hard could it be for Ant-Man to land a similar blow? Early positive buzz for Marvel’s latest offering raised high hopes thatwould be this year’s: a diamond in the rough, a unique and unexpected gem that used wit and charm to become a surprise hit. This seemed a lot to expect of a film with such a troubled history:andwriter/director Edgar Wright had been working on the project for years when ‘creative differences’ with Marvel led to his departure and a new script co-written by leading man Paul Rudd was cobbled together using both old and new material. But let’s face it; no-one expected a film featuring a talking tree and a gun-loving raccoon to be a hit, so how hard could it be fortoa similar blow?





Ant-Man is the first Marvel film to be enveloped by the law of diminishing returns; a chink in the otherwise mostly unblemished armour. In fact, if it weren’t for certain unique stylistic choices cropping up every once in a while, the film would just be another run-of-the-mill action movie rolling off the Hollywood production line. Answer: very.is the first Marvel film to be enveloped by the law of diminishing returns; a chink in the otherwise mostly unblemished armour. In fact, if it weren’t for certain unique stylistic choices cropping up every once in a while, the film would just be another run-of-the-mill action movie rolling off the Hollywood production line.





The plot itself follows con-man Scott Lang (Rudd), estranged from his daughter and down-on-his-luck after finishing his parole. Lang is hired by tech-savvy entrepreneur Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) to steal a revolutionary but weaponised suit with the ability to shrink in scale from greedy company chairman Darren Cross (Corey Stoll). Aided by Pym’s daughter Hope (Evangeline Lily) and a super-suit of his own, Lang sets out to perform the most daring heist in history and become a hero to his daughter in the process.





Age of Ultron and Thor: The Dark World), but the writing is often engrossing enough for us to overlook this and simply enjoy spending time with our heroes. Ant-Man has the opposite problem: the character development might take up a large portion of the film even when it feels rushed and throwaway, whilst the zip-zang-boom action sequences are handled with expert finesse. The constant switching scales is a unique and immersive way to break the usual linear flow (read: man punches man until one falls over) of bombastic brawls and – were I a bigger fan of the film in general – I would even stretch to seeing how they looked in 3D. What audiences usually expect of Marvel is interesting and enjoyable comic book characters brought to life: sure, the action might be a bit lacklustre in places (seeand), but the writing is often engrossing enough for us to overlook this and simply enjoy spending time with our heroes.has the opposite problem: the character development might take up a large portion of the film even when it feels rushed and throwaway, whilst the zip-zang-boom action sequences are handled with expert finesse. The constant switching scales is a unique and immersive way to break the usual linear flow (read: man punches man until one falls over) of bombastic brawls and – were I a bigger fan of the film in general – I would even stretch to seeing how they looked in 3D.





But it’s not enough to just throw some spectacle in our faces and expect the applause to follow unless we care enough about the people involved. Paul Rudd is perfectly reliable and delivers the punchlines with his usual panache, but Stoll’s villain is the boring, embittered cliché we’ve all seen hundreds of times before. Michael Douglas (like Stanely Tucci and Robert Redford in their respective Captain America appearances) offers a degree of exterior experience to the character scenes, but Evangeline Lily is served very poorly with minimal dialogue and an arc that requires her to stand around frowning for 90% of the picture, though Michael Pe ñ a as the comic relief lightens the tone whenever he’s given room to breathe.