(L-R): Paul Rudd as Scott Lang/Ant-Man, Kathryn Newton as Cassandra "Cassie" Lang, Evangeline Lilly as Hope Van Dyne/Wasp in Marvel Studios' ANT-MAN AND THE WASP: QUANTUMANIA. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. © 2022 MARVEL.
(L-R): Paul Rudd as Scott Lang/Ant-Man, Kathryn Newton as Cassandra "Cassie" Lang, Evangeline Lilly as Hope Van Dyne/Wasp in Marvel Studios' ANT-MAN AND THE WASP: QUANTUMANIA. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. © 2022 MARVEL.

Review: Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania

By: Robert Prentice
marvel

The first blockbuster film of 2023 is about to land and it has a lot on its shoulders as it anchors the start of Marvel’s phase 5 launch. Paul Rudd has universally been considered someone who never ages and his character Scott Lang is often the comedic relief in the story but also incredibly important.

Ant-Man and the Wasp find themselves exploring the Quantum Realm, interacting with strange new creatures and embarking on an adventure that pushes them beyond the limits of what they thought was possible.

Review

Marvel’s MCU has officially kicked off phase 5 with one of the densest films yet for any of the starting phases to date. Quantumania kicks off the action very quickly into the film and introduces us to the next big bad that will put Thanos to shame (long term), Kang (Majors). Janet (Pfeiffer) has a history in the quantum realm and that history is coming back to haunt all of them.

The film mixes in comedic moments as we have seen with Scott Lang (Rudd) in the past. In most of the cases, it works, but in a select few moments, it hits flat. Entering the quantum realm created moments that felt like homages to the Cantina scene in Star Wars, Guardians of the Galaxy with Nowhere, or the introduction to the many races of beings in Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets. Generally, it’s a lot to take in.

Still, Quantumania still manages to bring a sense of fear and interest into the 5th phase of the MCU. The deeper introduction to Kang (we got to meet him briefly in the Disney+ series Loki), is proving to be a multi-versial occasion. Majors is excellent in the role of Kang, both menacing and calculating. Phase 4 felt mostly like a filler, but the film attempts to make those films pay off by touching on the ramifications of the events with Wanda, Dr. Strange, and Spider-Man.

The disadvantage to such a dense and strong start to phase 5 is Marvel must now keep the momentum going. They have driven a very large story truck off a steep cliff and they must now navigate it quickly to hold viewers’ interest. Superhero films have begun to wane on the audience as they find it difficult for filmmakers to top the last all-out big bad, end-of-the-world, story plot. There will be two post-credit scenes for you to stick around for. One is important to the future of the MCU and understanding what this has all lead to. The second helps to tie things together more tightly so don’t miss either.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is an Avengers-level film that comes in hot to kick off phase 5 with a rather dense amount of story plot that may require multiple viewings to catch all the easter eggs.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is in theatres Friday Feb 17th.

ANT-MAN AND THE WASP: QUANTUMANIA. © 2023 MARVEL.

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