Something Haute Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Returning to his titular role as Ant-Man in the congenial superhero sequel, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Paul Rudd weaves feel-good moments in the film – but, is it enough to make it a blockbuster?
All about the twinkle-eyed persona of ex-con Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) the film continues on the plot-line after Avengers: Civil War (2016), where he was put under house arrest for helping Captain America. Now, however, Scott has other (bigger) worries – like being a single father and raising a daughter, while also juggling to find a job!
However, all that changes once again as he’s drawn into another adventure.
Connecting with inventor and former friend Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) and his daughter Hope (Evangeline Lilly), the trio ends up on a mission to find Pym’s long-lost wife, Janet, who has been miniaturized and trapped for 30 years in the quantum realm.
Traversing through the gimmicks of being miniature-sized and even turning 10x times larger, much of Ant-Man and the Wasp feels like a filler or a preamble to the main narrative, which truth be told, is just as simple as Scott helping Pym locate his wife, and nothing else.
Yes, there are other plot-lines such as the appearance of Marvel’s Ghost – played impeccably by Hannah John – whose holographic nature and villainous streak brings in some action, but that’s about it. The story gets as interesting as it could get in the first half and then just lulls till the end.
Also read: Does ‘Avengers: Infinity Wars’ live up to expectations?
Directed by Peyton Reed, with a script by Paul Rudd himself, and a few co-writers, Ant-Man and the Wasp is amiable, fun, and at times, attention-grabbing. However, when it comes to the narrative, it does nothing for the larger story in the Marvel Universe. Truth be told, up until the mid-credits scene (SPOILER AHEAD), nothing connects it to the Avengers: Infinity War as only in the last scene we see the Pym family being turned into ash as a distressed Scott gets stuck in the quantum world.
With all being said, the film is definitely not the best Marvel film of the year, but it surely has its charming characteristics to make you remember it for a while and that should make you go watch it at least once!
