Ant-Man Ant-man's reviews thread

[Elayis]

Just seems the MCU is not for you then because it's not overly serious like the X-Men or DC movies. I find many of the X-Men and DC films to lacking in the fun and entertaining part a lot of the time so that's why I for one like that the MCU is not deadset on being super serious all the the time and can vary their tones and themes for each of their films.

I’ve heard this before and it still seems like a cop out to me. There are many things I like about the MCU (why else would I continue to watch these movies?), they just need better writers. I wouldn’t have a problem with the humor if it was better integrated and more organically derived from the story.

However, if the movies continue to follow this trend of more humor, less drama and weaker scripts, then I will reconsider my position. The more movies Marvel have put out and the higher their budgets, the more conventional and less intelligent they seem to be. Now that Marvel has established itself as a Disney brand, they are not going to do anything to jeopardize that cash flow.

I don’t have a particular bias for DC (I actually prefer Marvel’s characters), but Warner Brothers business plan seems to be much more filmmaker friendly and hands-off. They don’t seem to care what the films are ultimately about so long as they make money. Sometimes it can lead to something like Green Lantern, but I also can’t see Marvel making anything to rival The Dark Knight Trilogy anytime soon.

It is true.

Edgar himself said he only works on one movie at a time and his draft of Ant-Man had changed very little since his original idea for the movie back in 2003.

Edgar and Joe were not continuously working on the film. They both liked their original idea for the movie and it didn't change too much after Marvel Studios started building their own interconnected film franchise.

One of the things Peyton Reed said he did was take out stuff that had already been seen in Superhero movies in the subsequent years Edgar & Joe's script had been sitting on the self.

The Ant-Man story/plot didn't change that much between the Wright version and Reed version which is why Edgar & Joe still get a story credit on the movie.

You might of preferred Edgar's execution of the story but it would not of been too radically different.

If the screenplay more or less stayed the same throughout the entire development and pre-production period, then the last second reshuffling of the creative team makes even less sense. Clearly Marvel had years to address the problems they had with the script; if a split was inevitable, why did it take so long for Marvel and Wright to realize it? But again, the reasons behind Wright leaving the film are ultimately unimportant and not why I dislike the movie. The final product from the creative team that Marvel chose to replace is what I take issue with.

It’s not the overall story I have a problem with, it’s mainly the dialogue and the pacing. Even with more or less the same script (minus the extra-dimensional nonsense), this film would’ve been much better under the hands of a different director (not necessarily Wright).

100% pure speculation. Now you're just putting words in the guy's mouth to fit your own story.

For a self-proclaimed non-fanboy of Wright (who ironically was upset when he left this movie), you sure seem to know a lot about the inner-workings of his mind.

You’re the one that asked the question (rhetorical or not). Since he hasn’t said anything and I don’t know him personally, of course anything I would say would be speculation.

But your comment is just typical of message board discussions. These passive aggressive insinuations offer nothing to further the conversation. I’m trying to rationally discuss this film and whatever shortcomings or merits it may have, not start arguments or pick fights. If you don’t want to talk about the film with me, I don’t need to be here.

The low temperatures wouldn't be much of a problem. There is nothing in space to transfer body heat to so the only way to lose body heat is for it radiate away. You would eventually freeze, but it would take a long time in space, much longer than it would on Earth. And they were only exposed for like a minute.

Now granted in the film, they do show them freezing, but that would be the inaccurate part. They wouldn't start to freeze instantly like that. It would take hours.

Just because space is a vacuum, that doesn’t mean there aren’t massive fluctuations in temperature (both high and low). It is a very dangerous place and not one humans were meant to inhabit. This particular point is really just a nitpick of mine, but it’s a big enough one that it seriously hampered my enjoyment of the film.

 

[chamber-music]

I’ve heard this before and it still seems like a cop out to me. There are many things I like about the MCU (why else would I continue to watch these movies?), they just need better writers. I wouldn’t have a problem with the humor if it was better integrated and more organically derived from the story.

However, if the movies continue to follow this trend of more humor, less drama and weaker scripts, then I will reconsider my position. The more movies Marvel have put out and the higher their budgets, the more conventional and less intelligent they seem to be. Now that Marvel has established itself as a Disney brand, they are not going to do anything to jeopardize that cash flow.

I don’t have a particular bias for DC (I actually prefer Marvel’s characters), but Warner Brothers business plan seems to be much more filmmaker friendly and hands-off. They don’t seem to care what the films are ultimately about so long as they make money. Sometimes it can lead to something like Green Lantern, but I also can’t see Marvel making anything to rival The Dark Knight Trilogy anytime soon.



If the screenplay more or less stayed the same throughout the entire development and pre-production period, then the last second reshuffling of the creative team makes even less sense. Clearly Marvel had years to address the problems they had with the script; if a split was inevitable, why did it take so long for Marvel and Wright to realize it? But again, the reasons behind Wright leaving the film are ultimately unimportant and not why I dislike the movie. The final product from the creative team that Marvel chose to replace is what I take issue with.

It’s not the overall story I have a problem with, it’s mainly the dialogue and the pacing. Even with more or less the same script (minus the extra-dimensional nonsense), this film would’ve been much better under the hands of a different director (not necessarily Wright).

Because they both really wanted it to work so probably held on hoping they would come to an agreement on the approach to the film.

Paul Rudd, James Gunn and Kevin Feige all said as much.

The main reason an Ant-Man solo film got made was because Feige really wanted to work with Edgar and liked the story he and Joe had come up with.

The years Edgar and Joe were off making movies Marvel Studios had been brought by Disney and developed into this mega franchise.

If Edgar had made Ant-Man in Phase 1 then he would of probably made the film he wanted because Marvel was still an independent studio and didn't have huge brand expectation at the time.

There is a lot of ad-libbing on Marvel's films. Almost every actor who has worked with them have said how Marvel plays very loose with their films.

It isn't uncommon for directors to film a ton of footage and then tell an editor to 'go find the movie' in the editing suite.

Iron Man for example had a script that was not completely prepared when filming began, since the filmmakers were more focused on the story and the action, so the dialogue was mostly ad-libbed throughout filming; Jon Favreau acknowledged this made the film feel more natural. Some scenes were shot with two cameras to capture lines improvised on the spot; Robert Downey Jr. would ask for many takes of one scene since he wanted to try something new.

Michael Pena mentioned how his Ant-Man character Luis long winded comedic stories were developed by the two young writer Marvel brought onto the movie after Wright & Joe departed. They gave Pena the long monologue to learn a couple nights before it was due to be filmed. Pena kept getting it wrong and they decided to keep it in the movie because they thought it fit with his scatterbrained character.

 

[DaddlerTheDalek]

Just saw Ant-Man in my local theater and liked it.

 

[Kahran Ramsus]

Just because space is a vacuum, that doesn’t mean there aren’t massive fluctuations in temperature (both high and low).

There are. But there is no medium for which to transfer heat through either. The human body is good at retaining heat. We would slowly radiate heat away and EVENTUALLY freeze. But it would take a lot longer than the minute or so shown in the film.

It is a very dangerous place and not one humans were meant to inhabit. This particular point is really just a nitpick of mine, but it’s a big enough one that it seriously hampered my enjoyment of the film.

Yes, it is a dangerous place. The body stops functioning in a zero pressure environment when fully exposed. We would black out in about 15-30 seconds and our heart would stop beating within a few minutes. But if we could get rescued within about 90 seconds to 2 minutes (as occurs in the film), surviving with minimal damage is feasible at a minimum. The idea that we would instantly freeze or explode is a complete myth.

Also keep in mind, that is the case with humans. Gamora and Quill aren't. Both of them are stated to have physiology well beyond humans (and most aliens). That's why Quill is able to hold the Infinity Gem without being instantly vaporized.

 

[BoredGuy]

Finally saw the movie, and I liked-but-didn't-love it

The characters were all charming and likeable with great performances from all the actors. Rudd, Douglas, Pena, Lilly, and even Stoll all did well with their roles. I would've liked to have seen more of Cross's backstory and motivation, but the flashes you see of his desire to have Hank be proud of him were nice. I thought Hope was very good and the internet feminists bemoaning her story are, I think, missing the point. My favorite scene in the film was Hank and Hope's talk about Janet (followed closely by the Falcon fight).

The flashbacks were great, if Marvel had done the whole film in the 70's and 80's with a digitally de-aged Michael Douglas, it would've been amazing.

But all in all, this was the first time that it really felt like the humor in a Marvel movie didn't go far enough. Pena was funny, and Lilly, Douglas, and Rudd all had a couple good quips. But when you have Brian M'F'n Fontana playing the goddamned Ant-Man, you gotta swing for those comedy fences, and they just didn't. I don't wanna be one of those reviewers who piles on about the whole Edgar Wright thing, but there were definitely many moments where you could see how he would've punched up the jokes using his slapsticky visual style, and man, do I wish I could've seen what his (also Jackie Chan's) fight choreographer could've done with the action in this film.

 

[AVEITWITHJAMON]

Just got back from watching it, in short, loved it, enjoyed it more than AOU, which is something I never thought I would say. The cast were great, Rudd was just a guy you root for, as was Douglas as Pym. You could certainly understand his motivations for not wanting the shrinking technology to get out. Some very emotional moments like Pym finally telling his daughter about her mother dying. What happened to a certain Ant was very sad also.

And I loved, LOVED the action, I thought it was very inventive and kept me on the edge of my seat throughout, loved the Ants, especially Anthony, and I thought Lang's friends were very entertaining. In fact the humour throughout was spot on for me I laughed it all.

Loved the links to the wider MCU as well, like the fight with Falcon and the opening, and the final fight was one of the best in the MCU far for me. You definitely see Edgar Wrights finger prints throughout, he obviously had a big part to play, but credit has to go to Reed as well for putting this together so well.

As for flaws? I once again thought Yellowjacket wasn't a very good villain, he wasn't bad either, just a bit blandly written. Stoll did the most he could with the part though and he at least came across as a threat unlike Ultron. Again while acted we'll thought Hope/Evangelline was a bit wasted, but her role is obviously going to be enlarged going forward so it's not a huge issue.

Loved the effects as well, the micro verse was great and as a whole I had a blast watching the movie and would highly recommend it to anyone, 8.5/10 for me.

 

[Casius--J]

I just got back from seeing this and I thought it was really good. I wasn't expecting a whole lot going in so I didn't leave the cinema disappointed with what I saw.

It's a fun and quirky movie!

7/10

 

[Mad Ones]

Spoilers

The good:
- Peggy! Though I wish she had more to do.
- It fleshed out early Shield more.
- Cassie. What a cute and charming child actress! I loved her ugly rabbit thing.
- The brief scene with Janet and the rocket. I want to see THAT movie.
- Arguably the most important part of an Ant-man movie, Lang's small scenes were fun and entertaining.
- Arguably the second most important part of an Ant-man movie, the ants were utilized really well. They had a bit of character to them and were inventively used.
- The movie was occasionally quite clever. Pym's tank keychain, for example.
- Falcon's appearance and fight at the Avengers headquarters. This was probably my favourite part and I was really surprised.
- All of the suits seen in the movie.
- The after-credit scenes. I liked both scenes probably more than the movie itself.

The Bad:
- The movie was basically an amalgamation of different cliches.
- Fridging Janet so the movie has an excuse to focus on Lang and to postpone Wasp.
- Making Lang a stereotypical "noble criminal" is less interesting than giving him ambiguous morals.
- Lang's friends were cringeworthy.
- Cross was a terrible villain. His motivation and master plan were boring.
- Another movie about weapons, buyers, military, etc. Boring.
- I didn't find Hank that likeable.
- Lang's inclusion in the plot felt contrived.

Overall there's nothing terrible, but nothing great either. The movie didn't make waves, which is either good or bad depending on how you look at it.

 

[YJ1]

Just saw Ant-Man in my local theater and liked it.

Saw Ant-Man in my local theater FOUR times already and I'm a fan who was whining like crazy when they cast an old Hank Pym and I hated the first look at Yellowjacket. I'm so happy to have been wrong.

I more than liked this movie, I love it.

 

[SyntaxError]

I love this movie so much. Probably my favourite standalone debut movie in the MCU (Yes I like it more than Iron Man).

Everything about this movie was clever. Peyton Reed did an incredible job making sure that movie moved in a efficient pace. Never did I feel like the movie dragged; every single scene contributed to the experience. Even the Baskin Robbins scenes, which were obviously there for comic relief, actually did much more. It showed who Scott Lang was.

Pros:
- The cast is exceptional. Paul Rudd is Ant-Man, Michael Douglas is the dramatic heavyweight and was stellar. But the supporting characters were amazing as well. Michael Pena is hilarious. Loved him so much, I was begging for more Luis at the end. T.I and Dvid were great as well. Sure, they were comedic fodder BUT they all contributed to the heist and had points in the movie were they shone.

- The script is great. Wonderful dialogue. The scene between Scott and Hope in the car was awesome, the interactions between the characters entertaining. The MCU references were sharp and felt like the belonged; nothing felt deliberately shoved in there.

- Quantum Realm was beautifully rendered. Wonderful direction and beautiful Visual Effects. Kudos to Peyton Reed and the guys at Industrial Light Magic. The daughters voice echoing in the background was nice. Can't wait too see more of this.

- The villain although not Joker-level amazing, was convincing and relatable. Corey Stoll is a brilliant actor and he does wonderfully here. At the end of the day this is a origin story so it makes sense that the villain has a lesser focus, but he was written convincingly.

- The humour is on-point. Luis' expositions where he launches off into dialogue voiced-over other people acting was brilliant. Wonderfully made and thought-out.

- Visual effects were very well made. Beautiful microphotography; never seen anything like it. The micro world was beautiful; the ants were amazing and so cute. I never thought I'd feel attached to them!

- The mirroring and emphasis on family is wonderfully made. Hank-Hope parallels Scott-his daughter, whilst also relating to Hank-Cross and even Hank-Scott. The concept of family drives this movie, and is done brilliantly. Very grounded and relatable. I love how the 'save the world' theme is secondary to the 'family' idea. The fact that the 'save the world' component is solved first (with Pym Industries blowing up) before the movie moves along to the bedroom, a personal space, with the fight being about saving his daughter is a wonderful touch.

I give it a solid 9.5/10; around the same area of Winter Soldier and Guardians of the Galaxy.

 

[Loki882]

The good:

-The performances are all quite good.
-The action was inventive in fun.
-Michael Pena was enjoyable for the most part (some of his jokes didn't quite work imo, but those were few and far between).
-Scott is likeable enough.
-I like that there wasn't another big "end of the world" plot because not every film needs them.
-The effects/CGI was good for the most part.
-Peggy Carter cameo, FTW!

The Flaws:

-Darren Cross is a weak villain. Corey Stoll does his best with what he's given, but he's kind of wasted here. Maybe it'd have been better if we'd SEEN more of Cross's backstory/history with Pym. But, as it stands, he's kind of just a crazy a-hole with a weak "plan."

-Lilly is quite good, but there's really not much to Hope's character in this film. She's just there to further other character's arcs. Also, I really didn't buy/like the explanation for why she couldn't be Wasp (I especially don't like that her ability to do that was ultimately all about HANK and HIS issues). Also, I didn't find the Pym family dynamic nearly as compelling as other (it actually was rather cliché/predictable).

-Given that Janet's death was such a big part of Hank's character, I don't feel that the film does nearly enough to establish their relationship. Let alone whether "getting rid of Janet to further her husband's character arc" was a good idea or not, they just don't do much to establish that dynamic beyond "I loved her." Frankly, if this was supposed to be the replacement for Ultron on the "big mistake that Hank made" front, then it was a poor substitute.

-Some of the humor didn't really work for me.

-Judy Greer is wasted in this film.

-The movies drags at times (especially in the middle).

Overall, I'd give it a 7/10. It's enjoyable and goob, but hardly brilliant. I liked AOU quite a bit better.

 

[CTFFFan]

Liked the movie. Saw this and the FF this weekend and this shows how much better Marvel is at doing a Marvel movie than Fox is. Ant Man has never been a favorite character of mine but was entertained by this greatly. Look forward to see how they integrate him more into the Marvel Universe.

 

[thegameq]

All comicbook movies must pas the boyish grin test. If the boyish grin creeps across my face it means I'm not only enjoying it but it is taking me back to the days of reading comics in my youth. The same awe, wonder and pure escapism I got when reading my comics is the same way I want to feel when watching these movies. Ant-man delivers this in spades.

Take your pick: the characters, the humor, the jaw dropping inventive visuals--just the fact that they put it on screen...wow. Wasp...a live action version of Wasp on screen. They had the balls and audacity to do an Ant-man movie and succeed.

Marvel is doing it. The stuff so many fans have dreamed about during their youth has come to fruition thanks to Marvel Studios.

As for the Marvel haters -- and you know who you are, with the thinly veiled swipes at Marvel and the MCU......I honestly feel sorry for some of you. I mean..... what were some of you expecting? What do you want to see from these movies?

Marvel is doing it. All the naysayers and their excuses are being blown by the wayside. All the "can't be done", "shouldn't be done", "it'll look corny and silly" excuses really don't hold any water anymore.

So what's your excuse Fox? How many tries have you had with your comicbook movies and you still can't get it right? (shakes head)



MAKE MINE MARVEL.

 

[First Avenger]

Such a good,fun,little marvel movie. Definately appropriate after the Big spectale of AoU. 8/10

 

[Snow Queen]

Spoiler

So I'm like four or five months late on this but... I really didn't care to see this film, it looked really generic and dull. And while it still does fall into that a bit and there's a lot to it that has been done before, it's a solid movie.

Paul Rudd does a solid job in the leading role, he's likeable and has good comedic timing. The biggest problem with his character to me is what I had worried about early in my notes, I feel the Robin Hood angle weakens his character arc. It tries to play a second chance/redemption angle, but that direction could have been a lot stronger with the motivation from the comics. I don't read Ant-Man, so if this part's based on a later interpretation, I don't know. But in the comics, Lang's motivation for turning to burglary involves desperation for money to get Cassie treatment for a disease she has. I think that would have worked a lot better here instead of the slightly more cut and dry Robin Hood angle.

Michael Douglas is a delight in every scene and gives the best performance of the cast. Evangeline Lilly tries with a weak character. Luis was more enjoyable than the previews had made me expect but still it felt a bit too far at points. He was fine but I kept hearing he was some breakout character. He was...fine. Dave is....there. The Eastern European thief was annoying. The thieves though are redundant characters. They're comic relief characters in something that's already comedic enough without them. Judy Greer does fine with the miniscule amount she's given. Cop husband...exists. Call me heartless but Antony's death scene did nothing for me...but it was still better than Quicksilver's.

Corey Stoll, much like Lilly, tries. And he can pull off intimidating just fine. Problem is his character is a mess and it can be traced back to the talk of the experiments messing with his mind. This angle could be exorcised entirely and nothing would be lost outside of a handful of lines. We don't know the character prior to the experiments causing him to go crazy, so saying it changed him without giving us any glimpses at what he was like prior is pointless. He could have been crazy from the start and hiding it until he got to power in the company and it wouldn't drastically change anything. Not to mention just making him generically going crazy is kinda boring instead of running with Pym's line about seeing too much of himself in Cross. Pym's gone bad in the comics before, as I understand it, why not run with the angle that he has struggles with that kind of thing? The dark mirror of Pym angle has a lot more potential than crazy version of Jeff Bridges.

When it comes to the look of the film, the staging is all well handled. There's nothing really wrong with it in that regard. Problem is that the look of it all is very digital and home video-y. Not surprising coming from Marvel, but continually disappointing. Doesn't help it's coming out the same year as Mad Max: Fury Road and The Force Awakens.

The action scenes are the highlights of the film, which is why the last half hour or so is the standout. I've complained about the action in a number of recent comic book movies as I've found it repetitive and dull. The climax of Guardians of the Galaxy, the climax of Age of Ultron, the climax of Avengers, the climax of Man of Steel, etc... But refreshingly, I can't complain about that this time. The climax is creative and fun from start to finish and the subatomic sequence is top notch stuff. There is one action scene that was a bit shaky, as the editing had it cut much too often, but thankfully that scene is brief and soon after we get the phenomenal briefcase fight scene.

Two final complaints. The Baskin Robbins stuff at the beginning is grating, I get it, you paid for product placement. It was bordering on a commercial. Speaking of commercials...really with the Avengers stuff? That was awful. I mean, Anthony Mackie is fun and all but the whole scene was unnecessary and felt out of place with everything else. Did we really need it to be the new Avengers HQ?

All in all, Ant-Man is much better than I dreaded. It's nothing you haven't seen before apart from the action sequences, but it's a fun time.

7.5/10

 

[Havok83]

I finally saw it. Great film. Was skeptical at first bc of the character but Ive only heard great things about it. Well done. Id give it a 9. Totally had no idea Falcon was in this but loved the fight between he ad Scott.

 

[I SEE SPIDEY]

I didn't catch this in theaters because it looked completely unappealing in previews and Avengers Age of Ultron annoyed me so much that I was put off of seeing another Marvel movie last year.

Now I know I would have been better off skipping Age of Ultron and watching Ant-Man. Ant-Man is a delightful, creative and sweet little gem of a film. It took me a little while to warm up to it but once I did I was impressed. The performances are good, the emotional bits work well and the humor isn't obnoxious and scene breaking like it is in some Marvel films I'm not going to name right now. The visual effects were pretty good, everything involving the shrinking was awesome, super creative and fun. I like how simple the story was, simple but good. Yes the villain was underdeveloped and not special but that's to be expected.

ANT-MAN

8.5/10

 

[AVEITWITHJAMON]

I didn't catch this in theaters because it looked completely unappealing in previews and Avengers Age of Ultron annoyed me so much that I was put off of seeing another Marvel movie last year.

Now I know I would have been better off skipping Age of Ultron and watching Ant-Man. Ant-Man is a delightful, creative and sweet little gem of a film. It took me a little while to warm up to it but once I did I was impressed. The performances are good, the emotional bits work well and the humor isn't obnoxious and scene breaking like it is in some Marvel films I'm not going to name right now. The visual effects were pretty good, everything involving the shrinking was awesome, super creative and fun. I like how simple the story was, simple but good. Yes the villain was underdeveloped and not special but that's to be expected.

ANT-MAN

8.5/10

Good review ISS, and one I completely agree with .

 

[I SEE SPIDEY]

Good review ISS, and one I completely agree with .

I liked it so much that I'll probably end up buying it.

 

[AVEITWITHJAMON]

I liked it so much that I'll probably end up buying it.

I already have . Though I saw it in the cinema as well of course.

 

[I SEE SPIDEY]

I already have . Though I saw it in the cinema as well of course.

Yeah I'm definitely seeing the sequel in theaters.

 

[AVEITWITHJAMON]

Yeah I'm definitely seeing the sequel in theaters.

 

[Hunter Rider]

Glad you enjoyed it ISS, this movie was the 'Little Train that could' of the MCU.

 

[I SEE SPIDEY]

Glad you enjoyed it ISS, this movie was the 'Little Train that could' of the MCU.

It really was.

 

[Kahran Ramsus]

I much prefer it to Age of Ultron too.