Review of Ant-Man (2015) by Filmphonic — 16 Jul 2015

Bringing a character not well known outside of comic-book fandom into the Marvel Cinematic universe is a risk particularly considering the unique powers that ‘Ant-Man’ brings to the table scale-wise, but what it lacks in grandiose spectacular set-pieces this movie makes up for with its very grounded comedic tone.

In part ‘Ant-man’ feels rather fittingly like a typical Paul Rudd comedy which happens to involve a heist and people dressing like superheroes which is where it’s at its most effective, but parallel to this runs a formulaic Marvel origin story that ticks all the necessary boxes without offering anything particularly memorable.

It seems like Marvel’s careful planning to ensure a family-friendly tone and narrative that adequately bleeds into the rest of the Marvel universe has resulted in a film that doesn’t take many risks, perhaps this is the cause and consequence of ‘Ant-man’s’ many production problems involving replacing directors and constantly changing scripts.

When risks are taken you get unique action sequences based on the comedic value of shrinking characters along with the heart of the film in Paul Rudd’s lead performance, backed up hilariously by his “Three Stooges-like” companions.

The Bottom Line….

Safe and sometimes clichéd, ‘Ant-man’ lacks the punch of some other Marvel outings but what it lacks in scale it makes up for in humour and charm, given all its production issues it seems like Marvel have done a commendable job in introducing a character that can quite literally slot into any space in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.