The third film in the “Ant-Man” trilogy and introductory piece of the fifth phase in the MCU, “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania,” throws away its caper/heist movie individuality for a “bigger” and “broader” story that serves as a “coming soon” announcement to the billion-dollar universe. For most of its run-time, it feels like a filler episode of an anime, with only its climax operating as a narrative “threshold” (which is still, by itself, very messy, uncoordinated, and outright vapid).
Where is the Marvel Cinematic Universe headed after “Avengers: Endgame?” That’s the question all of us had in mind after half of the universe got snapped from reality, later to be brought back by an emotional “round ’em up” conclusion. “Infinity War” and “Endgame” felt like proper and well-thought conclusions to the decades spent building that world. But, the Box Office success flame wasn’t going to be extinguished anytime soon. The MCU wouldn’t stop at that point. Yet, still, we go back to that question. What are Kevin Fegie and crew going to do to top that? Four years have passed since the conclusion of the Infinity Saga. Since then, everything that has occurred within the billion-dollar universe has felt like a blur.
Stoking More Marvel Fatigue
We get over three (or four) films a year accompanied by three more series. All of them have the same function – a “connect the dots” situation to polish its future. In essence, Marvel fatigue has hit us all, and the emotional involvement we might have had with “Avengers: Endgame” went away as Thanos disappeared from the face of the galaxy. There are a lot of great original pieces of work each year. I have grown tired of seeing these MCU movies because they are all the same. The only film I found myself enjoying in this new saga is “Doctor Strange and The Multiverse of Madness.” For what reason? Because it is ridiculous and makes fun of this multiverse stuff instead of taking it seriously.
The action set-pieces felt like pantomime wrestling antics, and the dramatic sequences have the tone of telenovelas. I had a blast with it. The rest of the releases, unfortunately, range from bad to horrible. Some of those projects had the potential to strive. But, since they’re catered to continue building their world for the future fight between multiverses and galaxies, the films lose their cinematic sensibilities and end up being insipid in different degrees. And in the “end all, be all,” they are not treated as films but as products with anti-filmmaking tentpoles. At least plenty of movies succeeded amidst the colossal damage these films have done to the cinematic experience (“Top Gun: Maverick,” “Avatar: The Way of Water,” “NOPE,” “Smile,” amongst others).
Michelle Pfeiffer in “Ant Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.” (Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios).
Sure, some of them are sequels, but the critical aspect is that they are cinematic and creative. These films don’t deliver the same old stuff. The introductory piece to the MCU’s fifth phase, “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania,” compliments my aforementioned arguments to a tee. It is a total slog that removes the caper/heist comedy individuality that made their films enjoyable to set up more of the Universe’s future antics. “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” begins with a quirky yet delightful introduction. Scott Lang (played by the always charming and dapper Paul Rudd) is recapping his life as an Avenger by reading the closing chapters of his book, “Look Out for the Little Guy.”
Another Trip to Marvel’s Multiverse
It’s pretty funny; these moments where Paul Rudd’s Scott Lang is walking across the streets, serving a smile to the people who recognize him, are the funniest in the film. It even includes a scene where he works at a Baskin-Robbins that got a laugh out of me. Unfortunately, however, the film immediately scratches that and dwells into the world within worlds. In less than five minutes, Peyton Reed removes the most vital aspect of the “Ant-Man” films, its comedic sensibilities within the small adventures for a broader expansion into unknown places. Because of an experiment that Hope Van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly), Hank Pym (Michael Douglas), and the newly recruited Cassie Lang (Kathryn Newton) were doing with the quantum realm, they drive the attention of a mad conqueror who’s lurking inside — Kang (Jonathan Majors).
Kang traps them inside the quantum realm so they can help him get the last piece of the puzzle for multiverse domination. For most of “Ant Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’s” length, nothing actually happens. Most of the scenes feel like they are filling up the run-time. But the thing is that those scenes don’t have a specific purpose in the film. Instead of moving the story, we get sequences resembling “Star Wars.” Out of all the franchises they could have impersonated, they chose the most annoying one. In addition, there’s a lot of misdirection when confronting the big baddie in the picture. It reaches a point where they don’t even want to mention his name for most of its dialogue.
A Film that Only Sets Up Other Films
It is at the halfway point that they finally acknowledge him. The rest is just excuses to go from place to place — exploring this “new setting.” In the third act, of course, things are about to go down. Director Peyton Reed moves the chess pieces to their final position for the climactic blow. Instead of having a burst of excitement, boredom runs through your slowly-fading eyes. One is too disengaged with the material to care about what’s happening on-screen. The terrible CGI in the action set-pieces provide hymns that lull you to sleep. There’s no excitement running through your body. The best form of popcorn entertainment gives you a rush that keeps you on the edge of your seat. In “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania,” it does the opposite. You are thinking about how much time it has left.
Paul Rudd and Jonathan Majors in “Ant Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.” (Photo by Jay Maidment, © 2022 Marvel).
This is unfortunate. This situation didn’t happen with the other two “Ant-Man” films. Their charm and allure of them got severed from the equally captivating quartet of stars (Rudd, Douglas, Lilly, Pfeiffer). You are left with the same old creaky and muddled stuff you have seen before in the MCU. The wandering mayhem of its final act gives the viewer a glimpse into the future. And it all looks highly disappointing and immensely insipid. I don’t think I can handle more of this. As I watch one after the other, year after year, the entertainment value diminishes to a headache-inducing degree. Each attempt looks more careless and without thought. There’s nothing to get out of it anymore; not even the post-credit scenes shine a bright light onto the audience. No one can be bothered by them.
The fans might see this as the beginning of something new. However, I see it as a foreshadowing for upcoming damnation — the death of a franchise that once held some value in its favor. “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” rings the first bell of total calamity within the MCU, for better or worse and in different aspects. Please, let it end now.
“Ant Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” is opening theatrically on February 17th.
