The following article contains spoilers.
Another year, another round of Marvel movies to add to the books. 2018 introduced us to the incredible world of Black Panther and Wakanda, then it intensely went from 0 to 1000 ever since the opening minutes of Avengers: Infinity War, but Marvel has decided to bring us back to the Earth we know in "Ant-Man and the Wasp." For a movie coming out directly after the craziness of Infinity war, "Ant-Man and the Wasp" seems to get a lot right as a sequel. Granted, this isn't a perfect sequel, but it successfully delivers the same type of charm that we saw in the first movie.
The movie picks up 2 years after the events of "Captain America: Civil War" and right around the events of "Avengers: Infinity War". If you need a refresher, Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) joins Team Cap in Civil War for the Berlin Brawl between Teams Iron Man and Cap. He is ultimately imprisoned along with the other members of Team Cap but is freed by Cap right at the end of Civil War. In Infinity War, we find out through one of Black Widow's (Scarlett Johannsen) lines that Ant-Man took a plea deal in order to protect his family, and that is essentially where we enter into (cue MCU intro music) "Ant-Man and the Wasp."
As a sequel, this movie felt much quicker than the original, but I think the quickness works well for how much it tries to add together. Despite the topics revolving around Quantum doohickies, whatnots, and Marvel science, the one thing I really enjoy about this movie is the craziness that resembles real life. What do I mean? Well, the general structure of "Ant-Man and the Wasp" is not really a point A to point B story For Ant-Man. In fact, Dr. Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) and Hope Van Dyne (Evangeline Lily) are a few of the characters who have one clear and definite goal throughout the movie (rescue mom), while Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) is tackling a variety hour of issues (being a dad, under house arrest, team Ant-Man fallout, new company startup, dealing with a grander sense of heroism, and etc.). And each of the supporting characters also sports one goal for their arcs as opposed to Ant-Man's "versatility" with problems. It's just all over the place when it comes to the titular character. But I think it's this aspect that makes me appreciate Scott Lang/Ant-Man a lot more in the recent years.
In a world filled with superpowered sullen beings, Ant-Man seems to be dealing with the most relatable issues as a regular human being. Take any of the other Marvel Cinematic power hitters and break them down. Captain America is a superhuman lab experiment that always steps on the right side of the path. Iron Man is a billionaire genius. Black Panther is a superhuman king. Black Widow is a former world-class assassin. Star-Lord is a half human half-celestial hybrid who has spent most of his life in space. The Hulk is one of the strongest beings in the universe (despite the lackluster performance in Infinity War) and Bruce Banner just happens to be a genius. Thor is a god. Even Spiderman, who has always been regarded as one of the most relatable heroes, is a superpowered spider…..man. He's not normal is what I'm saying. Even going down the totem pole in comparison to Hawkeye, who has a godlike sense of accuracy, Ant-Man comes out as the most relatable in terms of being human. We see Scott Lang having to deal with an array of issues like being a father, getting through house arrest, having to deal with his former team, and preparing himself to be a business owner. This smorgasbord of life problems is oddly what made me connect more with this character. He's just a regular dude trying to get by with life and do the best for his family.
All in all the movie is enjoyable. I wouldn't call it "action-packed" but there's a nice mix of comedy and action to satisfy any movie watcher. It keeps the same level charm it had in the first movie while not overdoing it or forcing things. One of the strongest points for Ant-Man and the Wasp is its cast. The cast is strong enough to hold the weaker parts together and keep this movie being good. I'm thinking of the funny part where Paul Rudd acts as Michelle Pfeiffer. Perfect. Although Janet Van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer) is only in the movie for the latter bit of it, she does very well with the little screen time she has. I guess that's expected though….it's Michelle freaking Pfeiffer.
The action as a whole is fun and not really violent as opposed to most other MCU movies. The action stays just as lighthearted, fun, and intense as the rest of the movie.
In the larger scheme of things, the movie does well in tying into the Marvel Cinematic Universe while still managing to be a good stand-alone movie. This movie seemed like it would be a great family movie aside from the few choice words spoken throughout the film, the constant theme of family is definitely one the family can enjoy.
Would I pay to watch it? Well, I did, and I enjoyed it. It's definitely not a "waste" of money, but I wouldn't call it a "must watch" either.
