Ant-Man

Doomsday: T-Minus 27 Weeks

Welcome to week 12 of the 39 week countdown to Avengers: Doomsday. I’m watching the MCU films in order of release, one per week, in the buildup to December 17, when Avengers:Doomsday hits theaters. This countdown will culminate the following day, with my review of that film.

After the massive stakes of Avengers: Age of Ultron, Marvel took things down a notch, both literally and figuratively, with Ant-Man. Had this film been announced during the initial run of films (Phase 1, in MCU parlance), I may have been skeptical about its potential, but by this point, I trusted that the franchise could do no wrong, and was eager to see the film. My eagerness was not misplaced.

Technically, Ant-Man is one of Marvel’s earliest Silver Age superheroes. He debuted just a month after the Fantastic Four kicked off what is now known as the Silver Age of Comic Books. That said, at the time he was a character in a one-off science fiction short in an anthology comic, but once superheroes caught on, Stan Lee decided to bring him back as a regularly featured superhero. He and the Wasp were even founding members of the original Avengers, so in some ways, it is kind of a big deal to see him on the big screen.

I imagine the delay in giving him a film was in no small part because of how easy it would be to flub such a hero, and without a great hero, you’ve got nothing. Yet again, Marvel nails the lead. Paul Rudd is absolutely perfect for this role. He exudes charisma, and is ideal as an average Joe, unexpectedly thrust into the role of a superhero. Rudd is something of a unicorn as an actor. On one hand, he’s always Paul Rudd, but on the other, his charm is disarming, and he simultaneously disappears into his roles while always being, well, himself. It’s uncanny.

Rudd is surrounded by an excellent cast. Michael Douglas plays Hank Pym, the original Ant-Man, now elderly and jaded by his experience as a superhero, and devastated by the loss of his super-heroine wife, who died (he thinks) in the line of duty. Evangeline Lilly gives a solid performance as his daughter Hope, who resents her father, yet supports him in his quest to do good. She wants to be the next Ant-sized hero, but after having lost his wife, Hank refuses to allow it. He needs someone capable, but ultimately expendable. Enter Paul Rudd’s Scott Lang, fresh out of jail and desperate to find work.

The special effects in this film are as good as I’ve ever seen in a superhero movie. Everything looks real. Moreover, the scenes in which Rudd is ant-sized are astonishingly good. The audeince feels transported into a micro-sized world, while still feeling the size of the real world surrounding it. Every time the film goes ant-sized, it’s something new, and incredible. And, it’s punctuated with humor, as the film never loses sight of the fact that the film’s overall conceit could easily become ridiculous. A superhero whose power is that he shrinks to the size of an ant? But they make it work. There’s one scene in particular, near the end, when a character is lying on a train track as a train bears down on him. He screams in terror, at which point the train, a Thomas the Train toy, hits him and derails, which we see at full-size. I may not be describing it well, but it’s hilarious. I still remember the theater erupting into laughter. That moment breaks up an especially grim and dangerous battle, which made the humor all the more potent.

Everything in this film works. Scott Lang’s best friend Luis, played by Michael Peña, adds a perfect element of realistic, yet somehow also absurd, comedy. Bobby Cannavale is in top form as Lang’s ex-wife’s new husband, who is also a police officer. Corey Stoll makes for a great villain. He’s utterly devoid of emotion, and kills people without batting an eye in one moment, then extols the soul-cleansing virtues of meditation the next.

As an added treat, we get yet another superheroes-fighting-when-they-first-meet moment, in a delightfully shot scene of Ant-Man vs. the Falcon. That’s such a Marvel trademark, and I love that they continue to include those scuffles in the films. Their battle in particular is pitch perfect, as Ant-Man apologizes the entire way through the fight, while the Falcon worries Captain America will hear that he was defeated by an ant-sized opponent.

How Good Is It?

This is certainly one of the best of the films I’ve watched to this point. While it doesn’t have the same impact as the early films, which brought Marvel’s heroes into the public eye and established the MCU franchise, it’s a better overall film than most of them. It features a genuinely terrifying villain, excellent effects, and great rapid-fire, intelligent dialogue and humor. It includes a terrific heist sequence, and hits on all cylinders the entire way through. It’s a 5-star superhero movie.

What Did Giacomo Think?

I’ve been rewatching these with my 9-year-old son, Giacomo. He has this to say about Ant-Man: “It was fun and funny. The guy who played Ant-Man is great. I most liked the final battle, because it was exciting, but funny. The giant ant and the giant Thomas the Train were hilarious!”

My Watch History

I was in the house on opening night for this one, July 17, 2015, at one of may main movie-watching spots at that time, the AMC Oakridge 20 in San Jose. I think I watched it again at some point after that, but before 2024, but can’t be sure. I do know, from ye olde Letterboxd, that I watched it on June 16, 2024, and again this past Monday.

How Did I Watch?

I own this on a 4k UHD Blu-ray. You can click the image below to buy a copy. (I get nothing if you do, so this isn’t a ploy to make money.)

Best Scene in the Movie

I was tempted to go with one of the ant-sized moments, as those effects are remarkable, but instead I have to say it’s the scene at Baskin Robbins. That is Paul Rudd at his most Paul Ruddishness, and it’s a perfect example of the MCU’s brand of humor. It’s witty and intelligent, but somehow simple enough that everyone can get the joke. That is a deceptively difficult sort of humor to write, but Marvel makes it look easy, and consistently nails it in their films.

Will This Tie Into Doomsday?

In some very broad ways, sure. Ant-Man will be in the film, so it will help to know who he is. Beyond that? Probably not.

How May Stars Does It Get?

While contemplating this project my biggest question was whether or not I should rate the films. I’ve mentioned this before, but I’m terrible at assigning films a score. I either like ‘em or I don’t. However, I know readers like ratings, so I’ve come up with something close. I’m going to rank the films as I go along. This isn’t as easy as it sounds, and with each week it grows more difficult.

The Updated Ranking

1. The Avengers

2. Captain America: The Winter Soldier

3. Guardians of the Galaxy

4. Ant-Man

5. Iron Man 2

6. Iron Man

7. Avengers: Age of Ultron

8. Iron Man 3

9. Thor

10. Captain America: The First Avenger

11. The Incredible Hulk

12. Thor: The Dark World

What’s Next

Next week I’ll write about the 13th installment in the MCU, Captain America: Civil War