|
 (031723)
In his poem "The Oven Bird", Robert Frost pondered what to make of a diminished
thing. Although the poem was written in 1916, it could just as well have been
written as a response to Disney's recent offerings of their Marvel Cinematic
Universe (MCU). For a long time, this feeling of diminishment has felt true of
most new Marvel TV/Disney+ programs and their related film projects. Even the misfires like
Iron Man 2
and
Avengers 2: Age of Ultron
had redeemable elements and were relatively decent genre films.
Working ones way through the current Phase of films (4?, 5? who can remember)
seems more like an exercise of obligation rather than an entertainment
experience. Put another way: some say bad sex is better that no sex-I feel like
Disney is testing that theory in Quantumania. With the recent spate of Marvel productions
they are increasingly
reliant on "D list" characters few care about stepping up to be replacements of
iconic heroes their Universe was founded on (the quirky
Moon Knight
and the delightfully macabre
Werewolf by Night
being exceptions.)
Thor: Love and Thunder failed to balance its action and
comedy competently offering us one of the worst film depictions of the Greek gods I have ever
seen. Failing on all levels was the She Hulk TV show, utterly
disappointing as a comedy, a legal drama or as a 4th wall breaking/self aware superhero film.
Now, Ant Man and the Wasp: Quantumania arrives and it
is perhaps the weakest, most aggravating and bloated film in the series
(although I skipped
Eternals because the previews looked so bad). Unlike
previous Ant Man films it is neither humorous nor exciting. Although the film
clocked in at only two hours it felt like I had sat through a film twice that
long. Also, all the best scenes (which tend to be comedic) are already in the
previews, and this film is as much of a relentless downer as
Batman vs Superman: Dawn
of Justice
The cool thing about Scott Lang/Ant Man in previous films was he was never a
natural or likely warrior like Thor or a Wakandan king or a stone-cold genius;
he was just an underperforming regular guy the audience could identify with-much
like Ash in the Evil Dead
films. Now that his redemption arc is over
and he is a respectable hero, he has become a bit of bore (albeit a still likeable
one). Also, the character is best used interacting with other more experienced,
impressive, and well known heroes as a foil or fighting medium level foes like
Ghost. This film completely misuses a character that has a proven track record
of having much
more juice-after this film I am not sure I want to ever see this character
again.
But the main reason why the film fails so completely is that this is not really
an Ant Man film or even arguably a film. Quantumania comes off primarily a MCU
marketing exercise film featuring Scott Lang and his
extended Ant-family. It was not designed to tell an individual good story that play
to main character’s strengths, nor does it exist to use the Ant Man character well with a villain
that is a good match for him. Kang the Conqueror being a better foe for the
Fantastic Four, the whole Avengers, or maybe all of the MCU heroes
combined. With his futuristic tech and armor, Kang should be able to
obliterate the whole Ant-family in a few seconds-like insects.
Director Peyton Reed, whose efforts actually elevated the material in
Ant-Man
and
Ant Man II
does what he can with a script that does no one any favors. It is
so big and so grandiose and complicated with so many characters that the special
qualities of Ant Man are lost. The film’s Quantum realm seems heavily borrowed
from one of the many Star Wars world's, and everyone including the
cast forgetting the realm (and film) was supposed to be fun. With so many characters, Ant Man is
like a guest star in his own film, and there’s no reason why the MCU needs
so many characters with similar insect powers.
The film starts off showing us some updates in the Ant Man clan. The former
Baskin Robbins employee Ant Man/Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) has written a celebrity
bio about his Infinity War and has become a somewhat well known celebrity
(although one man confuses him with Spider-Man). The rest of the clan are
portrayed by such well known retuning actors such as Michael Douglas (as Hank Pym),
Michelle Pfeifer (as the first Wasp: Janet Pym) and Evangeline Lilly (as the new
Wasp: Hope Van Dyne). Rarely have I seen such an assortment of fine acting
talent so utterly
wasted. Pfeiffer and Douglas were both top actors of the 80s and 90s in films
considerably weightier than this.
They are joined by Kathryn Newton as Cassie Lang, Scott’s daughter, who has
social activist tendencies and sees her formally socially conscious dad as a
complacent sell out. The conflict between Cassie and her dad is somewhat
predictable and not particularly fresh or engaging-they could be any "out of
touch" father/ "woke" daughter trope. She manages to shake things up in the family and in her spare time builds a
scientific apparatus that traps her family in the quantum realm. She's little
more than a deus ex machina plot device.
The only thing that livens up the proceedings is the introduction of a truly
monumental villain, Kang the Conqueror (Lovecraft Country's Jonathan Majors). Kang the
Conqueror was imprisoned by the Time Lords (no relation to the Dr.Who
characters) and when his ally
Janet Pym sees what he has in store for the future she leaves him stranded in
the Quantum Realm which he has conquered and expanded since her departure.
Bill Murray also has a not particularly important/"special guest star" role in
the film as Janet’s former
paramour who helps give the Ant-gang the low down info dump on Kang. From the way
he and Jan interact, it is
clear that at one time they had an affair which she would rather forget. Murray
exists as just another way to
marginalize and humiliate Hank Pym who is a truly important character in Marvel
Comics but almost an after thought here. In the comics he and Janet Pym were
founding members of the Avengers and they were
integral in some of the team’s most important storylines. What has been done to
his character here and im previous MCU appearances can be seen as character abuse.
I know that many people will see anything that takes place in the Marvel
Cinematic Universe to
see the seeds of what will grow later on, and this film does (like the Loki
Disney+ series) point the way to upcoming Kang projects which will hopefully be better.
But viewers who have not seen the dozens of shows that make up the MCU or have not read
years of comics
will find this film almost impossible to follow. Without its connection to the
MCU this film would have no reason to exist, and it completely fails to give us
an interesting individual story that can stand on its own. Except in its
portrayal of Kang (Majors seems incapable of playing an uninteresting character)
this film is a failure on almost every level.
|
