The lightest and slightest in the Marvel Cinematic Universe,
Ant-Man steps away from the main Avengers for a pleasant diversion
introducing a new superhero. It does so without the belabored setup, grindingly
monotonous effects, and constipated cross-pollinated plotting that encumbers so
many of its kind. Instead, it gives most of its runtime over to a simple,
straightforward plot, embracing goofy comic book technologies and funny
supporting performances. Turns out locating the inherent silliness in this
material is exactly the right approach, even if it gets tangled up from time to
time in its larger expanded franchise and caught flat footed with the creeping
sameness in the flavorless look infecting all of these MCU projects. Still, for
a big budget summer spectacle, this one passes by surprisingly quickly and does
its best to avoid lumbering.
Perhaps Marvel has realized their best films in the
franchise steer towards the casual and comedic. That’s why the best parts of
the Thors, Iron Mans, and Captain
Americas (not to mention Guardians of
the Galaxy, which has yet to be Avengersed)
take themselves lightly, with quipping banter and nice sight gags, and the
worst parts are the endless bland action and portent. Ant-Man, directed by Peyton Reed (of Bring it On) and written by Edgar Wright (The World’s End), Joe Cornish (Attack
the Block), Adam McKay (Anchorman)
and star Paul Rudd, maintains its sunny tone and brisk high spirits, never
giving itself over to thundering exhaustion. Rudd, one of the most charming
actors working today, centers the movie on a tone of easy-going amusement, even
when confronted with peril. It’s a nice change of pace.
Rudd plays a burglar whose attempts at going straight are
halted when a wealthy retired tech genius (Michael Douglas) persuades him to
help steal his shrinking technology from a cold capitalist (Corey Stoll). To do
so, the inventor will let his new thief friend borrow his old top-secret
superhero suit, a portable shrinking device that’ll turn its wearer into
Ant-Man. The following is a loping heist picture as the two men look over
blueprints, and engage in brisk training montages. But what good is it to be so
small? Well, it gives Ant-Man super-strength, plus the ability to slip into a
maximum-security research facility undetected. Rudd casts an amused skeptical
gaze on the proceedings, quick with a fumbling everyman charisma. He interacts
with Douglas’s stern mentor, as well as Evangeline Lilly as the old man’s
no-nonsense daughter, by pinging off their seriousness with an irreverence
obviously masking bewilderment.
By playing up the strangeness of being thrown into these
circumstances, the movie finds an appealing groove. After all, it’s not every
day you see the world from a bug’s-eye view. Reed has good fun conjuring the
look of the everyday world towering over the miniaturized Ant-Man. It’s a likable
callback to The Incredible Shrinking Man
or Fantastic Voyage or Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. There are
immense blades of grass, cavernous vents, vast puddles, and, of course, large,
lovable, trainable herds of ants. It has a chintzy matinee spectacle appeal
togged up with digital gloss. Plus, it’s funny to see big, booming adventure
intercut with humdrum still life. When Rudd first tries on the suit, he ends up
hanging onto a groove in a record as it spins on a turntable. In sweaty
close-up he grasps and gasps. Cut to a wide shot as the needle skips. There’s
some wit to the staging, and it only escalates as the danger grows.
Even more so than in the similarly mildly flippant Guardians, Ant-Man’s comedic tone is maintained throughout. It’s stuck in
rigorous franchise making, with the worst scene a shoehorned cameo from an
Avenger. But it’s still just loose enough to accommodate the pleasures of
letting the cast’s chemistry simmer. It helps that supporting roles are filled
by the likes of Michael Peña (a delight), T.I., Bobby Cannavale, and (an
underutilized) Judy Greer. Reed keeps the plot – a limber heist laced with
family issues – hopping along, trusting this ace cast to maintain high levels
of appealing personality. By the time we arrive at the inevitable climactic battle,
it’s tweaked with real levity – actual funny throwaway lines and teasing use of
effects – and allowed to end before overstaying its welcome. Sparingly and
creatively deploying the unusual superpowers in clever ways for fast, lean
setpieces, its motions don’t grow tiresome. There’s simplicity to this movie
that allows it to remain light on its feet. Sometimes thinking small pays off.
