"A new hero approaches"
Sometime after “Avengers: Age of Ultron”, we find Scott Lang, a master robber, serving his last day in San Quentin State Prison. After struggling with a shady past to make a fresh start, Scott is thrown back into a life of crime, when a super suit and shrinking technology crosses his path. Let’s find out what happens, when a new hero approaches, in “Ant-Man.”
When Scott Lang, played by Paul Rudd, ultimately fails at starting over, he has to resort to a hot tip of a big take in a neighborhood house. After an intricate heist into a large safe, Scott only finds a suit, instead of money and riches. Unknown to him, this suit belongs to Hank Pym, played by Michael Douglas, a famous scientist behind Pym Particles and shrinking technology. If you don’t know who Hank Pym is, he is the first Ant-Man and one of the founding Avengers in the Comics. Hank later reveals that he has been watching Scott’s every move and allowed him to steal the suit. He does this because he wants Scott to put a stop to the militarization of shrinking technology at his old company, Pym Tech. Darren Cross, played by Corey Stoll, is the mind behind the Yellow Jacket, a new super soldier suit that uses the likes of Hank’s shrinking technology, to sell as a weapon. With Hank and his daughter, Hope Van Dyne, played by Evangeline Lilly, Scott is tasked with stopping Darren’s evil plans.
This was a welcomed addition to the MCU. The idea of a heist-y action movie was a breath of fresh air in this ongoing franchise. The story wasn’t a big leap compared to other movies in this universe. It was clear to understand what was going on. Paul Rudd definitely puts his take into the character of Scott Lang. A lot of the jokes are of his humor, very snarky with a straight-faced attitude. The visual effects were well done, I only wish that I got to see the awesome shrinking effects in Imax 3D. We get the idea of the negative effects of Pym Particles with protagonists, but it is lightly touched upon with Darren Cross. His character isn’t as fleshed out as I would like. It feels like his character randomly snaps and out of nowhere, he instantly becomes the villain. This film however did a good job in telling a story about the relationships between Scott, Hank, and Hope. We get a heart-felt moment between Hank and Hope near the end of the movie, which just makes you want to tear up. But don’t worry; there are plenty of moments you can laugh at throughout the movie.
If you are a fan of the comics and/or the movies, you’ll definitely love Scott in his adventures as the new Ant-Man.
Recap
+ The jokes are hilarious!
+ The shrinking visual effects are awesome!
+ Great protagonists.
- Villain’s progression wasn’t hashed out well.