Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania

I found Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania - the start of Marvel's Phase 5 - to be a package that perfectly displayed some of the biggest strengths about the MCU, as well as some of its biggest weaknesses. 

The story this week has been around "ZOMG, it's the second lowest rated Marvel film yet. What's going on?!" For the record, it's fine...an enjoyable time that lacks much staying power or need for a rewatch. I certainly enjoyed it more than last year's massively disappointing Thor: Love and Thunder, and lest we forget that the MCU has rarely delivered us Civil War, or Infinity War, or Endgame "Instant Classic" content. All the doom and gloom about the MCU being "dead" seems unfounded because I'm sitting over here remembering films like Thor: The Dark World, Iron Man 2, Age of Ultron, and Captain Marvel that were serviceable, but didn't light the world on fire. And Quantumania is just that: required MCU material, an enjoyable romp (that has its issues), but ultimately this wont make anyone's Top 5 MCU list, and I don't think expectations to do such would be fair in the first place. I learned my lesson there with Multiverse of Madness. 

Quantumania is set distinctly apart from its predecessors, Ant-Man and Ant-Man and the Wasp (the second one is the best in this trilogy IMO), as it goes to the Quantum Realm which is basically Peyton Reed's attempt at James Gunn/Guardians of the Galaxy weirdness in what's essentially "outer space"...but outside space and time. There's a lot that works (some characters are hilarious and their creature design is fun) and there's an equal amount of things that feel like an afterthought (pretty much an green-screen environment behind everything has no rhyme or reason). I felt thrust into the Quantum Realm with little explanation about it, or what I should expect, and there's a distinct lack of visual flair that could have really elevated this film - and was dramatically outshined by some of the striking visuals from the Guardians Volume 3 trailer mere minutes before. In a very weird way, this film is both very creative and non-inspiring, all at the same time. Similarly basic - and honestly my biggest complaint of the MCU since Endgame - is the action is about as dull as it gets. You have exceptions like Shang-Chi and Wakanda Forever, but Quantumania is a prime example of yawn-inducing, hard-to-distinguish action that is a far cry from the MCU action pinnacle of Civil War. Much like Marvel/Disney needs to turn their attention to their special effects and the teams that build them (perhaps why The Marvels just got delayed?), they also need to employ some more talented action choreographers and just flat-out get more creative with it. 

What're we looking at in the background? Couldn't tell ya

Despite those semi-significant qualms that hold Quantumania in the mid-tier Marvel category, there's still plenty to enjoy. First and foremost, Paul Rudd remains wildly likable and the rest of the cast, while less interesting, is playing full out. Our humor is often spot on, with a high degree of jokes that find their mark (a discussion about human holes was particularly fun) and the laughs are consistent, but rarely feel super forced. Admittedly, I have a blind spot here at times because I don't care to much about a joke's timing as long as it lands so others may disagree, but generally speaking this is a funny Marvel film. 

Kang, dripping with swagger

But really, people are going to see this for Kang the Conqueror and the official start of Marvel's next Thanos-level villain. Thanos was the underlying pulse of pre-Endgame Marvel. You knew he was coming, traces of him were out there, and it created a palpable anticipation. I believe Kang can create the same environment, thanks in large part to Jonathan Majors just being f**king great. He's menacing and intriguing in this and, based on some of his other work, I truly believe Kang will be a all-time villain the likes of Thanos, Vader, and Joker by the time we're done. Whenever the film is focused on Kang, Kang's story, or broaching explanations of time and the multiverse, I was absolutely hooked and found it compelling. It's also where the script is at it's best. Outside of Kang, the plot is average and uninspired - family gets stuck somewhere, family must work together to escape - and the "heroic" side of the script...eesh. It was about as cliche as all out. "Kang! You gave me your word!" Scott yells as he's large, charging at Kang's compound. "Our word is our bond! Without it, we are nothing!" --> Literally a direct quote and how many times have we heard those lines verbatim in hero vs. villain setups? 

I'm certainly not in the camp of the MCU being "over". I think people tend to forget that not every film on the way to Endgame was gold and nostalgia is putting some rose-colored glasses on their hindsight. That said, Quantumania does some elements really well (humor, Kang) but is downright lazy in others (Quantum Realm environments, script outside of Kang) and it's those elements that Marvel should tighten up before we get closer to bigger showdowns. 

CONS

• Quantum Realm feels unexplained and lacks the visual splendor (particularly in backgrounds) that some other MCU films have done much better with
• Ooooph. Anytime the script is trying to be heroic, I swear it was a copy+paste job
• Outside of Kang, the plot is mediocre and sometimes annoying (hey Janet! Why the hell don't you tell us what's going on?)
• Bill Murray cameo was pretty useless
• Action is dull, uninspired, and hard to follow. This needs to be fixed permanently in the MCU!

PROS

• Paul Rudd can carry the film, despite a weak script for him, because he's so likable
• Humor is on-point most of the time. Lots of good laughs throughout
• Jonathan Majors' Kang is going to be HIM. Just you wait
• Pretty much any plot element related to Kang I was immensely interested with
• Lots of character creativity in the Quantum Realm
• Outside of the aforementioned dull backgrounds, the special effects are quite good
• Fun romp with good laughs, likeable characters, and an intriguing villain who promises to be around more

Rath's Review Score | 7/10