Marvel fatigue set in for me just prior to the second Avengers movie. That their streak of well-above-average movies has continued this long is one of the more unbelievable things about the legendary brand. After a swath of evil aliens, demolished cityscapes and end-of-the-world-stakes, the smaller-scale story of Ant-Man feels novel.
At its core, Ant-Man is a heist movie. Paul Rudd plays the titular character, a charming cat burglar named Scott Lang who, after being imprisoned for a Robin Hood-esque caper, is released and wants to go straight. Scott is recruited by the creator of the Ant-Man suit and shrinking serum, the aged scientist Dr. Hank Pym (Douglas) and his reluctant daughter Hope (Lilly). When it becomes clear that Dr. Pym’s former protégé-turned-nemesis Darren Cross has replicated both the suit and the serum, it is up to Scott Lang: master thief, to take up the mantle of the Ant-Man and steal Dr. Cross’s technology. Becoming Ant-Man is easier said than done, however, as Scott must learn not only how to control his shrinking and re-embiggening with precision, but also how to control the army of ants at his disposal.
A screenplay credit is given to the originally slated director Edgar Wright (the Cornetto trilogy, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World), and his trademark tone can be felt throughout. Paired with Rudd’s innate affability and director Peyton Reed’s comedic background (Bring It On, Upright Citizens Brigade), the film achieves an effortless ebullience, more so than in any previous Marvel output, Guardians of the Galaxy included. This is in no small part due to the supporting cast as well. Douglas remains vivacious in his later years and House of Cards’ Corey Stoll nails “imminently unlikeable” once more as Dr. Cross. Michael Peña shines as Scott’s silly friend and partner-in-crime, Luis, and Evangeline Lilly (Lost) grounds her estranged daughter role in real emotions and, even better, a real knack for levity.
Ant-Man is the anti-Marvel antidote, a palate-cleanser full of Bullseye jokes, both verbal and visual, with a small-scale story that is exciting without being bogged-down by a big cast and even bigger action sequences (at which the film gleefully pokes fun). The only thing curbing my enthusiasm for Ant-Man is that I’m still a little fatigued.
