Review for Ant-Man and the Wasp

Introduction

When it came to comics, I leaned more towards Asterix, Tintin and Lucky Luke than the Marvel and DC worlds of the US industry, so I’m not altogether au fait with the various characters and storylines. When it comes to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, I’m actually experiencing most of these characters for the first time through the films. And when it came to the MCU, Ant-man to me looked like the budget option, the also-ran that was thrown in to pad out the numbers alongside the beefier characters like Iron Man, Captain America and Thor. It came as quite a surprise when I watched the first Ant-Man film to see that this character was really good, and the film more than lived up to that, perhaps one of the best in the MCU when it comes to pure entertainment. So now that I come to the first sequel, Ant-Man and the Wasp, I’m probably setting myself up for a fall with heightened expectations.


When Scott Lang shrunk down into the Quantum Realm and managed to return, that changed everything for scientist Hank Pym and his daughter Hope Van Dyne. Thirty years previously, when Hank and his wife Janet Van Dyne were the Ant-Man and the Wasp, Janet was lost in the Quantum Realm when a mission went badly. Scott’s unprecedented return has opened up the possibility of rescuing Janet. Given that he’s already been there, he’s the best chance of getting Janet back.


However Scott Lang has been under house arrest since he sided with Captain America’s fight against the Avengers in opposition to the Sokovia Accords, and as known associates, Hank Pym and his daughter have had to become fugitives as well. And there are others that covet the new Quantum technology that Hank Pym has developed.

The Disc

Ant-Man and the Wasp gets a 2.39:1 widescreen 1080p transfer on this Blu-ray, with the choice between DTS-HD MA 7.1 Surround English, Dolby Digital Plus 7.1 Surround French and German, and Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo English Audio Descriptive, with subtitles in these languages and Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Norwegian, and Swedish. Once more we have an impeccable transfer, clear and sharp visuals with consistent colours, and no signs of compression, while the audio is immersive and impactful, making the most of the music while keeping the dialogue clear. Most importantly, the effects in the film are really well accomplished, the multi-scale perspectives seamlessly composited together, really leaving you with no disbelief left to suspend. The action sequences are also very well choreographed and realised.

Extras

You get one disc in a BD Amaray style case, which boots straight to an animated menu. You can choose to watch the film with a 1:08 introduction by director Peyton Reed. On the disc, you’ll find the following extras.


Making of Featurettes
-Back in the Suit: Scott Lang (5:56)
-A Suit of Her Own: The Wasp (5:19)
-Subatomic Super Heroes: Hank & Janet (4:09)
-Quantum Perspective: The VFX and Production Design of Ant-Man and the Wasp (7:04)


Gag Reel and Outtakes
-Gag Reel (1:31)
-Stan Lee Outtakes (0:46)
-Tim Heidecker Outtakes (1:29)

Deleted Scenes x 2 with optional director’s commentary (1:38)

Audio Commentary with director Peyton Reed

Conclusion

Ant-Man and the Wasp isn’t as good as the original Ant-Man... It’s better! I had a blast watching this film last night, and the two hours just vanished without a thought. With the rest of the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies, there is a varying level of seriousness depending on the franchise, and there are almost always some serious stakes in the stories. There is also that ongoing continuity that exists across the franchise. While there is a bit of connectedness to the rest of the films, Ant-Man and the Wasp stands pretty much alone, save for Ant-Man when it comes to its story, and for once, the stakes are really brought down to the personal level. There also isn’t really a villain in this film, not much of a moustache twirler to fill the screen. Above all and most refreshing for me, Ant-Man and the Wasp is as close to a pure comedy as you’ll get in the MCU, even more so than Ant-Man. I said in the review for the first film, that the diminutive stature of the protagonists is impossible to take seriously at the best of times, and that is even more so for the sequel. All of this comes together to make Ant-Man and the Wasp one of the best of the MCU franchise.


The stakes are really small this time around, even more so than in Ant-Man, with Hank and Hope invested in rescuing Janet from the Quantum realm, and with Hope having donned the mantle of The Wasp to expedite that, to obtain the technology that her father needs to complete his invention. Scott’s goal is to stay on the straight and narrow long enough to complete his house arrest sentence, which at the start of the film is just three days away. That is jeopardised when he gets ‘stung by the Wasp’ and wakes up in a car on the way to her father’s secret lair. If he gets caught outside of his house, or in the Ant-Man suit, then it’s to jail, with his relationship with his daughter Cassie wrecked.


All they need is a piece of tech from Sonny Burch, an unscrupulous businessman, which is where the problems begin. He’s learnt of Hank Pym’s nascent Quantum technology, and he wants in by any means necessary. He’s as close to a villain as this film gets, but he and his henchmen are all played for laughs. The meeting between Burch and Hope goes badly, allowing for a kick-ass introduction to the Wasp’s size defying kung-fu, but the fight is disrupted by a third party, a Ghost that can phase through matter, and who winds up stealing the tech and Hank Pym’s miniaturised secret laboratory.


The Ghost might be the film’s ultimate villain, given the strength, and brutality with which they go after their goals, but it turns out that just as with the first film’s villain, The Ghost is another legacy of Hank Pym’s arrogance years previously. Once again, Hank couldn’t work well with others, and a disaffected former employee wound up conducting risky experiments, getting his family caught up in the disaster that ensued. It’s a quantum effect that allows the Ghost to phase through matter, but it’s a curse that is slowly killing them, and Hank’s new Quantum technology represents the best chance at a cure.


So you have these three groups working at cross purposes, with the FBI that is keeping an eye on Scott Lang thrown in for good measure. It makes for a lively and entertaining mix. And all of this action is punctuated by all manner of multi-proportioned madness and special effects inventiveness. It’s all so brilliantly thought out and so effectively accomplished that you just forget the spectacle and special effects, and just lose yourself in the story, which is what the best effects heavy movies do.


When it comes to pure enjoyment, two hours of fun to escape into, Ant-Man and the Wasp might just be the best of the MCU. I loved every minute of this film, and can see myself returning to it more often than the other films in the franchise. The Blu-ray is as you would expect by this point from Disney, when it comes to the AV quality and the extra features. It’s definitely one for the collection.