If you can get past how ‘Ant-Man & the Wasp: Quantumania’ shares similarities with Star Wars, it’s not that bad

I wouldn’t say that I had high standards for “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania”, but with the knowledge that it was the inaugural Phase Five film for Marvel Studios, I was expecting to at least be a little impressed. Just a little.

I mean, I was impressed, but not entirely for the right reasons.

Explaining my expectations

My adoration of Marvel media stemmed from the very first Iron Man film in 2008, and since then, I have watched every single Marvel production from Phase One to Phase Three.

Phase Four was when the hype had begun to die down for me, and I began to selectively watch their new releases, my interest in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) waning.

To balance out my cynicism, I brought along a friend, who has a more enthusiastic outlook on the MCU, along with me to gather valuable feedback for a slightly more comprehensive review.

Critics had deemed the film an “experimental and fun” start to Phase Five, a conclusion that I was wary of.

They also said that the film drew many similarities to Star Wars films, which was…odd. But I decided to watch anyway.

Spoiler territory (for Ant-Man and… Star Wars)

The Quantum realm awakens

Long story short — the critics were right.

The Quantum Realm drew many visual similarities to places in Disney’s other mega franchise.

The city of Chronopolis in “Ant-Man” (left) looked architecturally similar to the planet of Coruscant in “Star Wars”.

The bar where Hope Van Dyne (Evangeline Lily), Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) and Janet Van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer) sought refuge reminded me of the Cantina scene in “Star Wars: A New Hope”, and the Mos Eisley Cantina in “The Mandalorian”.

The bartender looked a little like General Grievous, a character from the Star Wars prequel trilogy, with his lanky, skeleton-like build and four arms.

The scene of Kang the Conqueror’s (Jonathan Majors) troops gathering reminded me of both troops in Black Panther, with all the coppery highlights, and the neat lines of Storm Troopers from the Star Wars franchise.

The similarities also extended to the wardrobe department.

Some people on Reddit commented that some of the costumes looked like they had been recycled from Star War’s costume department. I’m inclined to agree.

But I guess if you’re copying your own work, it’s fine?

I didn’t find these similarities off-putting, however. I amused myself with seeing how many similarities I could find, like a game of spot-the-reference.

Someone should have died

I was physically, mentally and emotionally ready for someone to die.

After all, it was the beginning of Phase Five, it would be thematically relevant to kill off an old character to make way for the takeover of the new generation.

Hence, at the beginning, I thought either Hank or Janet would make prime target for this sacrifice. This did not happen.

You would think taking old people for a spin through the Quantum Realm would wear them out, but apparently not.

Towards the end of the third act, I was so sure that Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) was going to kick the bucket battling Kang, hinted at in the trailer where Scott utters the line, “I don’t have to win, we both just have to lose.”

But that didn’t happen either.

Thematically, I could see why Scott wasn’t killed off. Throughout the Ant-Man series, the theme of absent fatherhood was constantly demonstrated by Scott not being there for his daughter Cassie (Katheryn Newton).

Scott therefore spends a large part of this film accompanying and assuring Cassie. Killing him off in the last act would therefore mean that Scott would not be able to redeem himself in this sense.

Stuck between a rock and a hard place

However, the film also introduces the idea of fighting for the oppressed, even if it isn’t necessarily your own battle to fight.

This is highlighted by Cassie encouraging Scott to participate in the Quantum Realm’s revolution to overthrow Kang, telling Scott that even if he isn’t personally invested or involved in the revolution, it doesn’t mean that he doesn’t have to help.

Whether or not this statement was a call to action for the audience living in an increasingly dispassionate and desensitised world is up for debate.

Hence, it would have made more sense for Scott to be left behind in the Quantum Realm with Hope. Being stuck together with the people he helped save would give him a reason to care and help the revolutionaries rebuild.

In other words, it would feel more complete as an ending, as Scott learns his lesson.

However, Cassie was quick to locate them and open a portal for Scott and Hope to escape.

Between leaving Scott behind, killing Scott, or Scott returning, neither option would leave the audience feeling satisfied. I could emphatise with the writers, but I wished they hadn’t backed themselves up between a rock and a hard place.

Unnecessary additions

I felt that the humour injected into the third act was entirely unnecessary.

‘Marvel humour’, piloted by Joss Whedon in ‘The Avengers” and Taika Waititi in “Thor: Ragnarok”, is what fans call the highly recognisable witty quips in Marvel movies.

While it can be entertaining in some movies, I felt that it was out-of-place in this one. It removed the emotional weight in some touching scenes, and felt cringe-worthy in others.

I also felt that the introduction of MODOK (an abbreviation of Mechanised Organism Designed Only for Killing) was a waste.

MODOK had always been a formidable villain in the Marvel cartoons I watched growing up, but his potential felt wasted here, as he was quickly introduced and killed off in less than the two-hour run time of the movie.

The revelation that he was in fact Darren Cross (Corey Stoll), the villain from the first Ant-Man movie, felt like a cheap way to establish his backstory and motivations.

I understand that if a villain doesn’t get defeated at the end of a superhero film, it might feel incomplete, but I felt that MODOK’s potential could be better utilised in other films instead of casting him aside as a secondary antagonist.

Props to the visual effects team

For all the flak I give this film, I’ll admit that watching it was a fun time.

If you don’t think too much about it, this film, which was shot largely on green screen, had marvellous special effects and Computer-Generated Imagery (CGI).

The Quantum Realm, enhanced by IMAX viewing, felt truly immersive, and the different biomes and environments truly felt like they were from another world.

The moments between Cassie and Scott were wholesome and heartwarming, and I even shed a tear and two at the scene where Scott prepares to sacrifice himself for Cassie.

Their relationship was really what carried this movie for me.

Jonathan Majors as Kang was also a fantastic casting choice, as he switched from being caring and emphatic to being cold and calculative at the flip of a coin.

His demeanour and booming voice commandeered presence, and I can’t wait to see him take over the role of the next big bad villain in the MCU.

Watching this movie also left me thinking if Ant-Man was really the right superhero to go up against Kang, as Ant-Man felt a little too goofy to square up against Kang.

However, I realised that the imagery of ants lends itself quite well to an idea which they introduced in the film – the Probability Storm.

The infinite number of ants can be compared to the infinite number of universes and possibilities the MCU can explore.

My friend also rewatched the movie a second time over the weekend, and I am happy to report that the movie was enjoyable during the second viewing.

He said that if you can overcome the feelings of disappointment, “it is possible to enjoy it for what it is.”

Top photo via Marvel Studios