Earlier this week, I attended the Nashville, Tennessee press screening of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania with my husband. I believe this is a highly anticipated film for Marvel and Ant-Man fans worldwide. I know we were certainly excited for the opportunity to view the film in Dolby along with other local film critics and if the buzz before and after the film is any indication, Nashville should be included in the fandom.
Nashville Press Screening of Ant-Man and The Wasp Quantumania!
I received complimentary tickets to the press screening of this film as a member of The Music City Film Critics Association. All opinions are my own.
About Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania:
Synopsis:
From Marvel Studios: “Super Heroes Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) and Hope Van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly) return to continue their adventures as Ant-Man and The Wasp. Together, with Hope’s parents Janet Van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer) and Hank Pym (Michael Douglas), and Scott’s daughter Cassie Lang (Kathryn Newton), the family finds themselves exploring the Quantum Realm, interacting with strange new creatures and embarking on an adventure that will push them beyond the limits of what they thought possible. Directed by Peyton Reed and produced by Kevin Feige and Stephen Broussard, “Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania” also stars Jonathan Majors as Kang, David Dastmalchian as Veb, Katy O'Brian as Jentorra, William Jackson Harper as Quaz and Bill Murray as Lord Krylar.” After reading that synopsis, you might be thinking this sounds like another fun Ant-Man movie featuring everybody's favorite shrinking guy, Paul Rudd and you’d be right, but only partly. I don’t want to spoil the film for you, so let's just say, things get odd in the Quantum Realm!
Don’t look now, Ant-man has a Teenager:
The film starts out pleasantly enough with a little narration from Ant-man and just as you get a handle on this new year, new Ant-Man thing, you learn his daughter is now an angsty teenager, social activist and all around smarty. She’s been hanging out with Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) and has not only learned a few things by picking Hank’s brain, she’s become an inventor as well. I was never that smart or talented at 19, but this is a superhero film, and I’m a mom of a teen daughter, so I roll with it and fully immerse myself in what I’m seeing on the screen, and wow, it’s a lot to take in!
A Family Reunion Quantum Realm Style:
Once the Scott, Ant-man (Paul Rudd), Hope, the Wasp (Evangeline Lilly), her parents Janet Van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer) and Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) and lastly Scott’s daughter Cassie Lang (Kathryn Newton) find themselves in the Quantum Realm, one can’t help but notice how different it looks from past visits.
Clearly, the Quantum Realm is evolving, right along with the upgraded CGI Marvel Studios used in this film. Another thing that's evolved is the family dynamic. I get the teen angst angle between Cassie and Scott,(having lived through it very recently myself) but some of the other conversations between family members fell flat. Haven’t we seen enough of those cheesy let me confess my past transgressions at the most inopportune time interactions? Janet and Hank did not get the memo, because this film is riddled with cringy dialog from them. Thankfully, there’s a lot of humor and laugh out loud moments to stop any outward eye rolls from me. Thank you Paul Rudd for doing what you do!
Lights, Color and Characters:
If you love lots of colorful scenes, full of otherworldly nature and people, you are going to love trying to keep up with the fast paced action during Ant-Man and The Wasp Quantumania! You’ll be so engrossed in trying to make sense of what’s happening on screen between our heroes and the new heroes and villains, like M.O.D.O.K. (and why some scenes seem vaguely familiar), that you won’t notice the passage of time and for that, I give Ant-Man and the Wasp Quantumania high praise! It’s not easy to keep an audience fully invested in a two hour film!
Meet Super Villain Kang: The Beginning of a New Dynasty:
Jonathan Majors as Kang is the latest super villain to enter MCU and I personally think he is indeed a super villain of Thanos proportions! You may recognize Jonathan Majors from his role in Loki, which I’ve heard he is superb. I am woefully behind on my streaming, so please no spoilers if you're a Loki series fan! Fans of Majors can expect more stellar acting as Kang, the time traveling, nexus being, people and world destroying super villain that Ant-Man and the Wasp must stop, with the help of their family and a few new friends.
The Takeaway:
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is a solid third film for the series. It’s not campy and cute like Thor Love and Thunder was. In fact, this Ant-Man film takes a decidedly different approach and while it is a good stand alone Ant-Man and the Wasp film, you can’t help but feel the goal was to introduce Kang as the latest super villian to MCU.
If you’re an Ant-Man. Wasp and Marvel fan, you should go see this one in theaters starting today, February 17, 2023. Be sure to stay for two end credit scenes as those will have you buzzing with excitement, like it did all of us at the press screening. We all felt the need to put our collective thinking caps on and try to piece it all together.
I hope you enjoyed this film review as much as I enjoyed watching the film and writing this review! I really love sharing films with you. You can check out my past film reviews here on the blog under the Entertainment tab.
Please share in comments: Do you plan on seeing Ant-Man and the Wasp Quantumania in theaters?
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