Ant-Man - Movie Review - Film Geek Guy

Marvel's 'Ant-Man' wasn't on everyone's radar on their must-see films, I get that. The movie's pre-production was a nightmare for the studio, looking for a replacement for the film's director after Edgar Wright departs the looong prepared film.Wright was a fantastic director, and him not directing it now causes trepidation for comic-book fans. Though the finished movie had its Edgar Wright touches here and there, I can proudly say Marvel hit the lottery again. This movie was fantastic!

Last year's 'Guardians of the Galaxy' wasn't as risky compared to this. Do you really think a superhero whose power is to shrink into a size of an insect would sell to the market? It's an even more stupid concept than a talking raccoon. What's riskier to that is it doesn't follow the Marvel formula wherein something gigantic happens at the climax with planes being blasted. It's the other way around.

Without spoiling, the movie manages to make a big impact in not just narratively, but emotionally on sequences that are set in tiny spaces. Here's where the movie got very inventive on its action sequences. The filmmaking team used macrophotography to film images which can we only see using microscopes. When the hero shrinks, and his allegiance of ants followed him, the scope of the movie enlarges. Even with us being just an observer of these tiny battles, you still get excited nevertheless.

The movie plays safe on its different spin of an origin film, and I don't think I should consider it as one. We never get to see the Ant-Man coming into fruition, and an established hero from the start. Michael Douglas' Hank Pym was a scientist and war fighter in the 80s who have been secretly using this, and assigned Paul Rudd's character Scott Lang to take over his mantle and wear to save the world. Michael Douglas was perfect, and brings the gravitas in this film. Paul Rudd, who I adored since the early 2000s was also fantastic, and i'm glad he is having his biggest break with this, because for sure we're gonna see more of him in the future.

Michael Peña was a humongous surprise in this movie. I initially thought he would be this annoying junkie intended for laughs but the more we get to his character, he owned every scene he's in. The guy's hilarious and a welcome presence onscreen. House of Card's Corey Stoll played the villain in this movie, and his characterization was my only gripe for this movie. Not only did they over glamoured him as this guy with evil schemes, he was very one-sided throughout. A major problem with Marvel that needs to be fixed. It's a shame though, since Stoll did an excellent job as he could for his role.

Though Edgar Wright's version of the movie would be a mystery that will linger us for ages, Director Peyton Reed did an excellent job with the movie, even retaining the quick cuts the director would have used and envisioned for this project. At its core, the movie is a heist film with tidbits of superhero blockbuster elements. Its where the film finds its humor and fun, something that always worked, especially for this film that disguised itself as a superhero blockbuster.
'Ant-Man' was a blast and one of the most entertaining films I have seen all Summer. Certainly one of the best stand-alone Marvel movie next to Captain America: The Winter Soldier. It's fun, hilarious, and impeccably cast. See it this week!

The geek rates it 9/10!