TORONTO — Ant-Man, starring Paul Rudd as the ex-con who dons the suit that gives him the power to shrink, is finally in theatres after several well-documented delays.
Directed by Peyton Reed, the Marvel film also stars Michael Douglas, Canada’s Evangeline Lilly, Corey Stoll and Michael Peña.
Does Ant-Man deserve to crawl its way to the top of the box office or get stomped on? Here’s a look at some of the reviews.
Angela Watercutter of Wired said the movie is “a quirky and almost brilliant addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.”
But, she wrote, “just because Ant-Man is about a lesser-known superhero doesn’t mean it strays far from the Marvel formula. In other words, it’s a satisfying popcorn movie, even if the idea of a likable and superpowered white guy feels a little rote by this point.”
Watercutter described Ant-Man as “a fast, fun ride with some brilliant micro-worldbuilding special effects that comes in under two hours, which feels positively brisk considering the, um, fuller comic-book movies we’re used to.
“It’s fast and loose, and aims only to entertain.”
At the Los Angeles Times, Kenneth Turan seemed to agree.
“Playful in unexpected ways and graced with a genuinely off-centre sense of humour, Ant-Man is light on its feet the way the standard-issue Marvel behemoths never are,” he opined.
“It’s got a vintage science fiction feel and a climactic scene in which Thomas the Tank Engine rather than a crowd of interstellar invaders plays a major part. Business as usual this is not.”
READ MORE: What the critics said about other recent movies
Christopher Orr of The Atlantic said Ant-Man embraces its inherent silliness with gusto.
“But the tone of the movie varies substantially from scene to scene (there’s much unnecessarily overwrought, father-daughter melodrama), substantial gaps in logic abound, and the whole ultimately amounts to less than the sum of its parts,” wrote Orr.
“Ant-Man isn’t a bad movie so much as a highly uneven one, one that manages the principal tiny-hero challenge adequately—there are echoes throughout of every shrinking movie ever made—but stumbles in small ways with regularity.”
While it’s not “a complete failure,” Orr said, it is “well below par” for Marvel.
“A fundamentally silly tale,” is how Chris Heller described the movie in Metro Weekly.
“That’s why, despite a handful of inventive action sequences, director Peyton Reed doesn’t find his footing until Ant-Man is nearly over,” Heller wrote.
“It lingers on a paint-by-numbers origin story, neglecting to address each character’s motivation in meaningful ways, and is shot in Marvel’s house style with bright visual effects. It’s a pleasant movie, but far from a memorable one.”
Heller suggested Ant-Man “gets better as it chugs along.”
In The Guardian, Peter Bradshaw called Ant-Man a “reasonably amusing new adventure” with “some clever and nicely conceived sequences, and some bursts of wit.”
He complained: “Some of the action scenes are merely slick, and Michael Douglas’s natural charisma and style are rather wasted on the subdued role of Dr. Hank Pym.”
BELOW: Paul Rudd can’t stop making fart sounds during Ant-Man interview
Christopher Lawrence of the Las Vegas Review-Journal seemed unimpressed.
“Good things come in small packages. Ant-Man isn‘t one of them,” he wrote.
Lawrence said the movie is “more than a little disappointing” considering Marvel’s track record and the comedic talent of its leading man.
“Rudd‘s awkward charm is always welcome, there’s some genuine sporadic creativity on display, and the scene in which Scott has a run-in with an Avenger shows some of the mostly unmet potential,” Lawrence explained.
“Be prepared for thoughts of what Ant-Man might have been to bug you.”
At the Portland Mercury, WM Steven Humphrey opined that Ant-Man works as a smaller, character-driven film.
“Ant-Man has provided Marvel with something they haven’t really pulled off since the first Iron Man—a story you actually care about,” Humphrey wrote.
“While the first and second acts aren’t as engaging as I’d like, and the female characters are woefully underdeveloped (surprise!), when the final blockbuster battle materializes (in miniature) Ant-Man turns into a smart, knowing parody of all the overblown superheroics that have preceded it.”
Scott Mendelson of Forbes credited Ant-Man for having “some strong comic beats and a generally enjoyable story.”
“The film absolutely delivers in terms of entertainment value,” he wrote, calling it “a fast, light, and blindingly colourful romp, with any number of clever visual gags and storytelling touches.”
Perhaps the most credible review, though, comes from James Gunn, director of the Marvel blockbuster Guardians of the Galaxy.
On Facebook, he declared that Ant-Man is his favourite Marvel film since Iron Man.
“Honestly, the movie is a complete blast! I was so happy after seeing it. It’s never boring for a second and it’s hilarious and warm throughout,” he wrote.
“It doesn’t get caught up in the webbing of its own science-fiction concept like so many movies do these days, remaining simple and elegant. It’s a part of the Marvel universe without being ruled by that fact.”
Gunn praised Rudd for being “nuanced and charming and funny” and decided that Michael Peña “KILLS IT” in a star-making supporting role.
“I left the theatre incredibly happy.”
BELOW: Watch the trailer for Ant-Man
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