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The unspoken motto of the " Ant-Man " movies is "think small," which has paradoxically made it stand apart from other sectors of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which tend towards the grandiose. "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania" plays around with that idea by shrinking Ant-Man/Scott Lange ( Paul Rudd ) and the other major characters to a subatomic size ten minutes into the story and dispatching them to the Quantum Realm, which looks like James Cameron's Pandora reimagined as the cover of a 1970s jazz fusion album, and keeping them there for the rest of the film as they battle an exiled supervillain named Kang ( Jonathan Majors ). The result is simultaneously the biggest and smallest of the Ant-Man films, a neat trick. 

Is it a must-see? No—the middle hour is fun in that patented easygoing "Ant-Man" way. Returning director Peyton Reed and screenwriter Jeff Loveness let the characters wander around the Quantum Realm, which is like a psychedelic sci-fi cartoon version of those jungles in 1930s serials where a clueless Western explorer would misinterpret a gesture and anger a local tribe, or get dunked in a river by an elephant, or be grossed out by the prospect of eating snake meat until they had a bite and realized it tastes kinda like chicken. 

Here, the tribe includes a guy with a flashlight for a head and one with a transparent, gelatinous body who is obsessed with how many "holes" humans have (the comedic peak of Rudd's performance is the pause he takes while Scott counts in his head), and a telepath ( William Jackson Harper ) who is cursed to constantly hear the bizarre and/or filthy thoughts that race through others' minds. Instead of elephants, there are houses that look as if Fred Flintstone's home mated with the Pillsbury Dough Boy, and that are alive and can walk and defend themselves in war. There are also gelatinous bugs and other critters, shrubs and trees modeled on fungi and lichens, and a mitochondrial thing scaled like Godzilla. 

They're all seemingly modeled on photos of "small worlds" of varying magnification levels. That the designers have grouped these microscopic and subatomic things because they're "small" is part of the fun. It's like something a kid threw together for a science fair, hoping that sheer charm would compensate for not having any actual science content. Too bad that, for all its amusing jokes, the world onscreen mostly looks like a Marvel screen-saver.  Bill Pope , who shot the "Matrix" films and multiple Sam Raimi and  Edgar Wright movies, is the cinematographer here, but not so you'd notice. There's not much for a cinematographer (or director—even Ryan Coogler has seemed tamped down by Marvel) to do to show individual personality on these projects when so much of the running time is pre-visualized by effects companies; and when Marvel studios boss Kevin Feige , who seems determined to keep art to a minimum for fear of gumming up the content machine, wields an aesthetic veto pen.

As for Kang: he's what genre buffs call a " ret-con ." The filmmakers need him to be a fearsome and all-powerful villain (he's essentially Thanos in a new wrapper: a genocidal madman) and to be introduced in this movie so that he could quickly be positioned as the Big Bad for the next Avengers team-up. But they also have to explain why Janet van Dyne ( Michelle Pfeiffer ), former wife of original Ant-Man Hank Pym ( Michael Douglas ), who was trapped in the Quantum Realm for 30 years, never mentioned Kang to anybody. 

The answer is not persuasive, despite Pfeiffer selling the heck out of it. But this is a comic-book movie, so you have to roll with it. Pfeiffer, at least, gets a lot to do in pushing the plot forward and papering over cracks in the storytelling. Meanwhile, unfortunately, Evangeline Lilly's Hope, aka The Wasp, just seems to kind of  be  there. She's present and involved, but doesn't make much of an impression. (Narratively, of course, she's been eclipsed by Cassie: the last one was more the Pyms' movie, and this one's mainly about Scott and Cassie, who is now a teen with her own super-suit, and played by Kathryn Newton . But they still managed to give Michael Douglas plenty of good bits.)

Kang is a poorly written character—he's bad, he's mad, he's a genius, he wants to escape the Quantum Realm, and that's pretty much it. There's only so much that the cast or filmmakers can do to make him seem terrifying. The film doesn't have the nerve (or perhaps the studio's permission?) to wipe the smile off the audience's face in the manner of, say, the last act of " Avengers: Infinity War " or the middle hour of " Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom ." There's a brief scene where Kang convinces Scott to use his thief abilities to steal this movie's equivalent of the Ring of Power or Infinity Stone or Mother Box by threatening to murder Cassie in front of him, then make Scott re-experience her death for all eternity. But we know it’s not the sort of movie where that could ever happen, nor one where any major character we care about will suffer too greatly. 

And so Kang's menace is conveyed through an uncharacteristically hammy performance by Majors. He seems to be channeling post-1970s Marlon Brando performances where Brando was being fed lines through an earpiece or reading them off notecards taped to other actors' costumes. Sometimes he'll pause forever between words in a line while staring ahead, or look up, or to the side, as if the next thought might be lurking there. Like Brando, he’s fussing around in ways that seem to work at cross-purposes with the movie, but it’s in service of trying to make something out of nothing. One element that does intrigue: Kang seems deeply, furiously sad, in a way that echoes one of the most powerful lines from "The Sopranos," "Depression is anger turned inward."

Eventually, the movie succumbs to the MCU formula and devotes its last act to a lot of overly busy CGI battles, with things crashing into other things and exploding and disintegrating while people yell about having to save the universe. Sometimes the movie overdoes the self-awareness in that unfortunate MCU way—such as by having a character confirm that a weird thing just happened by saying, "That was weird," or announce that another character is cool, both of which happen here. But the film's low-stress, low-stakes attitude saves it. 

Serenely untroubled by pressures to break box office records or win Oscars, the Ant-Man films seem content to be clever entertainments with heart, but not so much that they become cloying. From the size jokes to the running gags to the casting of Rudd, who has spent his career behaving as if he's a random regular guy who stumbled into stardom and finds it all quite silly, the series manages to be light but not inconsequential, whether a given scene is sentimental (anything involving Scott and Cassie) or cheerfully deranged (the climatic fight at the end of the first movie atop a Thomas the Tank Engine train set). Ant-Man is officially a member of the MCU's starting lineup, the Avengers, but feels like a replacement player who gets a text when Thor calls in sick. This new movie validates Scott's not-quite-insecurity (he's not deep enough to be existentially tormented) by having him get mistaken for other superheroes. He takes it in stride. Two films ago, he got fired from Baskin-Robbins, and before that, he was in jail. Happiness, like size, is a matter of perspective.

In theaters Friday, February 17.

Matt Zoller Seitz

Matt Zoller Seitz is the Editor at Large of RogerEbert.com, TV critic for New York Magazine and Vulture.com, and a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in criticism.

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Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023)

Rated PG-13 for violence/action, and language.

125 minutes

Paul Rudd as Scott Lang / Ant-Man

Evangeline Lilly as Hope van Dyne / The Wasp

Jonathan Majors as Kang the Conqueror

Kathryn Newton as Cassie Lang

Michelle Pfeiffer as Janet van Dyne

Michael Douglas as Dr. Hank Pym

Bill Murray as Lord Krylar

Katy O'Brian as Jentorra

William Jackson Harper as Quaz

Jamie Andrew Cutler as XOLUM

David Dastmalchian as Veb

Randall Park as Jimmy Woo

Gregg Turkington as Dale

• Peyton Reed

Writer (creator)

• Jeff Loveness

Cinematographer

• Adam Gerstel
• Laura Jennings
• Christophe Beck

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Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania First Reviews: It's Marvel's Star Wars , and Kang and MODOK Steal the Show

Early reviews say quantumania' s script is a bit undercooked, but jonathan majors, corey stoll, and michelle pfeiffer help elevate the visually stunning spectacle in the franchise's most sci-fi entry yet..

TAGGED AS: First Reviews , marvel cinematic universe , movies

Here’s what critics are saying about Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania :

Is Quantumania another MCU hit?

I can say with 100% certainty that viewers are in for a treat. –  Danielle Solzman, Solzy at the Movies

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is an eccentric and essential spectacle, which further expands the possibilities of what the MCU’s tentpole projects can still be capable of. –  Jenna Anderson, ComicBook.com

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is here to surprise you with its exceptional performances, genuine emotional moments, and earned high stakes. –  Meredith Loftus, Next Best Picture

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania remains tons of fun for comics nerds and an easy pass for anyone else. –  Peter Canavese, Groucho Reviews

Quantumania is fun, as well as bedazzling, relentless and numbing, then fun again just when you think you’ve had enough. –  Owen Gleiberman, Variety

It commits the worst sin a movie can make: it’s boring. –  Hoai-Tran Bui, Inverse

(Photo by ©Marvel Studios)

Where does it fit in the franchise?

Quantumania delivers an entertaining first act of what’s to come [in Phase Five] and leaves fans with plenty to be excited about. –  Matt Rodriguez, Shakefire

Quantumania is the weirdest and most wholehearted chapter in the MCU’s essential storytelling. – Jenna Anderson, ComicBook.com

For better or worse, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is the most overtly sci-fi film in the series, and on that level, it succeeds very well. –  Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter

Coming off of Wakanda Forever , which might have been Marvel’s most emotionally heavy film ever, Quantumania is a pleasing change of pace. –  Ron Seoul-Oh, POC Culture

Marvel movies have long become less like movies and more like feature-length commercials for the next thing, and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is sadly the greatest embodiment of that. – Hoai-Tran Bui, Inverse

This isn’t the worst Marvel movie, but it is one of the more forgettable. –  Andrew J. Salazar, Geeks of Color

It’s one of the more unremarkable entries in the MCU. –  Louisa Moore, Screen Zealots

How does it compare to the previous Ant-Man movies?

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is the best Ant-Man film yet. –  Rohan Patel, ComicBookMovie.com

The third time’s the charm. –  Collier Jennings, But Why Tho? A Geek Community

This third Ant-Man film feels like anything but an Ant-Man film. –  Rob Hunter, Film School Rejects

If you are looking for the third installment to be more of the same from the Ant-Man movies, you’re in for a surprise… [but] the comedy still hits at the same level. – Meredith Loftus, Next Best Picture

Humor is generally in shorter supply. – Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter

Will Star Wars fans enjoy it?

Imagine the cantina scene from Star Wars on steroids and expanded to feature length, and you’ll have some idea of what director Peyton Reed and screenwriter Jeff Loveness are going for. – Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter

What [the Quantum Realm] feels like, most directly, is a planet from one of the later Star Wars films, with a few old-school Cantina vibes. – Owen Gleiberman, Variety

The idea that this takes place in a vast intergalactic world with strange new creatures feels very Star Wars -like. In fact, there are travel instruments and devices that look straight out of The Mandalorian at times. –  Jamie Broadnax, Black Girl Nerds

The thing about Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is that it wants you to think it’s essentially Marvel’s new Star Wars without doing any of the necessary groundwork to get there. – Andrew J. Salazar, Geeks of Color

How is the script?

Writer Jeff Loveness is making up the rules as it goes along, which is why Quantumania whisks you through its visually zapping action without generating any real investment in it. – Owen Gleiberman, Variety

Jeff Loveness’ script moves efficiently at least, dutifully taking the characters from plot point A to point B, but everyone feels less like human beings than they do action figures moved around to fulfill various plot contrivances. – Hoai-Tran Bui, Inverse

The story is admittedly solid and does serve its purpose… but it rarely surprises and often defaults to the chemistry between actors elevating the material rather than pushing them to their limits. – Rohan Patel, ComicBookMovie.com

A bit uneven, it feels like Jeff Loveness’ script wasn’t sure what genre this movie wanted to be. – Jamie Broadnax, Black Girl Nerds

Screenwriter Jeff Loveness’ themes are halfhearted and his dialogue sounds like it was written by ChatGPT. – Peter Canavese, Groucho Reviews

The screenplay is peppered with dreadful one-liners like “it’s never too late to stop being a dick!” and “ants don’t give up!” I really, really wish I was joking about this. – Louisa Moore, Screen Zealots

The blockbuster has a terrible “telling, not showing” problem that both handicaps the storytelling and undermines the antagonist’s impact. –  Eric Eisenberg, Cinema Blend

What about the action?

Its action sequences at times get to go to particularly wild places most blockbusters can’t go, most notably when Scott encounters something called a “probability storm.” – Peter Canavese, Groucho Reviews

A stunning climactic battle, involving a “probability storm” (don’t ask)… is the sort of mind-blowing sequence that you don’t even need consciousness-altering substances to appreciate. – Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter

The proclivity of Ant-Man, the Wasp and Cassie to switch between small, medium and large at a moment’s notice give the action sequences a frenetic and unpredictable beauty, even if you have trouble figuring out what exactly is happening at times. –  Joey Morona, Cleveland Plain Dealer

How are the visuals?

It’s one of the more visually imaginative comic book movies ever. – Rohan Patel, ComicBookMovie.com

One of the most ambitious visual feasts that Marvel Studios has put out yet… Quantumania is easily a contender for the most Kirby-esque visuals in a superhero adaptation. – Jenna Anderson, ComicBook.com

Utilizing the Volume technology found in The Mandalorian and Obi-Wan Kenobi , the Quantum Realm comes alive in a more visually impressive way than some of the previous Phase 4 movies. – Meredith Loftus, Next Best Picture

Suffice it to say that the visual design of the multi-faceted settings, imaginative costumes, and outrageous creatures on display is truly outstanding on every level. – Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter

Whenever it’s possible to look at Quantumania and idly wonder whether anyone on screen was actually in a room together during shooting—which is often!—you may be peeking at the worlds-within-worlds built by visual effects artists and actors’ conflicting schedules. In other words: a Zoom call with (somewhat) better backgrounds. –  Jesse Hassenger, SportsAlcohol

The film takes place extensively in the Quantum Realm, which provides an unsightly setting of muted, dark brown, washed-out visuals. It’s an ugly place, so why would audiences want to spend time there? – Louisa Moore, Screen Zealots

How is Jonathan Majors’ performance as Kang?

Jonathan Majors holds you with the quiet force of his pensive scowl… You hang on his every word; he makes vengeance and genocide sound like the most hypnotically casual of propositions. – Owen Gleiberman, Variety

He also invests his performance with such an arrestingly quiet stillness and ambivalence that you’re on edge every moment he’s on screen. – Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter

Majors turns the extravagant and otherworldly energy from the page into something truly magical, to the point where even the slightest tilt of his head speaks volumes. – Jenna Anderson, ComicBook.com

He carries a commanding screen presence that ups the entire film to a whole new level whenever he walks in. – Andrew J. Salazar, Geeks of Color

He doesn’t just steal his scenes… he conquers them. – Meredith Loftus, Next Best Picture

He instantly becomes one of the MCU’s most intriguing villains… Majors delivers in a major way (no pun intended). – Rohan Patel, ComicBookMovie.com

For the most part, Kang’s menace is conveyed through an uncharacteristically hammy performance by Majors. He seems to be channeling post-1970s Marlon Brando performances where Brando was being fed lines through an earpiece or reading them off notecards taped to other actors’ costumes. –  Matt Zoller Seitz, RogerEbert.com

This big screen introduction leaves a lot to be desired as it’s wholly unclear what his motivations or powers are. – Rob Hunter, Film School Rejects

What about MODOK?

Kang is not the villain who steals the picture. That would be MODOK. – Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter

MODOK is a blast thanks in large part to Corey Stoll‘s delivery. – Rob Hunter, Film School Rejects

Stoll leans head first (no pun intended) into the sheer lunacy of playing a giant floating head designed for killing. – Meredith Loftus, Next Best Picture

The character is great and the liberties taken with the comics to incorporate him into the MCU are fitting, but the visual effects on his face should have used more work. – Matt Rodriguez, Shakefire

A complete waste of a notable Marvel villain, and just one example of when Loveness goes for that instant, cheap gag instead of doing something more valuable. Even fans who’ve stood by this series through thick and thin will have their patience tested here. – Andrew J. Salazar, Geeks of Color

Who else in the cast does a great job?

She brings an infectious energy to her role as Janet van Dyne and more or less carries the film until Kang’s introduction. She excels in every facet of the film, from the action and romance to the comedy and drama, she’s just fantastic. – Rohan Patel, ComicBookMovie.com

Pfeiffer (rightfully) gets to stand out, showcasing many complex qualities of comic-accurate Janet Van Dyne in spite of the dire circumstances she has endured. – Jenna Anderson, ComicBook.com

Pfeiffer is terrific in her expanded role, given the opportunity to be a badass heroine and making the most of it. – Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter

Pfeiffer rises above the fray, giving a performance with pathos. –  Courtney Howard, Fresh Fiction

Pfeiffer really shines when she shares the screen with Jonathan Majors. – Meredith Loftus, Next Best Picture

Are there any other issues with the movie?

There’s a lot of ground to cover and sometimes the film can move at an ant’s pace. –  Matt Rodriguez, Shakefire

Whereas other recent Marvel films had moved on from the Joss Whedon-style witticisms, Quantumania’ s comedy seems to be stuck squarely in 2013, except that the jokes are delivered by dead-eyed actors tired of working opposite a blue screen. – Hoai-Tran Bui, Inverse

None of the characters have arcs to speak of, unless you count Scott Lang making a bit more of an effort to be a better father (which isn’t really much of an arc). –  Eric Eisenberg, Cinema Blend

It’s barely a movie, pulling threads together for a grander scheme of merchandizing and cross-promotion over character-based storytelling. –  Kristy Puchko, Mashable

When the first end credit tag holds more weight, potential, and thrills than the entire two hours that came before it, there’s a massive problem. – Courtney Howard, Fresh Fiction

(Photo by Jay Maidment/©Marvel Studios)

Is it a good enough time at the movies anyway?

Is it a must-see? No—the middle hour is fun in that patented easygoing Ant-Man way… The film’s low-stress, low-stakes attitude saves it. – Matt Zoller Seitz, RogerEbert.com

It offers too much sensational spectacle, melodrama, and high-stakes sci-fi adventure ever to bore its audience. – Peter Canavese, Groucho Reviews

There’s just enough of Marvel magic to cover up some of the film’s bigger issues. –  Germain Lussier, io9.com

Quantumania is worth watching even just for Kang. – Ron Seoul-Oh, POC Culture

If you’re going to see this, try to see it in a real IMAX theater with a 75-foot-tall screen. – Peter Canavese, Groucho Reviews

I definitely recommend checking it out, especially in IMAX as the visuals feel like a perfect fit for that format. – Collier Jennings, But Why Tho? A Geek Community

Will it make us excited for the next chapter of the MCU?

After a mediocre Phase 4, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania has me once again excited at the future prospects of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. – Matt Rodriguez, Shakefire

The actions made in this movie will have massive implications for what lies ahead in the MCU, and for the first time in a while, it’s once again exciting to see what Kevin Feige has in store for us. – Meredith Loftus, Next Best Picture

Is this an extraordinary and a huge banger to kick off Phase 5? No. Is it a nice warm-up of things to come to as things heat up later down the pipeline? Yes. –  Jamie Broadnax, Black Girl Nerds

It raises some serious concerns about what’s on the way from the MCU in the months and years to come. – Eric Eisenberg, Cinema Blend

Phase 5 is off to a questionable start as Marvel Studios and Kevin Feige’s methods are proving to wear thin. – Andrew J. Salazar, Geeks of Color

If this is what Phase 5 looks like, God save us from Phases 6, 7 and 8. – Owen Gleiberman, Variety

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania opens in theaters everywhere on February 17, 2023.

Thumbnail image by Jay Maidment/©Marvel Studios

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‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’ Review: Paul Rudd’s Bug Superhero Goes Full Marvel

The third "Ant-Man" film is a piece of Quantum Realm psychedelia that's at once fun and numbing.

By Owen Gleiberman

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Now, though, with “ Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania ,” the “Ant-Man” series has gone Full Marvel. The new movie takes place almost entirely in the Quantum Realm, a mutating sub-atomic sphere that exists outside our space-time continuum. It’s essentially an anything-goes FX playground that resembles a psychedelic album cover crossed with a 21st-century update of “Fantastic Voyage” (lots of things that look like corpuscles). What it feels like, most directly, is a planet from one of the later “Star Wars” films, with a few old-school Cantina vibes. (You could make a case that the George Lucas prequels represented the takeover of “Star Wars” by the Cantina.)

Popular on Variety

Reed, at the same time, is out to conjure the deadly gravitas of an “Avengers” epic. Vast populations, whole strands of the multiverse, are at stake. Yet since “Quantumania” claims to be a film about the manipulation of matter, we should probably ask: With everything going on in this movie, does any of it actually matter?

Yes and no. “Quantumania” is a state-of-the-art exercise in world-building, and in the neverending fantasy world (namely, ours) that was built by J.R.R. Tolkien and Dungeons & Dragons and “Star Wars” and “Harry Potter” and sandbox video games and Lego assembly kits that can number 10,000 pieces, it’s worth noting how axiomatic it is that when people today use the phrase “world-building,” they mean it as a high compliment. Another world! Another fun place for us to play in!

“Quantumania” is fun, as well as bedazzling, relentless and numbing, then fun again just when you think you’ve had enough; all of that gets mashed together. The Marvel films have never pretended to be stand-alone entities, yet I’ve rarely encountered a Marvel adventure that’s this busy with a do-or-die saving-the-cosmos plot that feels this much like it exists simply to set up the next dozen chapters of something. But that’s what happens when you’re launching Phase 5 of the Marvel takeover of movie entertainment. “Quantumania” is no cheat (it sucks you in, hooks your eyeballs, wrings you out), but if this is what Phase 5 looks like, God save us from Phases 6, 7 and 8.

Scott’s science-prodigy daughter, Cassie (Kathryn Newton), now a plucky young woman of 18, has built some sort of meta telescope in the basement. Within minutes, the device sucks everyone to the Quantum Realm — Scott and Cassie, along with Scott’s bug-superhero partner and paramour, Hope van Dyne ( Evangeline Lilly ), and Hope’s parents, the crusty physicist and former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) and the original Wasp, Janet van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer), who in the previous film was rescued after having spent 30 years down there. It turns out that she was doing more than passing the time watching Netflix. She was there when Kang first showed up as a stranded traveler — but, in fact, he was already an exile who’d been kicked to the Quantum Realm to halt his path of destruction. Janet blew up the core of Kang’s quantum device, which saved the multiverse. But she’s still regarded by the rebels with mistrust. And Kang hasn’t gone away; his designs have just been put on hold.

Rudd’s Scott, introduced by John Sebastian’s “Welcome Back, Kotter” theme, is presented as a complacent celebrity superhero who needs to be goosed into action. There’s a terrific scene in which he gets replicated and has to face down — and ultimately work with — a horde of his multiple selves. The scene allows Rudd to get seriously addled, which is when he’s at his best in “Quantumania.” But when Scott, now a giant version of himself, trashes Kang’s fascist metropolis like Godzilla, all I could think was: What, exactly, are the rules here? The script, by former “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” and “Rick and Morty” writer Jeff Loveness, is making up the rules as it goes along, which is why “Quantumania” whisks you through its visually zapping action without generating any real investment in it. In a way, the ultimate investment is offscreen: Will the film successfully launch Phase 5? To even wonder about the answer is to miss that the only real conqueror in “Quantumania” is the MCU.

Reviewed at AMC Lincoln Square, Feb. 6, 2023. MPA Rating: PG-13. Running time: 123 MIN.

• Production: A Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures release of a Marvel Studios production. Producers: Kevin Feige, Stephen Broussard. Executive producers: Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Kevin de la Noy.
• Crew: Director: Peyton Reed. Screenplay: Jeff Loveness. Camera: Bill Pope. Editors: Adam Gerstel, Laura Jennings. Music: Christophe Beck.
• With: Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Jonathan Majors, Michelle Pfeiffer, Michael Douglas, Bill Murray, Kathryn Newton, Corey Stoll, William Jackson Harper, Katy O’Brian.

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‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’ Review: Splat

The latest installment in the Marvel franchise never takes flight despite its hard-working cast, led by Paul Rudd and a new villain played by Jonathan Majors.

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By Manohla Dargis

Busy, noisy and thoroughly uninspired, “Ant Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” is the latest, though doubtless not the last, installment in a Marvel franchise that took unsteady flight in 2015. Simply titled “ Ant-Man ,” that first movie was two hours of nonsense and branding, and disappointing enough to suggest that the character would be more farm-team material than A-lister. Given Marvel’s own superpowers, though, the movie turned out to be a hit, ensuring that the buggy guy would dart around for a while. Three years later, the agreeably buoyant sequel “ Ant-Man and the Wasp ” followed, and was an even greater success.

“Quantumania” will most likely vacuum up yet more cash, partly because there’s not much else shiny and new in theaters now, never mind that this movie isn’t especially new or shiny. A hash of recycled ideas and schtick, it borrows from Frank Herbert’s “Dune,” the “Star Wars” cycle and Marvel’s own annals and largely serves as a launching pad for a new villain, Kang (Jonathan Majors). Once again, after some perfunctory table-setting, Ant-Man a.k.a. Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) and his brainiac romantic partner, Hope Van Dyne a.k.a. the Wasp (Evangeline Lilly), suit up, flying high and zipping low to save their family and the world amid quips, the usual obstacles and household drama. (Kathryn Newton plays the Ant kid.)

Directed by Peyton Reed from Jeff Loveness’s barely-there script (the first movies each had multiple writers), “Quantumania” bops along innocuously at first, buoyed by the charm and professionalism of its performers and by your narrative expectations. Something is going to happen. After some jokey blather and reintroductions (hello again, Michael Douglas), it does, and once again Ant-Man et al. are sucked into the so-called Quantum Realm, a woo-woo alternative universe filled with swirls of color and looming threats. It’s there that Hope’s mother, Janet (Michelle Pfeiffer), as you’re laboriously reminded, spent many enigmatic years and where, after the some narrative delay, the mysteries of that adventure are revealed.

The Realm features darkly ominous hues, fractal shapes, biomorphic organisms, streams of fire and strange beings, including Bill Murray, as a lord, who briefly drifts in on the vapors of his celebrity and flirts with Pfeiffer before drifting out to cash his paycheck. Murray notwithstanding, there are enough attractions to keep your eyes engaged, and the creature design is fairly witty. It isn’t pretty; the palette runs toward dun and dull red with slashes of marine blue. But it is diverting to see how movies realize alternative realities, and at least some of the C.G.I. wizards here — who do yeoman’s work in movies like “Quantumania” — seem to have spent time studying the deep-space images captured by the Hubble Telescope.

As is too often the case in the franchise realm, far less attention has been paid to the story. None of what transpires is surprising, which puts the burden on the actors. Rudd is fine. A professional cutie-pie, he is a reliably anodyne presence, a human warm blanket. Good-looking but not dangerously so, he has easy charm and a signature crinkly smile that telegraphs that he isn’t worried, so you shouldn’t be, either. Mostly, he excels at playing a durable Hollywood type — the ordinary guy who proves extraordinary — a character that flatters half the audience and will never go out of style as long as men run Hollywood.

Pfeiffer, Majors and Douglas (as Hope’s equally big-brained dad) are the truer stars of this show, and each brings something valuable to the mix. (Lilly’s character now feels like an afterthought.) For the most part, Majors strikes important poses while glowering imperiously. But he brings some complicated, wounded intensity to his role, and while his sotto-voce delivery sometimes edges into near-parodic Shakespearean overstatement, he effortlessly holds your attention, as do the sublimely chill Douglas and Pfeiffer. Douglas has even less to work with than Pfeiffer, who turns out to be the movie’s M.V.P., but they’re both wonderful to watch even when doing nothing much at all, which of course is its own kind of superpower.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania Rated PG-13 for comic-book violence. Running time: 2 hours 5 minutes. In theaters.

An earlier version of this article misstated the given name of the movie’s writer. He is Jeff Loveness, not Scott.

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Manohla Dargis has been the co-chief film critic of The Times since 2004. She started writing about movies professionally in 1987 while earning her M.A. in cinema studies at New York University, and her work has been anthologized in several books. More about Manohla Dargis

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‘ant-man and the wasp: quantumania’ review: threequel goes big, busy and sci-fi heavy, with pros and cons.

Paul Rudd and Evangeline Lilly reprise their roles as the titular characters in this latest Marvel offering, with Jonathan Majors playing a genuinely scary villain.

By Frank Scheck

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Ant-Man and the Wasp may have the ability to get really small, but Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania goes really big.

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Mileage will vary in terms of fan reactions; personally, I enjoyed the previous comically inclined Ant-Man movies as refreshing palate cleansers from the overblown histrionics of the Avengers films. It helped, of course, that the title character is played by Paul Rudd , an actor so endearing and naturally funny (not to mention apparently ageless) that watching him play a superhero feels like sharing a joke with an old friend.

Although this film features some laughs — many of them revolving around the visually hilarious, homicidal organism MODOK (more on that later) — humor is generally in shorter supply. Which is probably appropriate for a film featuring one of Marvel’s scariest-ever villains in the form of Kang the Conqueror (a truly fearsome Jonathan Majors , instantly establishing a career annuity) and a potential cataclysm involving … actually, I don’t know what, to be honest. I just know that it’s really, really, bad, and that between the Multiverse and the Quantum Realm, you practically need an advanced physics degree to figure out what the hell is going on in Marvel films these days.

The extended family’s contentment is soon shattered when they all get accidentally sucked into the Quantum Realm as a result of unfortunate scientific tinkering by Cassie, who is obviously following in her father’s footsteps. While there, Janet gets reunited with some old friends, including the smarmy but menacing Lord Krylar (Bill Murray, doing the Bill Murray thing), with whom she apparently had some sort of fling, much to Hank’s consternation. Janet also has a history with Kang, whom she previously prevented from escaping the Realm and who really wants to get out now. Because, how else is he eventually going to go up against the Avengers?

For better or worse, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is the most overtly sci-fi film in the series, and on that level, it succeeds very well. To ascribe credit for the Quantum Realm’s onscreen depiction would basically involve reprinting dozens of pages of credits, but suffice it to say that the visual design of the multi-faceted settings, imaginative costumes and outrageous creatures on display is truly outstanding on every level. A stunning climactic battle, involving a “probability storm” (don’t ask) that results in multitudes of Ant-Mans who at first don’t get along but eventually learn to collaborate for their survival, is the sort of mind-blowing sequence that you don’t even need consciousness-altering substances to appreciate.   

It’s frustrating to see the main characters separated into various groups for long stretches of the film, but Lilly’s Wasp has plenty of moments to shine and Douglas seems to be thoroughly enjoying playing bemused — as when Hank accurately observes about one particularly odd Quantum Realm creature, “Holy shit, that guy looks like broccoli!” (It’s not a line to rival Gordan Gekko’s “Greed, for lack of a better word, is good,” but it’s pretty funny.) And Pfeiffer is terrific in her expanded role, given the opportunity to be a badass heroine and making the most of it.

But it’s Majors who brings real gravitas to the proceedings. While it’s not surprising that the actor’s imposing physicality perfectly suits his iconic villainous character, he also invests his performance with such an arrestingly quiet stillness and ambivalence that you’re on edge every moment he’s onscreen.

Still, he’s not the villain who steals the picture. That would be MODOK, Kang’s “Mechanized Organism Designed Only for Killing,” who looks like a giant head in a tiny body and is played by a former Ant-Man actor not listed in the film’s credits. The other characters’ reactions upon first encountering the bizarre creature are priceless, and so is the saying inspired by him, which ultimately serves as the film’s unofficial motto: “It’s never too late to stop being a dick.” Which, for Marvel, is as profound as it gets.

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Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania Reviews

An essential film to understand the future of the MCU. [Full review in Spanish]

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/5 | Oct 26, 2023

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is a film that also manages to balance VFX spectacle and groundedness in its third act. And although the conclusion feels slightly rushed, the ending is better than that of many MCU films we’ve seen lately.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Sep 7, 2023

It may feel like the director ordered a truckload of kitchen sinks to throw into this chaotic, complicated-yet-dumb, serious-yet-silly, imperfect extravaganza, but he still manages to serve up an astonishing tale.

Full Review | Aug 23, 2023

While I still like the film overall. Every MCU movie now just becoming setup for the next is making characters like Ant-Man lose some of their charm.

Full Review | Aug 16, 2023

the two-dimensional supporting characters and bloated, derivative universe-building feel like pink filler for too long before flashbacks reveal Janet and Kang’s time together and give us some pique of interest.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/4 | Aug 16, 2023

The errors are easy to miss because the script and all of the acting performances are drenched in a goop of CGI characters that obliterate everything in their path.

Full Review | Original Score: D | Aug 9, 2023

Excessive, repetitive, unnecessary dialogue driven by exposition, along with a lack of stronger tonal balance and an underdeveloped narrative devoid of true stakes - character arcs are almost non-existent - make this an overall very inconsistent watch.

Full Review | Original Score: C | Jul 25, 2023

This is yet another Marvel movie where the tired trope makes its way into driving the plot: A character does something foolish which creates havoc for their world while most of the original cast is separated from one another the bulk of the time.

Full Review | Jul 25, 2023

For most of its run-time, it feels like a filler episode of an anime, with only its climax operating as a narrative “threshold”.

Full Review | Original Score: F | Jul 25, 2023

Ant Man And The Wasp Quantumania The film’s first act kicks off as a badass Star Wars Adventure BUT slowly tires out towards the middle. Fun? Absolutely! Exposition heavy? Yes! A mixed bag overall

Marvel isn’t in the business of telling stories. They are in the business of selling action figures. That’s why you have so many characters wearing brand-new but hideous-looking costumes frolicking around to pad the runtime.

Full Review | Original Score: 1/5 | Jul 23, 2023

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is a good time.

Full Review | Jul 20, 2023

This movie looks bad.

Full Review | Jul 12, 2023

Everything about it is phony and flat from the start, visually unappealing and narratively aimless.

Full Review | Original Score: 1.5/4 | Jul 5, 2023

The supposedly limitless storytelling device has been pushed to its narrative limits. Just look to Quantumania for proof.

Full Review | Jun 27, 2023

Jonathan Majors as Kang the Conqueror is almost the only great thing about this quasi-animated film that was supposed to bring life to a most expected quantum realm. [Full review in Spanish]

Full Review | Original Score: 5/10 | Jun 24, 2023

Creative world building and a compelling villain performance from Jonathan Majors helps 'Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania' deliver as a solid superhero movie.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Jun 16, 2023

Like it or not, this is the ouroboros the Marvel Cinematic Universe has become. Kang's backstory may be a little more convoluted than Thanos's, but in the end he also just wants to "burn the broken worlds" to create a better one.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | Jun 2, 2023

The Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Phase Ho-Hum ended with the release of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, and Phase Shoulder Shrug kicks off with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/4 | May 31, 2023

This feels like a "stepping stone" film that came off like a "Star Wars" rip-off. This didn't move the needle for the MCU or these characters.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | May 28, 2023

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This Is a Cry for Help

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is an atrocious movie, but it’s atrocious in a way that Marvel movies rarely are. Up until now, the films of the MCU have for the most part managed to strike up a decent blend of sentiment, jokey humor, and superhero derring-do. When they succeed, it’s because most of these elements are firing at full blast. When they fail, it’s usually because they pushed too hard in one direction or another — the movies are either too sentimental, or comic, or cluttered with unimpressive action scenes. I’ve loved and hated my share of these films (and, as a parent, I’ve had to see just about all of them multiple times), but I’ve never been quite so stupefied by one the way I was by Quantumania .

Save for a relatively brief, breezy opening section set in the Marvel present, where Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) has written a memoir about his eventful life as Ant-Man and his experiences saving the world in the wake of the Thanos Snap and the ensuing battles, the vast majority of Quantumania takes place in the Quantum Realm, that deadly microworld that you fall into if you shrink so much that you find yourself slipping between subatomic particles. As you may remember, Janet Van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer) was rescued from that land in the previous Ant-Man film. Now, she reveals that she wasn’t alone down there — that a whole universe of beings exists in the Quantum Realm, elaborate and diverse alien tribes in seemingly constant conflict. Among them, we learn, is Kang (Jonathan Majors), an enigmatic traveler whom Janet initially befriended, thinking he was a wayward soul who had accidentally wound up in this dimension. It turned out, however, that Kang was a dangerous, imperious, all-powerful being who had been exiled to the Quantum Realm from his own world.

What does any of this have to do with Ant-Man or the Wasp (Evangeline Lilly)? Within what feels like the first 15 or so minutes of the movie, our heroes wind up getting sucked into the Quantum Realm (alongside Janet and her husband Hank Pym, played again by Michael Douglas) when Scott’s daughter Cassie (Kathryn Newton) begins sending signals into this world in an effort to map it. It all happens so quickly that I wondered if I was watching a dream sequence.

Look, I’m getting bored just typing all this up. More concerningly, it looks like the filmmakers themselves were bored putting it onscreen. When Janet told us there were people down there, she wasn’t kidding: There are rebel tribes, and smugglers, and intricate new aliens, and queasy alliances, and new spaceships, and cantinas. Maybe director Peyton Reed and his collaborators thought they were making a Star Wars movie; the protagonists’ adventures in the Quantum Realm at times look like they were meant to be a knockoff version of George Lucas’s space operas, albeit in compressed form. Or maybe they all just watched Taika Waititi’s Thor Ragnarok once.

But good luck finding any of Lucas’s earnestness or imagination, or Waititi’s irreverent prankster sensibility, here. Our heroes’ journeys through the Quantum Realm are presented in totally listless fashion, with the performances failing to convey either the wonderment or terror that the characters should presumably be feeling. Everyone just kind of wanders through this movie — through its elaborate, colorful, cluttered psychedelic-album-cover-style environments. They occasionally crack jokes or cross their arms. Nothing seems to match. If you told me that the actors had been shot before the filmmakers decided what they would be looking at or interacting with, I’d believe you.

Even Majors, a fine actor who can usually muster up intensity with seemingly little effort, doesn’t seem to know what to do with Kang. Most of his performance involves walking around and softly muttering his dialogue. You keep waiting for the menace or the grandiosity or the vengefulness to ratchet up — we’re told that Kang is a terrifying, nearly omnipotent being who needs to be prevented from ever escaping the Quantum Realm, lest he destroy the universe — but aside from a few unconvincing, late-inning battle sequences, there really doesn’t seem to be much to Kang. Yes, he can make people levitate and shoot lasers out of his hands, but really, does that feel particularly special in the Marvel world?

So the film fails on a basic, meat-and-potatoes comic-book-movie level. It doesn’t even manage to clearly explain the magic doodad (there’s always a magic doodad) our heroes have to recover this time. More importantly, it fails to make you feel anything, which is odd since part of the story involves Ant-Man’s desperate attempts to save his daughter, as ostensibly relatable and immediate a character motivation as one can imagine. But it’s all executed with such little commitment (by otherwise talented actors) that the end result is numb alienation, which is probably not a thing you’re supposed to want from a superhero flick. The action is tired, the universe unconvincing, and nobody onscreen looks like they want to be there. They don’t even look like they know where there is.

Quantumania makes you appreciate even more the achievement of something like the Avatar films. There, too, we have mostly ornate, visual-effects-created environments, but they’ve been thoroughly imagined and fully thought through; there’s a vision to them, a consistency and inner logic to go with the awe, which helps with immersion. The Quantum Realm, by contrast, looks like armies of artists and technicians just tossed in whatever struck their fancy. Maybe this patchwork quality was intentional, but as expressed onscreen, it’s a dog’s breakfast of fantasy elements.

The first Ant-Man , one of the high points of the whole Marvel cinematic project, was distinguished by its goofy humor and smaller-scale story. At a time when MCU films seemed to be leaning further toward overarching story lines and portentous mythology (all in an effort to build up to the final Avengers pictures, at least one of which was terrific), it came like a breath of fresh air. The smaller scale has all but vanished this time, but some element of the humor remains, albeit in the strangest possible way. Darren Cross (Corey Stoll), the villain of the first film, is reincarnated by Kang as MODOK, a giant, distorted, pathetic head inside a diving-bell-like contraption, with tiny, weak limbs. He looks like a Minion and Max Headroom had a baby. I won’t lie; I did laugh whenever he was onscreen. I’d probably watch a MODOK spinoff series.

But it’s hard to decide if Quantumania needs more of this kind of joke, or less. There are a few other stabs at cheeky humor, including a gelatinous creature that gets very excited at the thought of having holes. (It’s funny the first two times it eagerly says “holes,” but eventually you start to live in fear of another “holes” line.) The problem isn’t that such bits aren’t funny — they sometimes are — but that they reveal a noxious carelessness beneath the slipshod filmmaking. This is not humor designed to enhance what you’re seeing, or even to cleverly undercut it. There’s a lifeless bitterness to it all, like a dumb, nothing-matters joke you might make while working a tedious, demeaning job you can’t wait to leave. I’m sure it’ll make lots of money, but Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania might be the first time I’ve ever found myself genuinely sorry for the people who make one of these movies. It feels like a cry for help.

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Extraction 3 Gets Upbeat Progress Update From Chris Hemsworth

Todd phillips' hulk hogan biopic gets disappointing update from chris hemsworth, the one chronicles of narnia book that greta gerwig's reboot should skip over.

After an experimental Phase 4 that introduced a host of new characters, Marvel Studios is launching Phase Five of the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania . The movie has the dual tasks of not only rounding out Paul Rudd's Ant-Man trilogy that kicked off back in 2015, but setting the stage for what's to come in Phase Five, which is part of the franchise's Multiverse Saga. Thankfully, director Peyton Reed and writer Jeff Loveness are up to the task. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is a solid start to the MCU's Phase 5, working well to serve Scott Lang's story and introduce the menacing Kang.

Available To Stream On Disney+

As its name implies, Quantumania sees Scott Lang, aka Ant-Man (Rudd), get dragged into the Quantum Realm alongside his daughter Cassie (Kathryn Newton), his superhero and romantic partner Hope van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly) and her parents, Janet van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer) and Hank Pym (Michael Douglas). Once there, Janet is confronted with her past and all five are targeted by Kang the Conqueror (Jonathan Majors), a terrifying being who has laid waste to much of the Quantum Realm. Working together, the family has to figure out a way to get home without letting Kang get free of the Quantum Realm.

Related: 6 MCU Movies & Shows To Rewatch Before Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania

Quantumania is quite a different kind of Ant-Man movie. Whereas past films in the trilogy were much more grounded than other MCU movies, and often had lower stakes, Quantumania takes its characters to a very fantastical world and raises the stakes exponentially. Still, Loveness and Reed manage to make the movie feel like it fits within the Ant-Man canon, due in large part to the characters. Rudd's Scott Lang has been established and developed not only over the course of the Ant-Man trilogy, but other Avengers team-ups like Endgame and Captain America: Civil War . As such, his humor and his desire to be a good dad help to ground everything fantastical about the Quantum Realm and Scott's adventure.

This also works well as a contrast to the movie's main villain, who, other than Scott, is Quantumania's primary focus. Kang is larger than life, speaking about time in a way that feels unfathomable to a regular human like Scott, and it's this contrast with Rudd's hero that makes Majors' villain so menacing. When Rudd and Majors are onscreen together, Quantumania is truly exhilarating, showcasing exactly what makes the MCU so special — talented actors bringing to life these epic stories of good and evil. It helps that the remainder of the cast are exceptionally strong, too. Newton's Cassie gets some great moments of her own, though it's Pfeiffer's Janet who shines brightest after Rudd and Majors. Douglas also has some fantastic line deliveries that bring a lot of Ant-Man's signature humor to the film. Lilly has a lot less to do in this movie than past Ant-Man outings, but has a few moments. The scene-stealer, though, is the actor who plays M.O.D.O.K. , who's an absolute delight in Quantumania .

Overall, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania manages to successfully be both a fantastic addition to the Ant-Man trilogy — perhaps even the best of the bunch — and set the stage for what's to come in the MCU's Phase Five. Reed and Loveness accomplish this by balancing the stories of Scott Lang and Kang, making them the most important characters of the movie. While that means others get left a little by the wayside, particularly Lilly's Hope, it makes for a much stronger movie. Quantumania isn't necessarily the MCU's riskiest outing, it doesn't take many chances and instead feels like the product of a well-oiled machine, but after nearly 15 years of Marvel films, it's both fresh and familiar enough to satisfy general audiences.

As such, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is a must-see for Marvel fans, not only because it's a genuinely entertaining addition to the MCU, but because it's important to the overarching story of Phase 5 and the Multiverse Saga . That said, though there are aspects of Quantumania that are best enjoyed by those who have seen the previous Ant-Man movies, they aren't necessarily required viewing to understand this film. As with many MCU movies, Quantumania is most rewarding to those who have invested in the franchise, but is enjoyable enough even for casual viewers. Still, the real draw of the movie is Majors' Kang, who's poised to be the next major villain of the MCU and, while Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania effectively sets up the big bad, it also makes plenty of room for the little guy.

More: Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania Trailer

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania releases in theaters February 17. The film is 125 minutes long and raged PG-13 for violence/action, and language.

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Marvel Studios' Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania

February 17, 2023

Action, Adventure, Comedy

In the film, which officially kicks off phase 5 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Super-Hero partners 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 Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) and Janet Van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer), 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 was possible. Jonathan Majors joins the adventure as Kang.

Rated: PG-13 Release Date: February 17, 2023

Directed By

Produced by.

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Ant-Man And The Wasp: Quantumania Review

Ant-Man And The Wasp: Quantumania

It’s tough to make truly trippy cinema. The bold ones break through.  2001: A Space Odyssey ’s Star Gate sequence can still hurl you into an altered state at 3am. Alex Garland ’s  Annihilation , which turned people into flora, was fresh. It can even be done on the cheap, as Shane Meadows proved with  Dead Man’s Shoes ’ shuddering LSD sequence, and Ben Wheatley did with  A Field In England ’s juddering psychedelia. It’s odd, then, that Marvel, with all their resources, have made a film set in a universe where time and space are not as we know them, yet have ended up with something that that looks surreal, but feels shackled. Mind-bending it is not. But that doesn’t mean it’s not fun.

Following two frothier outings, the third Ant-Man film takes Earth’s tiniest hero to bigger places. Time/space jumper Scott Lang ( Paul Rudd ) is living his best life, and the first few minutes of  Quantumania  set up potentially meaty material. Scott’s daughter Cassie ( Kathryn Newton ) challenges his chill — while she fights for causes she believes in, he’s just being happy and famous. She’s young and idealistic, full of vim and vigour, which may be important later (spoiler: it will). Meanwhile, Janet Van Dyne ( Michelle Pfeiffer ), having been rescued from decades stuck in the Quantum Realm, is harbouring secrets about what went on down there (spoiler: a lot). But before any one of them can really get into any of it, the quantum shit hits the quantum fan, and they’re all transported to crazy-land.

In trying to compete with the more seismic MCU films — in going big — this franchise loses some of its charm.

At its best,  Quantumania  plays out like an episode of 1960s  Star Trek , those hefty themes and more — idealism, abandonment, morality, identity — explored within the context of a wild universe inhabited by wackadoodle aliens. It’s scripted by sometime  Rick And Morty  writer Jeff Loveness, which is clear via the more surreal highlights — the creature curious about human holes; the walking, talking broccoli; the take on Marvel Comics legend MODOK, an utterly ridiculous killing machine, the film gleefully leaning into his silliness.

The madness, though, feels somehow restrained. There are imaginative set-pieces, notably a bit where Scott encounters endless versions of himself, but they feel like lesser versions of things we’ve seen before — in  The Matrix , say, or, even in the MCU itself (nothing here matches the invention of  Doctor Strange ’s trippier sequences). And throughout, you can practically smell the green-screen — as good as the CGI is, there’s just so much of it. This film makes the  Star Wars  prequels seem subtle, and what is there never feels quite freaky enough, especially as it lurches towards an all-too conventional climax.

The edge is missing across the board. Considering this is the first MCU film to introduce the new Big Bad for the foreseeable, the motivations for Jonathan Majors ’ timeline-controlling, world-vanquishing Kang The Conqueror seem somewhat nebulous. And despite the story presenting huge consequences, it all feels peculiarly inconsequential, more interested in paving the way for what comes next. In trying to compete with the more seismic MCU films — in going big — this franchise loses some of its charm. Ant-Man is better small.

And yet… Majors is an enthralling watch. His Kang — or at least, this particular variant — is furtive and odd, a world, a history behind his eyes. Kang is formidable and intimidating, but Majors imbues him with inherent eccentricity, captivatingly so, making the multiversal villain multi-dimensional. The best scenes are not the ones populated by bizarro creatures, but the ones involving Majors and Pfeiffer just talking, thrashing out their complex history. A sizeable chunk of the film is just that, and it’s tense, chewy stuff, proper back-to-basics human interaction.

If it’s a shame the rest of the film is lacking that, there is at least enough of it to hang on to, and enough goofiness to have a laugh with, including some pretty cool ant shenanigans.  Quantumania  might be more lightweight than it thinks it is, but it’s got a few surprises up its sleeve, drawing on decades of the comic’s nuttier ideas. The MODOK merch is coming.

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Ant-man and the wasp: quantumania, common sense media reviewers.

MCU threequel falls short on humor; violence, language.

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Promotes forgiveness, redemption, teamwork, and "l

Scott/Ant-Man, Hank, Janet, and Hope are all brave

The main human and humanoid characters are mostly

Typical superhero/Marvel movie violence, with seve

Scott and Hope kiss and embrace, as do Hank and Ja

Several uses of "holy s--t," plus "d--k," "damn,"

Baskin-Robbins ice cream plays a prominent role as

A long sequence takes place in a quantum realm tav

Parents need to know that Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is the Marvel Cinematic Universe's third stand-alone Ant-Man movie. It follows Ant-Man/Scott (Paul Rudd) and the Wasp/Hope (Evangeline Lilly) as they face a new adventure in the dangerous quantum realm with Hank (Michael Douglas), Janet (Michelle…

Positive Messages

Promotes forgiveness, redemption, teamwork, and "looking out for the little guy." Encourages selflessness and helping others (including strangers), even if that means putting yourself at risk. Flawed characters are given the opportunity to redeem themselves for past mistakes. As with most superhero movies, courage, trust, and working toward a common goal are valued.

Positive Role Models

Scott/Ant-Man, Hank, Janet, and Hope are all brave, smart, capable, selfless. Characters with flawed/uneven pasts redeem their previous mistakes. Scott's daughter, Cassie, is clever, curious, brave. She wants to help communicate with, rescue, and fight alongside all sorts of underdogs throughout the quantum realm.

Diverse Representations

The main human and humanoid characters are mostly White. Powerful antagonist Kang (Jonathan Majors) is Black. Background characters are from unspecified alien cultures. Women are strong, brave, good fighters, intelligent, and just as likely to save the day as the brave and capable men.

Did we miss something on diversity? Suggest an update.

Violence & Scariness

Typical superhero/Marvel movie violence, with several fight sequences and battles, both between groups and one-on-one. It's revealed ( spoiler ) that the villain of the story, Kang, is a world destroyer who has committed genocide. Unlike previous villains (including Thanos), he has no real attachments and seems content to kill whole armies, timelines, and universes of beings. Many background characters are killed while fighting Kang and his minions; he seems able to disintegrate them. M.O.D.O.K. is a literal killing machine. A climactic fight leaves Scott bloodied, bruised, and near death.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

Scott and Hope kiss and embrace, as do Hank and Janet. A character makes suggestive jokes about how wild his time with Janet was during the 30 years she was stuck in the quantum realm. A woman warrior is scantily clad. A character expresses interest in Hope.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Several uses of "holy s--t," plus "d--k," "damn," "God" (exclamatory), "ass," "a--hole." Conversation about how many "holes" human bodies have.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Products & Purchases

Baskin-Robbins ice cream plays a prominent role as Scott's former place of employment. The uniform, the store, and the ice cream (particularly an ice cream cake) all feature in the movie. All Marvel movies have tons of tie-in merchandise, apparel, games, and more.

Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

A long sequence takes place in a quantum realm tavern, where alien creatures and humans drink mind-altering drinks, including a cocktail that translates what everyone is saying around them. Adults drink at meal, and Hank asks a bartender what he has that will help get him drunk.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is the Marvel Cinematic Universe's third stand-alone Ant-Man movie. It follows Ant-Man/Scott ( Paul Rudd ) and the Wasp/Hope ( Evangeline Lilly ) as they face a new adventure in the dangerous quantum realm with Hank ( Michael Douglas ), Janet ( Michelle Pfeiffer ), and now-teenaged Cassie (Kathryn Newton). There they encounter a supervillain who's even more mysterious and powerful than Thanos: time-traveling Kang the Conqueror ( Jonathan Majors ). Expect typical MCU/superhero movie violence: There's a combination of bloody one-on-one fights and large-scale, war-like battles. Many background characters die, are injured, or narrowly escape death. Two couples occasionally embrace and kiss briefly, and there's a bit of suggestive humor courtesy of secondary characters who discuss bodily "holes" and how "wild" someone was earlier in their life. Strong language isn't frequent but includes "s--t," "ass," "d--k," and "damn." Characters drink and make references to getting drunk. Like the other Ant-Man movies, this one focuses on themes of redemption and the importance of communication, courage, empathy, and teamwork. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

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Community Reviews

• Parents say (18)
• Kids say (47)

Based on 18 parent reviews

What's the Story?

ANT-MAN AND THE WASP: QUANTUMANIA begins with the theme from Welcome Back, Kotter playing as Scott Lang ( Paul Rudd ) explains how great life is now that Thanos has been thwarted and he's recognized around San Francisco as an Avenger (although he's occasionally misidentified as Spider-Man). He's even written a biography called Look Out for the Little Guy and enjoys family dinners with his now 18-year-old daughter, Cassie (Kathryn Newton), who's a budding activist; partner Hope ( Evangeline Lilly ); and her parents. But when Cassie's science experiment with "Grandpa Hank" ( Michael Douglas ) goes unexpectedly, the entire crew is sucked back into the quantum realm -- the very place Scott and Hope rescued her mother, Janet ( Michelle Pfeiffer ), from after she'd been stuck there 30 years. They find out rather quickly that Janet had kept some important details about her three decades in the quantum realm a secret. There's an entire universe of Star Wars- meets- Guardians of the Galaxy -style creatures and worlds down there, and they're all quaking in fear of the movie's tyrannical, genocidal Big Bad, Kang the Conqueror ( Jonathan Majors ). He has a plan to escape the quantum realm and get revenge -- and he needs Pym particles to do it.

Is It Any Good?

This serviceable third installment strips the Ant-Man franchise of its best qualities in order to promote yet another seemingly indestructible MCU villain. Rudd is so charming that the movie's opening segment in San Francisco will garner laughs and reminders of how Ant-Man, like Hawkeye, is one of the humblest Avengers: a flawed guy who's never been afraid of doing shady stuff to get things done with his crew of misfit (and hilarious) friends. But all of Scott's comic relief X-Con Security pals are gone without explanation (Michael Peña's scene-stealing Luis is especially missed), and all that's left is Scott, Hope, Cassie, and the Pyms. Perhaps because Cassie is basically a brand-new character here (since she was a tween in the last movie), there's less feeling between her and Scott than there was before. She's also simultaneously self-righteous and naive, making her both sweet and unlikable.

The quantum realm is a creature fest, with so many beings that it's hard to get a hold on who's from where. Of course, none of it really matters, because the star of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania isn't Ant-Man, the Wasp, or their loved ones. It's the villain, played by the excellent Majors with a solemn gravitas that's usually reserved for DC characters. The time-jumping Kang's backstory isn't deeply explored (there must be more to come in the next film, one imagines), but he's definitely a Big Bad. Kang is a supervillain with no complicated familial or romantic attachments -- just an unquenchable thirst for revenge, even if wiping out entire planets and timelines is what he needs to do to sate that desire. Since Janet is partially to blame for Kang's genocidal antics (in the quantum realm, at least), she's on a redemption tour, while Scott tries to keep Cassie free from harm. Is it worth watching this to keep up with the MCU? Sure. It's hard not to root for the "little guy." But this movie is "just fine" instead of particularly funny, thrilling, or memorable. And in the MCU world, that means it's second (or third) tier.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about the violence in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania . How does it compare to that of other MCU movies? Is the i mpact of close-up, weapons-based combat different from that of wide-scale destruction and death?

Discuss the differences between Kang the Conqueror and other MCU villains. Why do you think he's so much more serious than many of the other antagonists?

Who are the movie's role models , and what character strengths do they display? What are the movie's messages about teamwork and courage ?

Michael Peña's lovable side character is missing from this installment of the series. Did you miss him? Was the lack of his humor filled by the presence of other minor characters?

Movie Details

• In theaters : February 17, 2023
• On DVD or streaming : May 16, 2023
• Cast : Paul Rudd , Evangeline Lilly , Jonathan Majors , Michael Douglas , Michelle Pfeiffer
• Director : Peyton Reed
• Inclusion Information : Female actors, Black actors
• Studio : Disney/Marvel
• Genre : Action/Adventure
• Topics : Superheroes
• Character Strengths : Courage , Teamwork
• Run time : 125 minutes
• MPAA rating : PG-13
• MPAA explanation : violence/action, and language
• Last updated : June 17, 2023

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

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Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania review: more weird, less heart

“Big in its ambition and scope, but stretched too thin, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is an entertaining, middle-tier entry in the MCU.”

• Expands the MCU in big ways
• Lots of humor that lands well
• Jonathan Majors is captivating
• Story and cast spread too thin at times
• Emotional beats fall flat
• Supporting cast feels underused

From Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness  to Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania , Marvel Studios is squeezing a lot into its movie titles lately. It’s a trend that’s a headache for anyone professionally obligated to write about these films on a regular basis, certainly, but it makes sense as the studio attempts to expand its cinematic universe with each film.

Small heroes face a big threat

Marvel gets weird, what works well in quantumania, quantum entanglement, ant-man and the wasp: quantumania is good enough.

Title complaints aside, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania opens up another new, wonderfully weird avenue for adventures in the MCU, but the film’s ambition occasionally outpaces an otherwise fun cast and the intriguing concepts it teases.

Directed by Peyton Reed from a script by Jeff Loveness, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania brings back most of the core Ant-Man franchise cast for a story that sends the whole group of size-changing, insect-themed heroes into a weird, subatomic universe to battle a powerful villain attempting to escape exile.

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Paul Rudd returns as the titular Ant-Man, Scott Lang, alongside Evangeline Lilly as scientist Hope van Dyne, aka the Wasp. They’re joined by Michael Douglas and Michelle Pfeiffer as Hank Pym and Janet van Dyne, respectively, the original Ant-Man and Wasp, as well as Kathryn Newton ( Freaky ) as Cassie Lang, Scott’s daughter.

Quantumania pits the returning Ant-Man heroes against Kang, a time- and space-traveling conqueror played by Jonathan Majors ( Lovecraft Country ). The character is an alternate version of the character Majors portrayed in Marvel’s Loki series — dubbed “He Who Remains” — and one of many variants of the character he’s expected to play across multiple, upcoming Marvel films.

What  Quantumania might lack in cohesive story, it makes up for with sheer scope.

Like the aforementioned  Multiverse of Madness , as well as Spider-Man: No Way Home  and the last few Thor films,  Quantumania feels like a broad, universe-expanding chapter of the MCU, introducing a new, narrative sandbox for Marvel’s characters to play in. Where Multiverse of Madness and  No Way Home opened the door to alternate dimensions and Thor extended the cosmic reach of the MCU, Quantumania goes in the opposite direction by going small with the Quantum Realm, a microscopic universe that exists beyond the typical limits of our perception.

Marvel and Reed populate the Quantum Realm with a colorful assembly of weird, surreal creatures and landscapes, from sentient buildings and talking broccoli to massive, amoeba-like entities that inhabitants ride around various regions that range from broad deserts and lush, neon-hued jungles to crowded, sci-fi cityscapes. It’s the most trippy environment we’ve seen so far in the MCU — which is saying a lot, given how strange Multiverse of Madness was willing to get — and blends the bright, comic-book palette of Marvel’s movieverse with the bizarre, physics-defying weirdness of an Alejandro Jodorowsky fever dream.

No matter how weird things get, though, the cast of  Quantumania seems comfortable with the roles they play in the adventure.

Douglas and Pfeiffer are as reliably entertaining as ever, even amid the green-screen spectacle of it all, and have a great chemistry with each other and the rest of the cast. Their roles play to their strengths, and the same can be said of the parts Rudd, Lilly, and Newton play in the film. The Ant-Man family  feels like a family, and  Quantumania establishes them as the sort of close-knit superhero team Marvel fans typically associate with the Fantastic Four, as they share a bond that goes beyond being mere teammates.

Rudd delivers the sort of charming, never-too-serious performance audiences have come to expect from his MCU character (and most of his roles), and even in a cast filled with A-listers, he’s the most entertaining element of any scene he’s in. Marvel has smartly turned Ant-Man into an average Joe hero, and Rudd is the perfect actor to convey the character’s wide-eyed view of a world filled with larger-than-life heroes and villains.

On the flip side, Majors is just as perfectly cast as the sinister Kang, whose quietly calm, methodical approach to his sinister ambitions makes him exponentially more scary, while also making the rare moments when he does let loose feel truly terrifying. Kang is a cold-blooded conqueror in the MCU, and Majors finds just the right balance in his performance to sell his devastating potential — even in a world protected by Thor, Doctor Strange, and Hulk.

Still, there’s plenty about Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania that doesn’t come together as well as the film’s casting choices.

With so much narrative ground to cover,  Quantumania delivers some of its most interesting new characters and concepts in frustratingly small portions, teasing the audience with intriguing plot points that never pay off and fresh, fascinating characters that ultimately get left on the side of the road as the main story hurtles along without them. An underused, telepathic character played by William Jackson Harper is one of the most egregious examples of this, and it occasionally feels like  Quantumania is more interested in creating new characters than building stories around them.

That frantic pace also does a disservice to the story’s emotional beats, which never manage to strike a chord before the plot barrels along. That speedy path through the narrative works fine with the film’s snappy style of humor, but the action never pauses long enough to let the emotional toll of events set in with either the characters or the audience.

While Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania   never quite rises to the same level as the MCU’s best films to date, it still does enough to keep it out of the bottom tier of Marvel movies — which is a thoroughly entertaining batch of films regardless.

Rudd’s performance and the super-family vibe of the heroes’ adventure sets  Quantumania apart from other MCU films, and Majors’ chilling portrayal of Kang kicks the entire project up a notch. It’s neither as funny as Thor: Ragnarok (or even prior Ant-Man films), nor as epic as most of the Captain America films, but Quantumania is up there with Multiverse of Madness among the weirdest Marvel movies to date.

That’s certainly something, even if the story isn’t able to blend all that weirdness into something more coherent.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is in theaters now.

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Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023) Review

OF QUANTUM QUANDRY, QUIZZITY,

And quandorum.

The Phase IV saga of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (aka the MCU) has been an interesting road of experimentations of introductions and rebranding within this large, shared superhero universe. With the events of Avengers: Endgame definitely closing out the collectively sum of the “Infinity Saga” (from 2008’s Iron Man to 2019’s Spider-Man: Far from Home ), this new Phase saga has placed a curious spot on its main leads, with some being elevated to getting his or her own standalone project as seeing in the first of the Phase IV saga in 2021’s Black Widow . New heroes (young and experienced to old and worldly) came into light in 2021’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and Eternals respectfully. This was then follow-up by multiverse shake-up in the Spider-Man crossover event Spider-Man: No Way Home in 2021, which was then followed by descent into madness of crossing into realities with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness . After that, Thor returned to the big screen, which showcased a very much different side (and tone) for the mighty Norse God in the superhero / romantic comedy angle in Thor: Love and Thunder , while an emotional farewell to Boseman’s T’Challa and the picking up of the Black Panther mantle was found in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever , which effectively closed out this fourth saga in the MCU. Now, Marvel Studios and director Peyton Reed prepare to kick off the fifth saga in the Marvel Cinematic Universe with the third Ant-Man movie titled Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania . Does this movie kick off the MCU’s latest saga with a bang or is it just the standard “same old” superhero romp that from Marvel that lacks substance and style?

After helping undoing Thanos’s snap and aiding in the battle to rid the universe of the Mad Titan himself, life for Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) is going quite well, who’s welcoming on the praise and fame as Ant-Man and the success of being an Avenger member. Trouble does come in the form of his daughter, Cassie (Kathryn Newton), who’s been experimenting with the Pym Particles, working on a connection beacon to the Quantum Realm with the help from Hank Pym (Michael Douglas). Unfortunately, the device’s mechanics goes haywire and sucks the gang, including Janet Van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer) and her daughter, Hope (Evangeline Lilly) into the Quantum Realm, which is filled with bizarre oddities and strange society of alien creatures. For Janet, however, a return to this “otherworld” isn’t a welcome one, soon reunited with Kang the Conqueror (Jonathan Majors), a ruthless oppressor in the Quantum Realm she once partnered with and who is now on a conquest to obliterate timelines with a mystical orb of multiverse power. Facing a unimaginable threat, Scott and his family work together to overthrow Kang’s plot to destroy all worlds as well as find a way out of the Quantum Realm.

THE GOOD / THE BAD

As many know (I’ve said it many times before), I am a fan of the MCU. Not just the movies, but also I prefer the Marvel Comics than DC Comics. Not so much of heavily and enthusiastic comic book hardcore fans as some are (and there’s nothing wrong with that if you are), but I do appreciate some of the main story arcs from the comic book lore as well as several of the characters found within. Thus, the translation of such aspect from its comics source material to the big screen has always been a joy to watch, even if the films deviate and / or change some of the aspects of the comic book roots. Much like what I mentioned in my opening paragraph, the Phase IV saga of the MCU has indeed been an interesting experience, especially since the massive superhero cinematic universe has already had its juggernaut of a movie in Avengers: Endgame back in 2019; leaving behind a legacy that is hard to live up with a new saga to tell and more heroes (and villains) to uncover. As stated, this new Phase has brought its ups and downs. I personally didn’t care for much about Black Widow (only watched it one or twice), loved Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings , thought that the Eternals was very ambitious project to tell, had an absolute blast watching Spider-Man: No Way Home , felt slightly conflicted about Doctor Strange in Multiverse of Madness , was a bit a confused about the underwhelming oddity nature of Thor: Love and Thunder , and found memorable (and emotional) take on Black Panther: Wakanda Forever . I didn’t even mention about the TV series shows that the MCU had produced for the Disney+ streaming service platform, including WandaVision , Falcon and the Winter Soldier , Loki , What if….? , Hawkeye , Moon Knight , Ms. Marvel , and She-Hulk: Attorney at Law . I didn’t get a chance to see all of these shows (still want to watch Hawkeye and Moon Knight), but I did enjoy the inclusion and expansiveness that Marvel is doing with their cinematic universe, which is going beyond the feature films. In the end, regardless of what you and I personally thought of this particular phase saga, the Phase IV saga of the MCU provided to be one that showcased a different side of the Marvel superheroes, including new characters and elevating several lesser ones to more prominent positions and placed a large emphasis on new beginnings.

This brings me around to talking about Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania , the thirty-first film in the MCU and the third Ant-Man feature film set within this superhero cinematic universe. Like many, I’ve known for quite some time that a third Ant-Man was in the work, especially when Kevin Feige (the MCU’s overseer) announced a few years back of the upcoming slew of feature films, with some returning sequel projects as well as several new ones. Of course, when I saw the next Ant-Man movie on that list, I was a little bit skeptical. Naturally, the Ant-Man movies (as a whole) are meant to be the more “lighthearted” entries within the MCU by showcasing a more “street level” narrative of this large-scale world of heroes, gods, and monsters. I liked the first Ant-Man as it was fun and introduced a new character to the superhero roster. It wasn’t fantastic, but still good. Ant-Man and the Wasp , the follow-up sequel, was a little bit less than stellar and felt a more inconsequential to the grand scheme of the MCU storyline and just felt a bit underwhelming altogether. So, one can imagine that I wasn’t super excited when the third Ant-Man was greenlit. Still, I did like how most of the returning players (Rudd, Lilly, Douglas, and Pfeiffer) were coming back and that the movie was going a bit of a departure from the previous two installments. After that, I didn’t hear much about the project until the film’s first trailer dropped, which showcases that notion of a different Ant-Man movie than the past two entries, especially with the appearance of the character of Kang the Conqueror, who is set to be played by MCU newcomer actor Jonathan Majors. Plus, the “buzz” about this movie was swarming the internet, with Kevin Feige and his team stating that Quantumania was a pivotal installment in the MCU and made comparison (of its importance) to Captain America: Civil War . Thus, I was definitely intrigued to see if this movie was going to live up to the hype. I did catch the movie during its opening weekend, but I had to wait a few days after to write up my review for the feature, due to my busy work schedule. Now, I’m finally ready to share what I think of this latest superhero blockbuster endeavor.  And what did I think of it? Well, it was just okay. Despite taking a more different approach to Marvel’s “tiniest” hero with a more mature “fish out of water” story with its characters as well as having terrific villain in Majors’s Kang, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania feels a bit undercooked and underwhelming throughout a rather brisk outing. It’s a fun and serviceable entry and makes some improvements from Ant-Man and the Wasp , but it lacks the sharpness and focus of the first installment.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is directed by Peyton Reed, whose previous directorial works include the previous two Ant-Man movies as well as The Break-Up and Yes Man . Given his background and overall familiarity with the characters and how a MCU project works, Reed seems like the most suitable choice to helm the third Ant-Man feature, which proves to be quite effective in doing so. Learning from a few marks of criticism towards Ant-Man and the Wasp , Reed takes a little bit of a different approach to Quantumania’s presentation, style, and narrative. While the past installments were (as I said) more grounded than other MCU projects, and sometimes had lower stakes in comparison, Reed approaches Quantumania takes its established characters to a very strange and fantastical world and raises those said stakes to new heights. Thus, the journey in the Quantum Realm is the feature’s main “bread and butter”, with Reed taking majority of the feature’s runtime placed in this other world of bizarre oddities and strange environment. Thus, Reed sort of makes this movie evoke a sense of science fiction vibe, with a such a visual world of strangeness and unnatural beings that it makes you believe that Ant-Man (and his team) are off in outer space and could’ve possibly run into other sci-fi characters. Elements of Guardians of the Galaxy and even Star Wars sort of bleed into Quantumania’s story, especially with Kang, an all-powerful being with an iron grip on all, and ragtag team of up-starters that try to overtake him, are well-met and do offer up some familiar premise that does work and fits right at home within an Ant-Man movie, never feeling jarring or out of place.

That’s not to say that Quantumania is completely “left field” from the past Ant-Man movies project, with Reed still sticking to his past endeavor roots and interjecting humorous bits and off-kilter moments that are sprinkled throughout the feature, which is in-keeping with the style and flavor of the previous films. There are a few nuances that are left behind within the story beats and side characters that had appeared in the prior installments, but, especially since those are part of the “street level” aspects and with most of the feature taking place in the Quantum Realm, it’s kind of understandable that they had to be dropped for this movie. Plus, Reed does get a new opportunity to showcase a new arena within the MCU, with the Quantum Realm itself, which has been showcased a few times prior to this movie, but never fully explored. In Quantumania , Reed does present more of this strange and subatomic world and shows the potential in its undertaking. It’s not perfect as I’ll go into more detail on that below, but it is nice to see such a vibrant (and colorful) world of which the main characters get to explore, which is filled dangerous and perils along the way and meets some unique creatures and beings. Lastly, the film’s runtime is kept at a very balanced level (sort of), with the feature clocking in at around 124 minutes (two hours and four minutes) and never feels bloated with unnecessary details or superfluous side stories. Could the movie have been longer in some regard? I say yes for various reasons, especially in expanding upon certain aspects (more on that below), but Reed keeps the feature moving at brisk pace, which makes the film never dull or boring. In the end, while not exactly the absolute best MCU installment, Reed’s Quantumania still manages to find some fun and entertainment value throughout the Scott’s latest adventure through the Quantum Realm and encountering a formidable foe therein.

For its presentation, Quantumania fits the bill for today’s standard of both a blockbuster endeavor as well your typical MCU production, which is both a good and a bad thing…. depending on how you look at it. For the most part (in my opinion), the movie is pretty good in helping build upon the visual aspect with such vivid imagery of how the Quantum Realm looks like and the people who populated it. Again, this is where the sci-fi angle nuances come into play, with Reed and his art direction team able to go wild and crazy with such depictions. The strange, bizarre, and quite odd run amok in this movie with that otherworldly feeling, which is wrapped in such a colorful field that pops in almost every scene. Thus, the film’s “behind the scenes” team, including Will Htay (production design), Richard Roberts (set decorations), Sammy Sheldon (costume designs), and the entire art direction team, should be commended for their work on this particular MCU project, which is definitely colorful and has its own type of swagger throughout. Additionally, the cinematography work by Bill Pope helps aid in the cinematic workings of the feature, with some slick camera movement and dramatic flair to help bring some powerful scenes to life as well as bringing some unique moments through the usage of shadowing / lightning and other film wizardry. Lastly, the film’s score, which was composed by Christophe Beck, offers some good and favorable melodies and musical composition throughout the feature. None of the film’s soundtrack is not exactly the most memorable, but sometimes that’s not a bad thing, with Beck’s involvement on Quantumania still lending a hand in helping mold and build some of the cinematic quality to the feature in a way that elevates a few certain and pivotal scenes.

Unfortunately, Quantumania does have its fair share of problems throughout its cinematic journey, with several noticeable points of criticism that hold the feature back. How so? Well, perhaps the most prevalent one that easily comes to mind is the fact that the movie sort of skips around on the narrative it wants to tell and how it sort of looses focus on what it wants from its roster of heroes and villains. As stated earlier, Quantumania is quite the ambitious project to tackle as it not only does have to expand upon the Ant-Man narrative, but also plays “double duty” in trying to establish the next “big bad” in the MCU. This sort of works in the movie, but with complications, with Reed struggling to find a proper balance of characters and storytelling beats in the feature. Events and things do happen, but it’s all kind of glossed over rather quickly. That is probably the biggest complaint that I have for the movie itself as everything happens rather quickly. Yes, while I did praise the film above for being a rather “breezy” movie by keeping its runtime down a bit, it does come at the expense of explore / examining a lot of the side aspects that Quantumania has to offer within its plot. Thus, stuff about the Quantum Realm, the people that live there, Kang’s overall empire dominion, Janet’s past dealings while stranded down there as well as a few other details are kind of glossed over rather quickly in favor for a more streamlined presentation. Thus, Reed wants to make Quantumania feel like a big story with a new place / new setting, yet the substance amount that the movie projects wanes and feels emptyhanded.  This also makes several of the main characters become more secondary and get pushed aside more than others, but I’ll mention more of that below. In the end, the potential for some great world building in an place that is only been touched upon brief in this cinematic universe is there, yet Reed doesn’t allow the film (nor the script) to examine such details / substance throughout….and that’s disappointing.

The script shaping / handling itself is also to blame for that as well, which was penned by Jeff Loveness. As mentioned, Loveness has a lot to tackle in the movie, for not only Quantumania’s main storyline, but also to make for a introduction to the next “Avenger” threat in Kang. As stated, Loveness gets top marks for the part about Kang, but falters when it comes to trying to make an engaging story narrative in the film, especially since a lot is sort of only scratches the surface. Events are quite simplified in the movie and don’t really have much weight to them (as seeing in the appearance of Lord Krylar as well as several of the other new characters), which is mostly due to the film’s nature to sort of find focus in other avenues. This makes the script for the movie feel quite simplistic and almost rubbed down to the barebones at times. Plus, the dialogue itself can be a little bit wonky at times. That being said, the usual dialogue in the Ant-Man movies isn’t the most polished at times (my own personal opinion), so that’s not quite a dealbreaker for me, but it can be noticeable in a few key areas. Perhaps with a better script writer at the helm, Quantumania could’ve been a much sharper installment, especially since the film itself is trying to do something different than the previous entries.

Another point of criticism that I had with the was the visual effects used in the movie and how it kind of felt a little bit cheesy / shoddy in a few areas. Recently, Marvel project has been criticized for some underwhelming effect shots in their productions, with the graphic visual effect artist describing the “unrealistic” expectations that Marvel is placing upon them for their efforts made in their films. Quantumania sort of falls into that category, with few times the quality of the effect shots seem a little bit dated and doesn’t match the overwhelming price tag that the feature had on its production value, which is set at roughly $200 million. Not every shot is bad as the movie does offer up some great and slick visual effects that look quite well, yet those moments are marred by some blatant bad visual effect sequences. This also plays a little bit into the film’s action scenes, which are good and fun to watch, but lacks the precision and intense feeling that I was sort of expecting from a presentation like this. This includes the film’s climatic third act battle segment that felt underwhelming from the start.

Due to all of this, this also makes Quantumania feel like its talk a big game, but never really becomes the next “big thing” of the MCU. Of course, the introduction of Kang in the movie, who is to be the next larger threat in the greater story arc in the “Multiverse Saga” is well-met and makes for a solid introduction, but looking beyond that….the film just feels, more or less, a standard MCU entry….something along the lines of Thor: Love and Thunder . I know, I know….each MCU installment doesn’t exactly need to be a Captain America: Civil War or   Avengers: Endgame endeavor, but, with a lot of hype and anticipation that the studio has placed upon this particular picture, especially the marketing campaign, and not much materializes from it…and that’s kind of disappointing. Thus, Quantumania just ends up being an average superhero film (sort of good, but nothing grand).

The cast in Quantumania stacks up to be a good element in the movie and, just like other MCU installments, lets the cast of the assembled recognizable talents have fun and play around with their respective roles. Unfortunately, this comes at the expense of character development in a few of them, with some relying on the talent’s screen presence and not so much on the growth or evolvement of their said characters. Leading the charge in the movie is actor Paul Rudd, who returns to reprise his character role of Scott Lang. Rudd, who is known for his roles I Love You, Man , Forgetting Sarah Marsh all, and The 40-Year Old Virgin , continues to make his characterization of Scott Lang to be likeable and compelling at the same time. Perhaps the greatest change to his character is that Scott is a bit more of a mature superhero than previous shown in his past Ant-Man features. Yes, he is still a bit goofy and has bits of deadpan comedy angst, with Rudd playing up those strength accordingly, but there’s a sense of an seasoned superhero within the character and it clearly shows throughout Rudd’s performance. There’s a larger sense of family with his character and a large emphasis placed on his involvement in his daughter’s life. Rudd still hold his own in the role and is still quite an impactful character on the entire Ant-Man saga, which makes this more “mature” iteration of Scott Lang to be the most compelling portrayal of the character since he first appeared.

The next main character that makes quite the presence in Quantumania is the character of Cassie Lang, Scott Lang’s daughter, and who is played by actress Kathryn Newton. While actress Emma Fuhrmann played her in Avengers: Endgame , Newton, who is known for her roles in Blockers , Ben is Back , and Big Little Lies , does a pretty good job in playing a new type of iteration of Cassie Lang, a character who is now a young adult and is a bit wayward in her life. Of course, the movie’s script somewhat mirrors Cassie’s narrative to what Scott was in the first Ant-Man movie a little bit, but it definitely works for a new angle to her character, especially since she plays more of an important role in the primary plot of the feature. Thus, there is a lot more to do with Cassie in Quantumania that doesn’t really feel shoehorned into the main story, with Newton handling herself quite well in the role and shares some good chemistry with her co-stars, with special attention towards Rudd’s Scott.

Behind her, actress Michelle Pfeiffer makes a strong reappearance in the movie by reprising her character role of Janet Van Dyne, Hank’s wife / Hope’s mother who had recently returned from the Quantum Realm from the previous film. While she made her debut in the MCU with Ant and the Wasp as well as a brief cameo appearance in Avengers: Endgame , Pfeiffer, who is known for her roles in Scarface , Batman Returns , and Stardust , hasn’t really done much in Marvel’s shared cinematic universe within her representation of Janet Van Dyne. Thus, her involvement in Quantumania is actually quite a good thing as her character gets elevated (more so than some her other co-stars) and is allowed more to do within the film’s narrative. Thus, Pfeiffer has much more screen time than last go around and she is up to the task and definitely handles herself well throughout the movie.

Perhaps the disappointing characters of the returning players would be found in Dr. Hank Pym and Hope Van Dyne, who are once again played by Michael Douglas and Evangeline Lilly respectfully. Of course, both Douglas, who is known for his roles in Wall Street , Fatal Attraction , and Behind the Candelabra , and Lilly, who is known for her roles in Lost , Real Steel , and The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies , are very much capable acting talents and have intergraded beautifully into the MCU narrative within their portrayal of Hank and Hope. However, despite their importance in the past two Ant-Man projects, the script for Quantumania doesn’t have much for them to do in the movie. Of course, they are present in the feature from beginning to end, but the importance and impactful of the story being told gets sidelined drastically; finding their characters with little to no growth and that’s quite disappointing. For Douglas, who has always anchored the feature as the “seasoned” veteran actor (something that Marvel usually does with the features), feels discarded and has little to do with the movie. He’s still present and still makes for a good Dr. Hank Pym character, but Quantumania is his weakest. The same goes for Lilly’s Hope. Heck, the movie is called Ant and the Wasp: Quantumania ….and she becomes more of a minor side characters. It’s just a shame that the screen time for these two is diminished.

Of the new characters in the movie, Quantumania makes great introduction of the character Kang the Conqueror, a person who (like Janet) accidentally ended up in the Quantum Realm, yet seeks to rule over all and seeks freedom from his dimensional prison with ruthless ambitions of conquering all. Wow…that was quite a mouthful to project in such a character, who (as one can easily surmise), is to be considered the main antagonist of the character and who is played by actor Jonathan Majors. Known for his roles in Lovecraft Country , Devotion , and The Harder They Fall , Majors has sort of become recognizable actor of late, especially with this particular movie as well as his performance in Creed III. Thus, given recent rise in Hollywood, Majors makes his superhero theatrical movie film with Quantumania and makes for a terrific bad guy. While he’s sort of played the character previously in the MCU TV series Loki as a variant of Kang (i.e. He Who Remains), Majors makes his big-screen debut of the main villain character in this latest Ant-Man and a more proper iteration of how this character is set up to be. To his credit, Majors is solid throughout his acting in his performance by playing up the subtlety and steely demeanor bravado that makes up Kang and it is quite brilliant. He never overacts or becomes too much of a “broad” villain and he is purely terrifying, especially through his nuances and how he pronounced each of his words / dialogue. It’s a testament to Majors acting that makes the character quite memorable. How Kang is written into the story of Quantumania is pretty good as well as script does what needs to do by establishing the Conqueror as a sizeable threat not just only for the film itself, but also setting him up to be the next “Thanos” level threat for the MCU. In that regard, I think that the script does that well. There could’ve been more development on his backstory elements, but I’m sure that will be further explained / examined in future MCU installments (much like how Thanos was). In the end, Majors’s Kang is a strong villain in the movie and makes for a great antagonist not only just for this particular feature, but for the next several installments in this cinematic universe.

Next, the middle of the road new character in the film would be Lord Krylar, the appointed governor of the lavish Axia community in the Quantum Realm and who has history with Janet Van Dyne during her time spent in the Quantum Realm. Played by actor Bill Murray ( Ghostbusters and Groundhog Day ), the character does seem quite interesting, but ends up being just a “one-shot” character appearance ….almost like a glorified cameo sort of speak. Don’t get me wrong, Murray is up to the task and does make the scene enjoyable, yet still rings hollow and doesn’t really amount to much, which is sort of disappointing. Unfortunately, the weakest new character would have to be the appearance of M.O.D.O.K (mechanized organism designed only for killing), a famous character in the MCU comic book lore and a powerful / hunter that works under Kang’s authority. Why is he the weakest? Well, for lack of a better term, the character of M.O.D.O.K (at least his portrayal in Quantumania ) comes off as goofy. He’s not really much of sizable threat and acts more like a “punch bag” for the heroes and villains in the movie to converse with. Plus, while the idea of an oversized head character isn’t exactly bad, the visual effect for such an individual is incredibly wonky and shoddy, which makes him almost laughable in a very high profile blockbuster endeavor. Basically, M.O.D.O.K. (in the movie) reminds me of Mr. Electric in The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl …..and that’s not a good thing.

The rest of the cast, including actress Katy O’Brian ( Z Nation and Black Lightning ) as freedom fighter rebel female warrior in the Quantum Realm named Jentorra, actor William Jackson Harper ( The Good Place and Midsommar ) as a telepath reader / freedom fighter in the Quantum Realm called Quaz, and actor David Dastmalchian ( Dune and The Suicide Squad ), who played Kurt in the previous two Ant-Man movies, as the slime-like creature that lives in the Quantum Realm named Veb, are delegated to minor supporting players in the film. While the acting for these particular individuals are perfectly fine (no one is showing bad acting or anything like that), but I felt that these characters in Quantumania feels a bit undercooked. They’re quite interesting (to a certain degree) and do add a bit of humor to there scenes, but the script doesn’t allow them to make quite an impact on the feature, which results in them being rather sidelined and less memorable than intended.

Lastly, as is customary for MCU installments, Quantumania does offer two Easter Egg scenes at the end of the movie, with one mid-credits scene and the other appearing at the very end. While I won’t spoil what is shown in these two particular scenes, I can confirm that these secret ending scenes are well-founded and do pose a interesting thread of what is to come in the future of the MCU.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Stranded in the Quantum Realm by an sudden accident, Scott Lang and his family navigate the strange and bizarre landscape presented to them as they search for a way home as well as stopping the Kang’s master plan in the movie Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania . Director Peyton Reed latest film continues the storyline of Scott Lang and his clan and takes the newest adventure into the new territory, bringing something new and setting the stage for a larger plot to kick of the Phase V saga of the superhero MCU timeline. While the movie does falter in trying to elevate the stakes, which renders some of the moments a bit “surface level” as it glosses way several aspect in a brisk manner (and in few other aspects), the film does still make for an enjoyable ride within the mainstream blockbuster variety by bringing a new perspective to the Ant-Man narrative, an interesting plot premise, visual aspect directions, and some great character performances, with most notable attention on Rudd, Newton, Pfeiffer, and Majors. Personally, I thought that this movie was just okay. I was slightly disappointed with it, which was mostly due to the overhyped that the marketing campaign was for the feature and such a larger emphasis on its importance. To their credit, it sort of is an important piece in the current MCU narrative arc and probably the most ambitious Ant-Man movie of the three. Plus, the movie was still fun to be had throughout and Major’s Kang was incredibly solid (can’t wait to see what he does with the character in the future). Yet, despite that, I felt that the movie was too rushed and only glossed the surface of a lot of the film’s world building elements. Yes, the movie is quite ambitious with higher stakes, but I think I still prefer the first Ant-Man , which had a better-rounded character focus / development throughout. Thus, my recommendation for this movie would still be a “recommended” one as I’m sure fans of the Marvel (and of the superhero genre) will still like this movie, despite its imperfect flaws. Then again…. maybe an “iffy choice” for everyone else. I just think one might have to lower their expectations a bit to fully enjoy the movie. As mentioned, the movie’s conclusion paves the way for a larger setup in the grand scheme of the MCU, so I’m quite sure that isn’t the last time we’ll see Scott, Cassie, Hank, Janet, Hope, or even Kang. In the end, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is an imperfect superhero movie that skimps around a bit too much, but still manages to get some things right and provides a more understanding of the stakes in a bigger threat to come within this shared cinematic universe of heroes, gods, and monsters.

3.4 Out of 5 (Recommended / Iffy-Choice)

Released on: february 17th, 2023, reviewed on: february 23rd, 2023.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania  is 124 minutes long and is rated PG-13 for violence / action, and language

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I’m pretty curious about this one, tbh. Haven’t had a chance to check it out yet, tho

You should check it out, especially since it is somewhat of an interesting point in the MCU

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Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania review – incoherent special-effects dump

Magnetic Jonathan Majors is the saving grace of Marvel’s baffling, illogical latest outing

I t’s perhaps not entirely fair to criticise a film in which buildings have tentacles and a supporting character is made of broccoli for lacking logic. But despite a screenplay that seems to be almost entirely composed of exposition (plus the occasional laboured wisecrack), the latest Marvel outing is baffling and illogical. The Ant-man/Wasp blended family unit finds itself sucked into the Quantum realm, something that Wasp matriarch Janet (Michelle Pfeiffer) has been notably tight-lipped about since her return in the previous Ant-Man movie . It turns out that Janet has some very powerful enemies in this gaudy CGI-generated sub-atomic dimension. The film’s main asset is Jonathan Majors as Kang the Conqueror: his performance, with its velvet-soft line deliveries and unfathomable, boundless rage, is the magnetic core of this incoherent effects-dump of a movie.

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Disney Reportedly Spent A Lot More Money on Marvel's 'Ant-Man and The Wasp Quanumania' Than Originally Thought

L ast year, Disney faced several disappointments at the box office. The first for 2023 was the third Ant-Man film, “Ant-Man and the Wasp Quantumania.” Released on February 17, 2023, the film only brought in $476.1 million. While many accepted that Disney likely lost money on the film, a new report seemingly indicates that they may have lost much more than initially thought.

According to Caroline Reid from Forbes , the film’s budget was estimated by the media to be around $200 million. Still, a recent financial filing seems to indicate it was significantly higher, at $326.6 million! It seems that a financial statement was filed for the end-of-year report on December 31, 2022, which was just a few weeks ahead of the film’s release.

Where did she find the information?

Reid indicates that she found the filing by looking for the film’s code name, which she says was Pym Productions III. This makes sense as Hank Pym was Ant-Man and is responsible for the Pym particles from the film. The III would indicate a third film, hence “Ant-Man III” which is what the Quantumania film was.

She also points out that Disney seemingly collaborated on this in their report, which said, “At the year-end, the cost was forecasted to exceed the production budget.”

It is important to note that they did get a $50.6 million credit from the U.K. government for filming there. That would bring Disney’s total to about $276 million. Just to break even, the film would have needed to bring in about $550-$600 million, and it didn’t even break the lower number.

The film did not perform well with critics or audiences.

The film was also poorly reviewed. Critics have it at 46% on Rotten Tomatoes. Audiences gave it 74%—82%, depending on the “all” or “verified” scores. Many complaints pertained to the terrible and sometimes unfinished CGI in the film.

This has been attributed to changes made in the film by those in charge who did not give the VFX team enough time to finish the work.

It was so bad that after the film came out, some artists spoke out about the issues. An artist referred to as “Jim” said:

“ For Ant-Man, there were a lot of editorial changes happening toward the latter third and fourth of the project that were just too late. There’s a point of no return. Why certain things were changed, why certain notes were nitpicked longer than they should have been; That’s on Marvel. But it definitely did cause a lot of tension, turmoil, and weight on everybody. “

By summer, Marvel VFX workers had voted to unionize over the conditions.

If Reid’s report is accurate, the budget for the film was underreported, and the only way to find the actual numbers was via code names, as Disney tried to shuffle the information around. It seems it failed far worse than what was readily revealed. Marvel has a real problem. The one bright spot for 2024 is “Deadpool & Wolverine.”

For Disney’s sake, it better do incredibly well.

What do you think? Comment and let us know.

Source: Forbes

The post Disney Reportedly Spent A Lot More Money on Marvel’s ‘Ant-Man and The Wasp Quanumania’ Than Originally Thought appeared first on Pirates & Princesses .

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Movie Review – Hit Man (2023)

May 14, 2024 by Matt Rodgers

Hit Man , 2023

Directed by Richard Linklater Starring Glen Powell, Adria Arjona, Austin Amelio, Retta, Evan Holtzman, Sanjay Rao, Gralen Bryant Banks, Molly Bernard and Mike Markoff

SYNOPSIS : 

Strait-laced professor, Gary Johnson (Glen Powell), moonlights as phony hit man for the New Orleans Police Department. He excels at entrapping hapless victims, that is until he is drawn into morally dubious territory when he finds himself attracted to one of those potential criminals, a beautiful young woman named Madison (Adria Arjona).

Writer-director Richard Linklater aims to join an illustrious cabal of assassin themed comedies, that includes Grosse Point Blank and In Bruges , by targeting the funny bone against a backdrop of death and deception in his kinda-based-on-a-true-story tale, Hit Man . 

Taking a similar approach to Noah Hawley’s Fargo television series, Linklater drops us into a very ordinary looking world in order to accentuate the extraordinary truth of teacher-come-undercover investigator Gary Johnson (a name that elicits one of the film’s biggest laughs, and there are plenty of them). In fact, the entire film feels very Coen Brothers, in all the best ways, by taking a run-of-the-mill character and putting a life changing decision before them, one which goes against all of their better instincts, and which starts a chain of events that spirals gloriously out of control. 

The high hit-rate tone of the film is set from the off. Remember the team from the tactical van in True Lies who would bicker and squabble as Arnold Schwarzenegger would take down the bad guys? When he isn’t teaching, Gary (Glen Powell) is the electricals expert in a low-rent version of that. Their mission being to set-up sting operations in order to prevent the residents of New Orleans hiring hitmen to solve their issues. When Gary is reluctantly forced to step-up to the front line and pose as an assassin named Ron, he gets to act out the Jungian psychology that makes up the contents of his classroom blackboard, a job made infinitely more difficult when Madison (Adria Arjona) shows up with a brown envelope.

It’s here that a film which has already been sprinkled with its fair share of smarts and charm, largely thanks to Glen Powell’s chameleonic leading man, sparks into an inferno of sharp humour, delicious twists and the kind of sexiness not seen since Out of Sight . 

The script, adapted by Powell and Linklater from Skip Hollandsworth’s Texas Monthly article, is peppered with the kind of memorable dialogue you’d expect from a filmmaker with School of Rock and Dazed and Confused on his resume. Linklater is always good Linklater. However, as good as it is, Hit Man wouldn’t land as much as it does without the performances of the ensemble, who ensure that the off-kilter quirkiness evolves into something uproariously funny and rewarding come the triumphant final flourish. It’s a shame that this is arriving on a streaming service, because Hit Man has moments that play like gangbusters with a large crowd.

Powell is ridiculously good. Managing to balance more broad character changes than a terrible Michael Myers movie, while also creating likeable personas for both his id and ego identities.

Adria Arjona is his equal, elevating what could have manifested as a stock neo-noir femme-fatale archetype, or borderline male wish-fulfillment, into a smart, layered, scene-stealing performance. Together their chemistry is reel-burning stuff.

Special mention must go to Austin Amelio’s shit-stirring cop. The Walking Dead actor is memorably shifty as the situation’s third-wheel, and he’s consistently at the heart of some of the film’s biggest belly laughs.

The best film of its kind since The Nice Guys , Linklater’s Hit Man is smart without being smug, sparking with an electricity that hops between its superb ensemble, and is arguably funnier than almost every comedy released in 2023 combined.

Flickering Myth Rating   – Film ★ ★ ★ ★/ Movie ★ ★ ★ ★

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