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Sunday, July 26, 2015
MOVIE REVIEW
Ant-Man
Anyone Have A Canister Of Raid Handy?
Paul Rudd as
Scott and the titular character in Peyton Reed's superhero drama "Ant-Man".
Marvel Studios
by
Omar P.L. Moore/PopcornReel.com
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Sunday,
July 26,
2015
“Heroes don’t get any
bigger.” It’s the year’s best tag-line for a film but Peyton Reed’s drama
“Ant-Man” comes up super small over all. To be clear: I’ve long since
discounted the super-hero comic book genre in Hollywood films, and with the
exception of
“The Dark Knight” and
“The Avengers” I’ve lost all confidence in the notion of a “good
superhero film”. The “Spider-Man” franchise went to the dogs after Sam Raimi’s
second installment and “Green Lantern” represented the nadir.
“Ant-Man” has energy in its opening 30 minutes or so, with fine visual effects
throughout and dual father-daughter relationship stories. Dr. Hank Pym (Michael
Douglas) has a secret formula that he intends to use for a crime-fighting
mission. He freezes out June, his daughter (Evangeline Lilly). June has helped
Darren Cross (Corey Stoll) take over her dad’s company — a backstab of “reverse”
Electra-like proportions. June struggles with the consequences as Darren runs
amok. Meanwhile, Scott (Paul Rudd) has been stealing and burgling for years.
Unemployed, Scott owes child support in abundance and tries to make right with
his estranged daughter. He’ll steal again.
But “Ant-Man” stole my precious time, not my heart. Mr. Reed’s film is uneven
and exasperating, breaking off into a diversionary confrontation between Scott,
who as Ant-Man gets to fight Falcon (Anthony Mackie) in one of the oddest, most
boring and pointless superhero fights. It’s a blur.
Worse, Michael Pena’s character Luis, a petty thief and former cellmate of
Scott, is racially stereotyped by the film in his overemphasized Latino accent
and talk. “Ant-Man” Groundhog Day-milks Mr. Pena’s Latino-accented “street”
exaggeration and hyperactivity with longwinded, unfunny punchlines. It all rang
in my ears as insults. Why is it necessary to continue doing this with
Latino characters? Why not make these characters human beings instead of
stereotypes? The character is an easy target for its audience to lampoon — but
it is a waste of celluloid and indicates that the material on display is very
thin.
I get it: I don’t know the comic book history and origins of Ant-Man and his
rivals. Comic books aren’t one of my interests. Film is, however, and I don’t
view “Ant-Man” as a superhero vehicle that was sure of its place as a film.
“Ant-Man” played on the screen as if it was still trying to find out what it was
or could be. The superhero was established more or less but “Ant-Man” as a film
never is. I never felt that Mr. Reed’s film had a rhythm or pulse. Everything
felt scattered and frantic.
What’s more, “Ant-Man” needed extra editing. Four screenwriters (including Mr.
Rudd) don’t help its cause for clarity. That many collaborators on the page,
though not unusual, is usually a sign of trouble, something “Ant-Man” never
recovers from. “Ant-Man” as a film isn’t supposed to be a niche film but its
reach shouldn’t be as limited as it feels here. Paul Rudd does well with humor
and has physical credibility as a superhero — but sometimes “Ant-Man” feels like
a Paul Rudd comedy not a Marvel film. At other times “Ant-Man” is a messy
mistake that needed to be squashed with bug repellent.
Also with: Tip “T.I.” Harris, Judy Greer, Bobby Cannavale, Wood Harris.
“Ant-Man” is rated PG-13
by the Motion Picture Association Of America for sci-fi action violence.
The film's running time is one hour and 57 minutes.
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