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Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023)

 


Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is the third film for Ant-Man and the first part of phase five of Marvel's Cinematic Universe.

Directed by Peyton Reed, the same director for the first two films and modern comedy classics like Yes Man and 2000s Bring it On. It's difficult to get performances out of actors when all they can see is a green screen. Because of the volume of visual effects in this movie, it felt many times that the actors didn't know what was going on around them, which was a stark contrast from the first two Ant-man movies. 

Written by Jeff Loveness, who is known for being Jimmy Kimmel's writer. Something I don't think most people would think is a good recommendation. The misfiring of the writing is felt when the comic relief doesn't land for half of the jokes. Don't get me wrong there was laughter in the theater but not due to the writing, instead just of how ridiculous MODOK looked.

Paul Rudd really phones it in on this performance. It feels like his character hasn't had any growth in the other two films and doesn't know the basics of how to be a good parent. Something he is constantly reminded of.

People said Johnathan Major's Kang was the best part of the film, and they're right but his performance was overhyped. It was acceptable at best and as far as the comic book side of things no way would the ending make sense.

The CGI is lacking for the year it was released. Everything looks fake and unbelievable but since everything looks so similar it has a flair to it that reminds you, oh you're in this fairy tale place and not reality.

People make weird decisions that don't make sense for a character who is supposed to be super-smart. I don't want to get into spoilers. If you've seen how the ending for other modern agenda-driven stories has in the past you'll see the ending coming a mile away. Just look at the tropes of The Batman, Moon Knight, Hawkeye, and Loki, then see what sort of connective tissue they all have.

I have a feeling Dungeons and Dragons will have the same problem and just be an Okay film. Result: C+


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