Ensign Lestat's Film Log, 31/07/2015
Ant-Man, everyone's least favourite comic book character and the bane of all internet-writers finally arrived at our local cinemas this week. He bagged a film before a whole bunch of Marvel ladies, and the world was not happy. Heck, I wasn't happy, and I know nothing!
But of course, Marvel, being Marvel, have to turn our expectations on its head and make the film fun, funny and pretty damn memorable. I don't like Rudd, and I don't like Hank Pym, yet I found myself thoroughly enjoying this piece of entertainment.
This film doesn't take itself too seriously, and that's what keeps it interesting. It's one of the reasons why the world fell in love with Guardians of the Galaxy. Both these films star unlikely fellows as the titular heroes, joined by a band of misfits. They're light, family entertainment that ably progress the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
So here's the story.
Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) has just got out of prison and he's desperate to get back into his daughter's life. This is harder than it looks, as his record catches up with him when it comes to jobs. His wife Maggie (Judy Greer, who seems to be making a career out of playing bit part moms/wives) is now in a happy relationship with a cop, Paxton (Bobby Cannavale) and doesn't want Scott anywhere near her daughter until he gets his life in order.
What's Scott's plan to achieve all this? A heist! A well-thought out and efficiently executed plan that falls through only because they've been tipped with a poor mark. Or that's what Scott thinks. The heist leads Scott to meet Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) and his life changes forever.
The mixture of comedy, action, heists and a little bit of drama is a winning combination in this film. I can tell you that I expected to hate this film. With every core of my being. But, I couldn't. I giggled and laughed throughout, sometimes despite myself.
Not everything was perfect about this film, of course. They never are. Marvel's inability to draw and expand on their female characters continues. Choosing Evangeline Lilly may have seemed like a bright idea, but her previous incarnation as Tauriel in The Hobbit prequels is enough to tell you that she's not a hero. While I don't blame her, I'm not pleased with her choosing roles that our supposedly heroic, then doing absolutely nothing throughout her screen time.
Going into the film, I was aware that Hope Pym was hard done by. She is screaming to be the hero of this film, and while we know she can't be, we also know that no male character would be molly-coddled into inaction. She exists, but doesn't progress as a character - she does progress Pym's character, but barely. Her greatest saving grace was that she wasn't attached to the bad guy, nor did he appear to have any particular romantic interest in her. Thank the maker.
I won't understand the need for Greer to appear in films solely as the annoying ex-wife. I can't say much more for that. It's disappointing. Give her more to do.
Films that strike me most are the ones that bother to include female characters in all aspects of it (you know, like in real life). How cool would it have been if one of Scott's gang was a woman? Same role, but a woman. How would it have been if Paxton's partner was a black woman? If Darren Cross (Corey Stoll) was a woman - striving to become like her mentor, but being shut out. She eventually achieves her goal but uses it for the wrong purposes. I know that's the kind of film I'd be stunned into loving.
We don't get that. Marvel doesn't know how to write female characters (yes, they've given us a few badass ones, but even those have issues), because their treasure trove of comic book heroes are mostly in X-Men comics, and they can't touch that. The female heroes of the Avengers universe aren't plausible for the most part. For decades they've been writing poor female characters, so now they can't make enough awesome ones for the screen.
The film does better on the diversity stakes though. It's taken Marvel nearly a decade to feature so many characters of colour (though none of them are the hero). Michael Peña and T.I. are part of Scott's crew, Cannavale is half-Cuban, and his cop partner is African-American. Though not much, they're still a significant shift from Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) being the sole POC representative in Marvel.
The stand out in this film was Peña. The dude can be heroic, scary or downright funny - and in this movie, he's downright hilarious. Even when not on screen (during the 'tip' scenes) his inflections and intonations are enough to split your sides. He looks to be having the time of his life, and why not. His heroics are minimal but enough.
I think T.I. deserved to have a larger role, and maybe even get the role of the genius hacker rather than the getaway driver. Let's not stereotype people. He's got a fair amount of charisma in the film as well, which surprised me.
After the disaster that was Avengers: Age of Ultron I expected Marvel to continue on its downward slide, but they didn't. This film has a unique personality, more distinctive of heist films of the past. It doesn't feel like a Marvel film at all. If it wasn't for the obvious connections (for more on that, click the button below), we could easily have forgotten there was a greater universe around it. And that is why the film excels. By not being bogged down by the weight of the past and the future, it is free to discover its own story and its own characters.
It's characters are interesting, if not the most unique or exciting. Lang's wayward criminal-turned-hero is not new to even the Marvel world (see Spider-Man 3's Sandman). But Rudd imbues his character with relevant amounts of pathos mixed in with heaps of country bumpkin. He worked out for the role, but is hidden in his suit for the majority of it.
I enjoyed Douglas' role. He brings more pathos to the film, but also a quiet energy. Considering he has no action scenes, it's strange to recall him being a man of action throughout his on-screen presence. He's way ahead of the curb and comes across as a well-rounded, believable character.
Stoll's Cross is a rare creature in the MCU - a non-charismatic, under-developed villain. The villains of the past Marvel films have mostly been compelling characters that the audience has been drawn to, despite evidence to the contrary. Obediah, Whiplash, Loki, The Red Devil, Malekith, The Winter Soldier, Ultron are all well-rounded, highly motivated characters (some maybe more than others). Cross comes across as that almost campy bad guy from a Spidey movie - a catalyst for creating our hero, but not a character on his own. Stoll does his best, but he's hampered by his curtailed screen time, and the script's insistence on his mad scientist persona.
I loved the CGI in this film. They utilised the comic book style of shrinking, and it looked great. The VFX team worked hard to make the transitions seamless, and it worked - the stylised running was eye-catching. And many thanks to the VFX team for making the ants not-so-gross. I was a bit freaked out during the film, but it's great that they kept the audience in mind while filming. We also learnt a great deal about ants during the film, so that's a bonus!
The unique style and the charisma of the actors and characters in this film has won me over. I hate to say it, but I enjoyed this film and maybe, just maybe, love it a little bit. While it's not ground-breaking, it's brilliant for reveling in its comedic value. It's delightful to see yet another Oscar-winner take on the title of Marvel hero mentor. If they can expand Hope's character and give us some more smart women, we could have a great trilogy on our hands.
But of course, Marvel, being Marvel, have to turn our expectations on its head and make the film fun, funny and pretty damn memorable. I don't like Rudd, and I don't like Hank Pym, yet I found myself thoroughly enjoying this piece of entertainment.
This film doesn't take itself too seriously, and that's what keeps it interesting. It's one of the reasons why the world fell in love with Guardians of the Galaxy. Both these films star unlikely fellows as the titular heroes, joined by a band of misfits. They're light, family entertainment that ably progress the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
So here's the story.
Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) has just got out of prison and he's desperate to get back into his daughter's life. This is harder than it looks, as his record catches up with him when it comes to jobs. His wife Maggie (Judy Greer, who seems to be making a career out of playing bit part moms/wives) is now in a happy relationship with a cop, Paxton (Bobby Cannavale) and doesn't want Scott anywhere near her daughter until he gets his life in order.
What's Scott's plan to achieve all this? A heist! A well-thought out and efficiently executed plan that falls through only because they've been tipped with a poor mark. Or that's what Scott thinks. The heist leads Scott to meet Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) and his life changes forever.
The mixture of comedy, action, heists and a little bit of drama is a winning combination in this film. I can tell you that I expected to hate this film. With every core of my being. But, I couldn't. I giggled and laughed throughout, sometimes despite myself.
Not everything was perfect about this film, of course. They never are. Marvel's inability to draw and expand on their female characters continues. Choosing Evangeline Lilly may have seemed like a bright idea, but her previous incarnation as Tauriel in The Hobbit prequels is enough to tell you that she's not a hero. While I don't blame her, I'm not pleased with her choosing roles that our supposedly heroic, then doing absolutely nothing throughout her screen time.
 |
| *Throwing shade* - Hope |
I won't understand the need for Greer to appear in films solely as the annoying ex-wife. I can't say much more for that. It's disappointing. Give her more to do.
Films that strike me most are the ones that bother to include female characters in all aspects of it (you know, like in real life). How cool would it have been if one of Scott's gang was a woman? Same role, but a woman. How would it have been if Paxton's partner was a black woman? If Darren Cross (Corey Stoll) was a woman - striving to become like her mentor, but being shut out. She eventually achieves her goal but uses it for the wrong purposes. I know that's the kind of film I'd be stunned into loving.
 |
| Judy Greer - under-utilised as always. |
The film does better on the diversity stakes though. It's taken Marvel nearly a decade to feature so many characters of colour (though none of them are the hero). Michael Peña and T.I. are part of Scott's crew, Cannavale is half-Cuban, and his cop partner is African-American. Though not much, they're still a significant shift from Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) being the sole POC representative in Marvel.
 |
| The gang. |
I think T.I. deserved to have a larger role, and maybe even get the role of the genius hacker rather than the getaway driver. Let's not stereotype people. He's got a fair amount of charisma in the film as well, which surprised me.
After the disaster that was Avengers: Age of Ultron I expected Marvel to continue on its downward slide, but they didn't. This film has a unique personality, more distinctive of heist films of the past. It doesn't feel like a Marvel film at all. If it wasn't for the obvious connections (for more on that, click the button below), we could easily have forgotten there was a greater universe around it. And that is why the film excels. By not being bogged down by the weight of the past and the future, it is free to discover its own story and its own characters.
 |
| Ant-Men. |
I enjoyed Douglas' role. He brings more pathos to the film, but also a quiet energy. Considering he has no action scenes, it's strange to recall him being a man of action throughout his on-screen presence. He's way ahead of the curb and comes across as a well-rounded, believable character.
Stoll's Cross is a rare creature in the MCU - a non-charismatic, under-developed villain. The villains of the past Marvel films have mostly been compelling characters that the audience has been drawn to, despite evidence to the contrary. Obediah, Whiplash, Loki, The Red Devil, Malekith, The Winter Soldier, Ultron are all well-rounded, highly motivated characters (some maybe more than others). Cross comes across as that almost campy bad guy from a Spidey movie - a catalyst for creating our hero, but not a character on his own. Stoll does his best, but he's hampered by his curtailed screen time, and the script's insistence on his mad scientist persona.
 |
| Don't cross Cross. |
I loved the CGI in this film. They utilised the comic book style of shrinking, and it looked great. The VFX team worked hard to make the transitions seamless, and it worked - the stylised running was eye-catching. And many thanks to the VFX team for making the ants not-so-gross. I was a bit freaked out during the film, but it's great that they kept the audience in mind while filming. We also learnt a great deal about ants during the film, so that's a bonus!
The unique style and the charisma of the actors and characters in this film has won me over. I hate to say it, but I enjoyed this film and maybe, just maybe, love it a little bit. While it's not ground-breaking, it's brilliant for reveling in its comedic value. It's delightful to see yet another Oscar-winner take on the title of Marvel hero mentor. If they can expand Hope's character and give us some more smart women, we could have a great trilogy on our hands.
 |
| Also, campaigns like this are always welcome. |
Comments