Monthly Film Review with Drinks - March 2023 - Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania

As one who stays relatively connected to the digital domain that is the internet, and also one who cares little for whatever yet unspecified consequences await me for letting algorithms choose (mostly) my news sources (at least as someone who thinks reasonably clearly about what I am presented and reading), approaching the latest massive-budget entry from the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) was an unavoidable exercise in "knowing what you're getting". By this I mean simply that the internet had, for better or worse, shown me much about the film and had provided the context from which one could/should view the movie. As such, after a helpful discussion with Jess, I packed up my Chromebook and off I went to my local Cineplex. 

After about 9oz of a decent Italian Chardonnay, I can say with reasonable certainty that Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (AWQ) is a solid six (6) out of ten (10). Let me explain this in a short review that will become a monthly occurrence via four points. 

I will start with what I thought was well done. 

The visuals are, at least upon my viewing, an excellent and wild adventure of oddities and amusements that fit what I think would be a reasonably appropriate display of "alien" persons and worlds; this is, of course, the “quantum realm”! Most of what I have heard and read about AWQ is that it is a visual mess of busyness that only serves as a distraction from what is happening on screen. Yes, I think I can understand this criticism. It was truly a lot. But it did not strike me as categorically different than the expectations I have of what a Marvel film delivers, as Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame both struck me as having many moments of "busyness". Now, one could argue the stakes were much different, but I would push back and say that doesn't really matter… The stakes are irrelevant to the visuality of the film. What is important I think is that the busyness worked towards creating the illusion of a strange new world, one that would be at odds if the sets were simple and/or static. 

Another positive for me, and one that I read/heard was going against the film, was that the stakes were right. Ant-Man in Avengers: Endgame emerged from the "quantum realm" after being trapped there for five years, providing the momentum and rationale for the time travel plot that was critical for our heroes' triumph over Thanos. Ant-Man is really the only character who could be the catalyst for a story about the “quantum realm” that works within the confines of what the Infinity Saga laid out, yet brings the franchise into new territory. Kang the Conqueror, the apparent antagonist of this new arc of the MCU, was banished to the “quantum realm” presumably before Thanos and his “Snap/Blip”, and in the "quantum realm" time does not work (at least for the purposes of storytelling) function in a linear way. I think this a reasonable explanation for the "Snap/Blip" having no effect—the "quantum realm" isn't affected by the same "laws of nature" as the world in which the Infinity Saga takes place. 

So, Scott Lang having been there (or at least close to it) and being the only Avenger who was (excluding the “time jump”, not only makes sense for continuing the story of Ant-Man by tying up some loose ends and building on ends that could be pulled a bit further, but connects a critical character from the previous saga to this new one. This is important as it helps establish the stakes. Now, I know that some preferred the smaller stakes of the previous two Ant-Man films, and I understand that. But when Ant-Man showed up at the airport in Germany to fight with Captain America and became central to reversing Thanos’ “snap” in Endgame, this was no longer possible–Ant-Man is an Avenger with “Avenger level” threats, just as “Nick Fury” explained to Spider-Man in Far From Home. This also builds on the visuals too, the stakes are just that much higher and so too is the nature of the literal worlds at stake. 

Okay, now two quick points about what didn’t work, and what is so curious about these points is that they will not be particular to AWQ, but with the MCU generally. 

I mentioned earlier that the stakes were within what I considered to be Ant-Man’s new portfolio of responsibility, but what didn’t work with the stakes was their reasons. Specifically, the MCU writing team, for whatever reason, has decided to “retcon” the importance (and therefore the significance) of the previous ten years of MCU films by having Kang be “outside of time”. For Kang, time is nothing but a thing to control. Okay, that is fine. The problem is, however, that this–time, via the multiverse–seems to be (along with Kang’s nearly infinite numbers of murder-motivated selves) one of his greatest powers. They even made this one of the key drivers in the Loki Disney Plus show. But, what the hell was the point of the Time Stone? They also “joked” in Loki that the stones (we are shown many of them, multiples even) are used as paperweights–useless objects. Disney and the MCU have simultaneously reduced the threat and significance of ten years of story investment and the previous heroes' journeys, including the sacrifice of Iron Man, into nothing but the stuff of jokes. Moreover, they have turned something that counted for 20% of Thanos’ ultimate power (one stone) and now made it one of the most important and unimportant aspects of this new saga. What? 

The writing was mediocre at its best. Characters came across as either stupid, arrogant, or both. Motivations were poorly articulated (except for Casey’s reasons for being locked up, that was a better articulation), and led to many stupid decisions. Why wouldn’t Janet have explained what was happening right away? What would waiting or not saying anything do!? MODOK’s change to “not be a dick” was silly. Kang being banished alive from a collection of Kangs who, we are told in Loki, waged war across the multiverse instead of executing him leaves one dumbfounded. The internal “film logic” has become barely held together in these last two phases, and it is troubling when such a franchise of interconnected films depends on an established and respected “lore”. 

So, there were things to like, but there were things to be frustrated at. This seems to be the case with Marvel lately, but it doesn’t have to be. Overall, the film was a fun two hours, but in the larger picture of the MCU it raises questions and concerns that will need to be addressed. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is the lowest-rated Marvel film yet, and the releases of phase four, and now five, were on average lower than any previously. I don’t have the time or space tonight to speculate on the reasons and consequences of this, but perhaps in the future. 

For now, I will leave with hoping that the next Marvel release, which will be Guardians of the Galaxy Vol3, is a stronger showing that distances itself from what has been happening recently. However, I won’t be holding my breath…

But, 6/10 isn’t that bad! So, maybe this is a “drinks help” kind of movie…