Ant-Man

Marvel saves the world for the thirty-sixth time, in the same story template, just by slightly different means and with more jokes. And that’s what they want to keep serving us for the next years. There’s nothing wrong with this movie, it just has nothing new to offer me. But the acting’s pleasant and the technical aspect perfect in the traditional Marvel fashion. The de-aged Michael Douglas is even better than the de-aged Schwarzenegger was in Terminator Genisys, it’s chilling. (07/16/2015)

This is the least uniform Marvel movie material, with the original creator peeking out at you from every other scene. It’s in the hands of an old hand fulfilling a studio assignment that clearly meant stepping on the gas in family values and withdrawing his hand on a miniature goofing around (the parrot model run and the train finale literally scream for extra minutes). The protagonists, pure as lilies (the scars from the past are more so cosmetic, without the need to dissect them more), are quite boring, and Michael Peña's sidekick is the best. 3 ½. (11/08/2015)

Are you going to believe me when I say it really took me a while to get used to the Ant-Man? At first, I thought the story started pretty quickly. Then I thought that it is really stupid and if not for the actors, I would not watch the whole thing. And towards the finale I was just wondering that the creators clearly must have taken some LSD, because they managed to come up with so many ideas that not all creators can fit into single movie. In the end, I have to admit I was pretty satisfied with this Marvel movie, as along with the premise the creators came up with a lot of original stunts, which made the scenes unforgettable. And even if someone ignored that, because there is a thin line between these feelings, I believe nobody would just ignore Evangeline Lilly with her dark bob. Not only did I not recognize her, but she was also unbelievably hot. And that’s the way it’s supposed to be. (12/28/2015)

Reed inherited gold from Wright and McKay and transformed it into copper. However, high quality copper in all respects. Even in this traditionally Marvel-like sterilized form, Ant-man will keep you entertained (yes, especially thanks to Peño and Tomáš). And what will disappoint you even more is how he wasted so many possibilities to take full advantage of abilities of the main characters. Because his small adventures, ideas and playfulness are outshone by the six-decade-old The Incredible Shrinking Man or the Hamster in a Nightshirt of Czech TV and what is far the best in this regard is the poster promo campaign "with Avengers"(whether official or fan). And that's not enough. (07/15/2015)

Given the longstanding delays and considerable creative difficulties, I can hardly believe how inventive and lively Ant-Man ultimately turned out to be. The era of comic books on every corner can shine in full force, but Scott Lang and Hank Pym are not ones to suffer from audience saturation. Surprisingly, the script precisely balances action sequences with a non-violent family storyline, and Paul Rudd's natural acting (not to mention his cheery chemistry with Michael Douglas and the rest of the cast) smooths out even the biggest rough edges, such as the shaky and disjointed opening act. Creating a superhero appetizer (not to mention one placed between an Avengers film and a Captain America film) is harder than it seems, which is why I'm truly delighted by its successful start. Especially since this character is tailor-made for future teamwork. (08/23/2015)

Probably the funniest Marvel movie to date. The absolutely incredible Michael Peña steals every scene, even if he’s just passing through. A classic structure of the birth of a hero clad with original ideas and it’s fun. Edgar right obviously played about with the story. The beginning without action is really refreshing and the finale is packed with ideas. Infiltration, the fly trap, the keyring, the fight on the little train. Everyone’s going to go on about Hamster in a Nightshirt (I just love that series), but originality is long since a thing of the past in this branch. Paul Rudd gives a decent performance, no surprises, but plays his part, Douglas enjoys playing Pym and he shows in the intro just what a great choice he was. I’m very happy about Evangeline Lilly and I hope we see her in the future Avengers, there can never be too many good (and attractive) female roles. Corey Stoll stays surprisingly in the background with no surprises up his sleeve. I don’t know how much Peyton Reed remolded Wright’s original vision, but the result is still first-rate family entertainment with a pinch of heist. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggP5YDziMSY (07/15/2015)

The opening flashback from 1989 was a delight and so were Peg and Pym's acting performances, but the rest of the film was just a targeted rinsing. Unfortunately, only Douglas continued acting and he had no equal partners, so we had to make do with the epic battle with the machine Thomas. But so be it. The MCU continues ever onward. (07/16/2015)

It's the same thing over and over again, only with family values coming more to the fore, as well as clearly defined characters and more humour, especially provided by Michael Peña. If there's anything new to talk about here, it's the central character's perks, as the visual antics are carefully staged and the zooming in and out is handled in a brilliant, dynamic, and entertaining way. Sadly, though, Peyton Reed is otherwise pretty much a routine man, because a script this leaky can't be in a movie with any ambition, and that goes for Marvel's save-the-world movies as well. (12/14/2015)

An excellent Marvel movie and for me personally a more than worthy patch on the disappointment of the second Avengers. The film doesn't play games, it flows naturally, it's pleasantly (not at all costs) funny, Paul Rudd surprised me in the lead role and Michael Douglas' participation pleased me immensely. The trailers definitely didn't give away all the jokes (the key ring definitely leads the way for me), the action has ideas and is still clear, and the special effects are a chapter unto themselves - they took my breath away in the opening scene. I had fun, fun and fun. (07/25/2015)

This is how Marvel should always look. Cleverly targeted situational humour that gives a whole new dimension to an otherwise unoriginal story, while leaving a refreshing impression with traditionally technically brilliant and, thanks to the main premise, original action sequences. Other than Guardians of the Galaxy, it's the only film of its kind that, in retrospect, that can put a smile on my face from ear to ear, which is entirely thanks to the great actors (Rudd is likeable, but Peña rocks in a supporting role with outrageous wisecracks), and a reasonable runtime that doesn't allow the screenwriting to slack off and get bogged down in boring political or even psychological drivel in the style of the latest Avengers. Not without flaws, but an absolutely confident and wonderfully well-mannered Marvel product. :) 80% (10/08/2015)

The Downey Marvel baby Ant-Man may have been the only misstep in an otherwise carefully honed comic book machine, especially since the original director and writer Edgar Wright is too great a filmmaker to simply fall in behind a parade of marching hammers with the Avengers leading the way. And yet Ant-Man did eventually manage to take its place with all the other highly successful films in the franchise. Fortunately, elements of its boldness shine through here and there, and they're so emphatic (the train!) that you’re more likely to remember them over the protagonist's or antagonist's wrung-out motivations, not to mention Michael Peňa's terrible comedy. What is noteworthy here, however, more than in other Marvel films, is the more noticeable depiction of the studio hierarchy of Americans in the superhero universe. Whereas the Avengers and their individual films are, in short, shot exclusively from the position of elites who make decisions for the greater good, a thief from the lower social strata becomes Ant-Man (where he hilariously subverts the demand for racial quotas by having minorities represent the criminals here), giving us an easy taste of how the ordinary world actually works in the superhero era. Unsurprisingly, it is divided into three Heinleinian tiers – the elites (superheroes (determinate), scientists, presidents), the civil servants (police officers, nurses – they live in suburban houses or in secluded areas, they don't worry too much about money), and the rest, where the beggar and the businessman, the prince and the pauper come together and, most importantly, it would seem, all sort of unconsciously rankle together against those at the top. This capitalist-paranoid thinking somehow logically seeps out of the giant film hegemon Walt Disney, which is trying to make movies that just about everyone will go to, and the diversity of the audience is really more of a nuisance to them. (01/04/2016)

Something that could simply be expected. In the right moments, it's action-packed, in the right moments, it's entertaining, and that's actually what you probably expect from movies based on Marvel comics. They're not such a dark path, which probably wouldn't work in the case of Ant-Man. This is not a character that would captivate anyone in any other way than this. Fortunately, the actors were chosen well. (11/06/2015)

Visually brilliant, perfect in terms of acting, and the whole movie flows at a nice pace. However, although I was tempted to give it a fourth star, I'll probably stick with three. No matter how hard I try, I can't remember any major scene or anything memorable, not to mention the fact that much of the movie is filled with inane chatter. However, purely subjectively without the star rating, I consider Ant-Man to be much better than the totally mediocre second installment of the Avengers. (02/02/2016)