By Jacob Ervin, Senior Reporter
Marvel Studios is back again with a new movie for fans, and this time the story is smaller than ever.
“Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” premiered across the United States on Feb. 17 and has become a polarizing film among critics and fans alike.
This is the third entry into the Ant-Man franchise within the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Actor Paul Rudd reprises his role as Scott Lang and the character’s hero persona Ant-Man alongside actress Evangeline Lilly, who plays Janet van Dyne, who is also The Wasp.
The two stars are joined by a newcomer to the franchise, Kathryn Newton, who takes over the recasted role of Scott’s daughter, Cassandra Lang.
The film begins around the year 2025, and the audience is shown Scott spending his time selling a book he authored that describes his experience helping save the world in the fictional precursor movie of the MCU, “Avengers: Endgame.”
Cassandra expresses her desire to become a superhero despite her father’s reservations as well as her intrigue with the beyond microscopic universe known as the Quantum Realm.
Cassandra’s research into the Quantum Realm leads to the film’s main characters being abruptly transported into the realm against their will.
The movie’s heroes are forced to find a way home while also facing a new threat: Kang the Conqueror.
The mixed feedback to the film is likely the result of the movie having a mixed bag of strong acting, generic storytelling and poor visual presentation.
It is apparent from the opening scenes that the film’s computer-generated imagery is underwhelming at best.
While Marvel Studios has long been considered the gold standard in CGI heavy films, it is clear that the studio has struggled to produce the quality product it once did.
As a film attempting to tell a story through a brand-new world called the Quantum Realm, it is important that the world is visually brilliant in order to tell a compelling story.
This is how Marvel movies and other franchises such as “Avatar” have been able to produce critically acclaimed films, but the newest “Ant-Man” film fails to hit this mark.
While the film is lacking visually, strong acting serves as the saving grace for the movie. Rudd manages to bring incredible depth to Scott, who is a character known for mostly serving as comedic relief within the MCU.
The most notable performance was that of Jonathan Majors as Kang the Conqueror.
Majors had played a variation of the role for a different MCU series; however, the stark contrast Majors was able to create between the previous iteration and the new character has impressed audiences and critics alike.
While the film was filled with humor and no major plot holes, this in itself is a complaint that many fans have with the movie.
Although the movie does not make any major mistakes, the film also fails to take any risks and seems more like a carbon copy of previous Marvel films than the start of a new direction for the MCU.
The movie may not be a cinematic masterpiece, but strong performances by Rudd and Majors make this a film worth watching.