I liked ANT-MAN AND THE WASP more than ANT-MAN. There I said it. I just appreciated the story line and the action scenes more. Maybe it was all the talk about quantum realms or the frequent size-changing Ant-Man that had my attention throughout the movie. The first ANT-MAN had to take the time to set up the story, the cast, and why there were ants working for humans. This time, we got to go straight into the action!
Something that cannot go unnoticed is the presence of female characters in ANT-MAN AND THE WASP. The Wasp/Hope van Dyne is played by Evangeline Lilly; Ghost/Ava is played by Hannah John Kamen; and we finally meet Janet Van Dyne who is played but Michelle Pfeiffer. Janet van Dyne is an accomplished scientist, a super hero in her own right and she happens to be Hope’s mom. Wait, was it all the ladies that made me enjoy this film that much more?
Five Things That I Enjoyed About ANT-MAN AND THE WASP
The Wasp – It’s the first time that we get to see The Wasp in action. We see how she moves on ground and in the air, what her suit does, and how she can fight! Beyond the physical action, The Wasp is a complex character and, really she doesn’t need Ant-Man but they do make a great team.
I repeat, there’s a leading female character with complexity in a Marvel Entertainment movie.
Ghost – While Yellowjacket made sense in the first Ant-Man, I was looking forward to a villain who wasn’t just the opposite of Ant-Man. Ghost delivers on that. Again, she’s female (and biracial). Yay. Her story is compelling and her motive is understandable. She is the enemy that you would cheer for if she wasn’t the bad ‘guy’.
Luis, Dave, and Kurt – These three characters only got better and funnier. Most of my LOL moments came from their scenes. Michael Pena made Luis’ story re-telling even more hilarious.
Parent/Child Relationship Storytelling – It’s a story based on partnership and parenting. The parents in this movie have an opportunity to make difficult choices and have their children witness (and at times participate) the outcome. But like in the first Ant-Man, it was well-written and it’s even why I think we, as the audience, are anxious for Hank and Hope to find Hope’s mother, Janet van Dyne, even though we’ve not met her yet.
Post-Credits Scenes – I won’t spoil this for you but I’ll say this is what we’ve been talking about for the last four days in our house.
ANT-MAN AND THE WASP is in theaters everyone on July 6. Take your kids to watch it!
