‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’ loses its essence becoming ‘Full Marvel’, according to early reviews

The next Friday 17 February ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’, the third chapter of the saga directed by Payton Reed with Paul Rudd as the protagonist, arrives in theaters. The film has a huge responsibility to start Phase 5 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which closed the previous one with a very good level with ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ and ‘Guardians of the Galaxy: Happy Holidays Special. International professional critics have already given their verdict, and according to Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic, the film barely passes, with a score of 53% and 50%..

The general discontent can be summed up in the excess of quavers and special effects, as well as in the Gigantic differences from the Ant-Man franchise. “Prepare to be pummeled by special effects and hammered by a breathtaking soundtrack. Oh, and you’ll be begging for mercy after an onslaught of really bad Dialogue”writes the Seattle Times. In the San Francisco Chronicle they conclude it “‘Ant-Man’ is not bad comedy. It’s bad drama, bad science fiction, and a waste of everyone, including Evangeline Lily and Michael Douglas”.

The obvious “Star Wars” inspiration isn’t necessarily a hit for IndieWire, which notes that “it’s not only confusing, but also mean”. Furthermore, a large majority agrees ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’ negatively transforms what until now had been one of the most niche sagas into something “Full Wonder”, as called Variety. For Slant Magazine, “It feels more like a tired re-reading of the adventures we already know than the beginning of a new phase of Marvel films”. Mashable believes it “‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’ is a chaotic, unfunny mess that forgot why its hero was so funny. The excitement not only disappeared, it was buried under a swarm of gimmicks and plot effects. really scary specials”. IndieWire says asking “Ant-Man” for responsibility for starting a new era for Marvel is too much, especially for the old franchise. “light” that has: “Not all superhero adventures have to be about the fate of the universe”not much less “on the other side of the multiverse”.

Some media freely defend the film. Among them is The Wrap, which he claims is Marvel’s first Phase 5 film “delivers both immediate and long-term threats, resulting in a film that works both individually and as a preview of what’s to come”. Similarly, AV Club states: “The film’s tone is so absurdly disjointed that viewers will have a hard time deciding whether its wild swings are insane or brilliant (or perhaps a mix of the two).”and guarantees that it is “entertaining from start to finish.” Entertainment Weekly guarantees it “she’s smart enough to be funny and wise enough not to cross the line. After all, who better understands the benefits of keeping life simple?”.

“If you are able to ignore the convoluted plotwhich unfortunately is not a rarity in the increasingly complex Marvel Cinematic Universe, you will have a lot of fun with these characters”promises the London Evening Standard. It’s not the only medium mentioning how ‘Quantumania’ was yet another casualty of Marvel’s growing twisted world, as The Hollywood Reporter points out that the explanation behind the climactic aspects isn’t clear because “Between the multiverse and the quantum world, you basically need a degree in advanced physics to figure out what the hell is going on in Marvel movies lately”. But it’s fun, the medium agrees, even if the humor is scarcer than in other installments.

As ScreenCrush summarizes; “your reaction is probably determined by what you expect from the film”: if you are looking to know the first step of the new phase of the Marvel universe and see a lot of chroma and visual effects, you will like it, but if, on the contrary, you expect a third installment of the “Ant-Man” trilogy that corresponds to the previous ones “You’re just as unlucky as Scott Lang after Kang dragged him into the quantum world”.

A villain ready to stay

Jonathan Majors’ character is the point of agreement among critics: it is a great success to reintroduce the villain presented in ‘Loki’, which promises to be essential in the future, and which the actor brings to life. “Majors brings the emotional energy of Adam Driver to ‘Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens'”writes The Guardian. “With its emphasis on Kang, the third ‘Ant-Man’ took the necessary step towards something bigger”says CNN, which believes that, leaving aside the great work of “establish Kang the Conqueror as a formidable and worthy villain”the film “fails in almost every other way”.

‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’ hits theaters this Friday February 17th.