Ant-Man (2015)


With the release of its sequel today, let's take a look at the Marvel movie Ant-Man.

The Movie:

 Ant-Man is the 12th movie of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the final movie of Phase 2.  Ant-Man was directed by Peyton Reed, who took over after original director and screenwriter Edgar Wright left the project due to creative differences.  The movie received mostly positive reviews and was a modest success (by Marvel standards) at the box-office.

This Ant-Man is Scott Lang, who has just been released from prison after serving a 3-year sentence for burglary.  Scott's biggest wish is to see his daughter Cassie, but his ex-wife and her fiance won't let him unless he can prove himself to be a changed man.  Meanwhile, Hank Pym, the original Ant-Man and founder of Pym Tech, has discovered that his protege Darren Cross has come close to replicating the Ant-Man technology with a project called Yellowjacket.  Needing someone to help stop Cross, Hank recruits Scott to be the new Ant-Man.  With the help of his daughter Hope, Hank races against time to train Scott before the Yellowjacket technology can be perfected and placed in the wrong hands.

The best way I can describe Ant-Man is a fun movie.  Storywise in the MCU, it is set between the large stake affairs of Avengers: Age of Ultron and Captain America: Civil War, so this smaller scale movie functions as a lighthearted breather between the two.  However, the movie also works well on its own, only loosely touching on the larger Marvel mythology while establishing a distinct backstory for its characters.  There are many strong performances, especially Paul Rudd as Scott, Michael Douglas as Hank, and Evangeline Lilly as Hope, while Michael Peña hilariously steals his scenes as Scott's friend and former cellmate Luis.

 The score was composed by Christophe Beck, and it is well done.  Some of the best music is during the heist sequence, which has a jazzy Bond-like flair.

 Presence in the Parks:

 Due to Marvel's contract with Universal, you aren't going to find much in the way of Ant-Man outside merchandise at WDW.  It is possible Ant-Man could be given a more permanent presence at Disneyland, especially as the Marvel-themed area at DCA comes to pass, but it's not there yet.

 The one park that does have an Ant-Man ride solidly in the works is Hong Kong Disneyland, which will open its Ant-Man ride in 2019.

 There is a shout-out to the parks in the movie.  At one point Luis whistles the tune "It's a Small World," referencing both Marvel as part of Disney and the tiny stature of the movie's hero.

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