Unlike its predecessor, with its cacophony of explosions and smorgasbord of characters, Ant-Man revels in its simplicity.

One hero. One villain. And it’s a refreshing change for Marvel fans such as myself who have begun to grow weary as the apparently never-ending construction line of super hero films seem to be more like episodes than events.

Paul Rudd is at his charismatic best as reformed cat burglar Scott Lang, who is recruited by Dr Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) to become the titular tiny super hero and prevent the sale of a similar shrinking technology, developed by Pym’s former protégé Corey Stoll’s Darren Cross, to the forces of evil. Stoll, currently the lead in Guillermo del Toro’s fantastic vampire horror TV show The Strain, is a fine moustache-twirling villain, and I enjoyed seeing Douglas finally succumb and join a popular film franchise, something he has avoided since Romancing the Stone and Jewel of the Nile in the mid-80s.

Troubled in its pre-production phase, Ant-Man benefits from an effective and not-too-complex story from Joe Cornish (Attack the Block) and original director Edgar Wright (Scott Pilgrim vs. the World). Many cinephiles were disappointed when Wright departed the film allegedly after clashes with Disney/Marvel Studios executives. 

With a back catalogue of fantastic movies including Simon Pegg and Nick Frost’s “Cornetto Trilogy” (Shaun of the Dead/Hot Fuzz/The World’s End), it was hoped that Wright would bring something truly imaginative and special to the screen. Fans can rest easy knowing that Wright’s legacy is a positive and significant contribution to Ant-Man, ably helmed by journeyman director Peyton Reid (Yes Man, The Break-Up) with further screenplay assistance from Rudd and Adam McKay (Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy).

The special effects are uniformly solid, particularly in the multitude of scenes where the action takes place in the microscopic world. Close-ups of carpet fibres and dust particles have not looked so good since the now antiquated Honey, I Shrunk the Kids franchise.

Miraculously, the CGI wizards even managed to make me feel a little sad when our hero’s ant allies were dispatched in the line of duty. Not a big proponent of the usually dark and murky cinema 3D, I saw the film in 2D but would suggest that the film would look particularly good in IMAX 3D.

As usual, Marvel Studios have managed to assemble an awesome supporting cast, including Michael Peña, Judy Greer, Bobby Cannavale and Evangeline Lilly, who all do fine work in roles that arguably deserve more screen time. Stay in the cinema until the very end for a credit cookie that suggests that we will be seeing more of the latter in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

With multiple references to events in previous Marvel films and an appearance from an Avenger, there is no doubt which sandbox we are playing within, however with a memorable climax taking place in a toy train set rather than the usual crash bang megabattle that has concluded previous instalments, I’m now of the opinion that it is the lesser known entries, such as Guardians of the Galaxy, which will be the standouts in this billion-dollar cinematic juggernaut.

peterayoung.com