Ant-Man

**Spoiler Alert**

Director: Peyton Reed/Starring: Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas, Bobby Cannavale, Evangeline Lilly, Michael Pena, Judy Greer, Corey Stoll, Abby Ryder Fortson and Martin Donovan

If you thought you had seen the last of the summer superhero flicks after The Avengers: Age of Ultron, you might disappointed/delighted to find another offering from Marvel Studios in the theaters this week: Ant-Man. I find myself a member of the delighted camp (with reservations) and must say I mostly liked the movie. Much of that has to do with the more humorous approach of director Peyton Reed's story and the very welcome refrain from apocalyptic destruction other Marvel adaptations visit upon movie-going audiences. Meaningless, mindless carnage is kept to a bare minimum and sometimes, as in the case of a battle on a toy train-set, the action can be funny.

And who better to play the title character than Paul Rudd, the funny-man doofus who seems cast against type. But in a movie that prides itself on being cheeky, Rudd is the ideal choice to keep the story and action from becoming self-serious and earnest.

Paul Rudd plays Scott Lang; a parolee who has just served a sentence for robbing a corporate giant in an attempt to compensate everyone who was bilked by the company. Educated as a mechanical engineer, Lang's smarts can't protect him from a post-parol job at Baskin Robbins, where he is summarily dismissed when his boss learns of his criminal past. Unable to earn a living, Lang decides to commit another robbery with help of sketchy associates, who provide even sketchier information about a safe supposedly loaded with treasure.

Lang is reluctant to commit another crime, given the fact he has been unable to see his daughter Cassie (Abbie Ryder Fortson), from whom he is denied contact by his ex-wife Maggie (Judy Greer, in a role that barely registers as a blip), and her new husband Paxton (Bobby Cannavale, a more substantial character), who is a less than accommodating.

Faced with destitution and eager to earn money to maintain a lifestyle that would enable him to see his daughter, Lang agrees to the robbery plan hatched by he and his three friends; Luis (Michael Pena), Kurt (David Dastmalchian) and Dave (T.I.). Unfortunately, Lang finds the robbery is part of an elaborate plan by the scientist Dr. Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) to allow an amazing suit of his own design to be stolen by the ex-convict, for reasons that become clearer later. The suit allows the wearer to shrink to the size of an ant but still retain his/her full-sized strength.

When the film begins, we see Pym twenty years earlier, when his corporation still bore his name. Faced with an unscrupulous executive board who want to sell his suit technology to the military, Pym refuses to share his plans lest the suit falls into enemy hands. As a result, Pym is dismissed from his position but buries the plans, though the board carries on the research, hoping to find or discover the key component of the suit.

Back in the present and unbeknownst to Lang, Pym wants the ex-convict to use his burgling expertise to steal the suit his former corporation has developed from his original plans. The new suit also enables the wearer to shrink to the size of an insect (in this case, a yellow jacket) but unlike Lang's, the yellow jacket suit comes equipped with weaponry.

Pym's daughter Hope (Evangeline Lilly) becomes a willing participant in the imminent theft of the yellow jacket, though her involvement represents a conflict of interest, due to her employment with Pym's former company. Hope was part of the voting majority that helped dismiss her father from Pym Industries. For Hope, the theft not only means stopping the sale of the suit to the military, but the plan also serves as means to reestablish relations with her father.

It is great fun watching Lang learn to use the ant suit. In an exercise where Lang is expected to run at full speed then pass through a keyhole and re-materialize in normal proportions, Lang crashes into the door repeatedly. Lang also learns that Pym has also developed a communications device that allows him to issue commands to ants, who will play key roles in the robbery attempt. Hope teaches Lang about the different varieties of ants he is to work with and how to command them to perform certain tasks.It is not uncommon for Lang to accidentally revert to normal size in the ant tunnels; an amusing development that allows us to chuckle at the sight of Lang's upper body suddenly sprouting up from the ground.

Another highly entertaining sequence involves a task Dr. Pym devises to further test Lang's skills in the ant suit. He assigns him a mission to steal an item from Stark Industries; a piece of technology he designed that is now in the hands of Tony Stark. Lang is dismayed to discover the complex he is asked to break into has been converted into Avengers' headquarters. The subsequent scenes where Black Falcon tries to prevent Ant-Man (Lang) from breaking into the complex demonstrates the ant suit's effectiveness. Black Falcon finds Ant-Man's constant shrinking and ability to punch a exasperating, in spite of his own technologically-sophisticated suit.

Pym's and Lang's nemesis is current CEO of what was formerly Pym Industries; Darren Cross (Corey Stoll), who has few qualms about exploiting the technology Dr. Pym developed.

The latter half of the story is the elaborate plan to steal back the suit Cross keeps securely inside corporate headquarters. Ant-Man leads an assault of ants as they ride a wave of water into the complex to locate the suit, only to find Cross has donned it himself. A showdown between Ant-Man and Yellow-Jacket follows soon after, which carries on beyond corporation property and ultimately into his former wife's home, where Cross hopes to kidnap Lang's daughter. A fierce battle ensues, which takes partly on a train set; an action sequence that comes with its own humorous moments.

Of course the film couldn't end without what has become a staple in Marvel adaptations; the sequel set-up. I will say no more.

As previously stated, the idea to make the movie action/comedy was a sound idea. The world doesn't need one more comic book movie with gravitas (though more are to come, I'm sure). It's nice to see a lighter superhero movie; one that doesn't leave one's ears ringing and head splitting with auditory aggression.

And unlike most superhero movies, performances are more the centerpiece of this film. Paul Rudd has to be one of the most likeable screen presences in the movie industry today but also one of the funniest. I'm glad we'll see more of him in Ant-Man films to come. Michael Douglas isn't an actor one usually finds Marvel adaptations but he proves to be as entertaining as Rudd. It was very pleasing to see Martin Donovan (always a welcome presence. I always thought him to be underrated and under-appreciated actor), who plays Mitchell Carson; another unscrupulous board member who is a collusive agent of Darren Cross' evil designs. Evangeline Lilly is charming and shares some nice chemistry with Rudd. We also learn we can expect to see more of her in future iterations.

One of the most inspired scenes in the movie shows Lang shrinking to the quantum level, after Pym warns him that entering such a realm may mean an eternity in sub-atomica. The sequence is visually imaginative and abstractly arresting while also providing sustained suspense.

I won't tell you Ant-Man is brilliant popcorn cinema but it is fun and diverting and a good excuse to seek refuge from angry summer weather. It appears we may see Scott Lang and Tony Stark together in the near future. It could be fun to watch Scott Lang and Tony Stark--the other funny Marvel superhero--engage in some amusing repartee. We'll wait and see. For now, I'll savor Reed's flick.