'Ant-Man and the Wasp' Review

After the events of Captain America: Civil War, Scott Lang must grapple with the consequences of his choices as a superhero and a father by submitting himself to house arrest for two years as punishment for not abiding by the Sokivia Accords. When approached by Hope van Dyne and Dr. Hank Pym towards the end of his sentence, Lang must once again don the Ant-Man suit and fight alongside the Wasp as the dynamic duo journeys to bring back Janet van Dyne from the Quantum Realm. However, the urgent mission soon leads to startling revelations from the past as the duo find themselves backed up against a corner amidst facing a powerful new adversary with dangerous technology.

Ant-Man and the Wasp rounds out Marvel's ten year journey as the twentieth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and their third release of the year. Considering that information, you'd probably expect the superhero sequel to be bearing the weight of immense pressure. That's not exactly the case though, as Ant-Man and the Wasp feels light and breezy when compared to the recent dramatic additions in Marvel's filmography. As a smaller self-contained story, it's a refreshing palette cleanser following the severity and weight of Avengers: Infinity War's heavy cliff-hanger. I'm sure many Marvel fans are expecting some semblance of a crossover there, or at least a tease towards the still untitled Avengers 4, and to that I'll simply say you won't be disappointed. An expected Stan Lee cameo is included as well as two post-credits scenes, but you know the drill by now so just be sure and stick around when the credits start rolling. Otherwise, you're just going to look like a chump in the glaring, judgmental eyes of Marvel fanboys all around you.

To get back on track, Peyton Reed flies back in to direct the size-changing duo in their first outing together while the screenplay is credited to star Paul Rudd along with the quartet of Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers, Andrew Barrer, and Gabriel Ferrari. Last time around, Reed didn't have full control of Ant-Man... There was the unfortunate matter and circumstance of creative differences between the studio and Edgar Wright that lead to Reed getting the gig just before filming. However, this time around, you can tell Marvel gave Reed full creative control to do as he pleased. While I wouldn't go as far to saying Ant-Man and the Wasp is an exceptionally well-directed blockbuster, his stamp of a approval on it is clear because the zany wackiness audiences gravitated towards in the first film has now been dialed to an eleven. Whether that will be controversial or not remains to be seen, but I've already seen a substantial split of people's opinion on my Twitter feed. Whatever the case, I'm expecting the audience response to be something akin to the reception towards Iron Man 3 rather than the full-fledged fanboy rage towards Star Wars: The Last Jedi.

Anyways, I apologize for getting caught up in all that chatter, but I felt it was worth mentioning at the very least. As is often the case for sequels, Ant-Man and the Wasp had its eyes set on being another small-scaled, self-contained story with bigger action, heart, and humor. At the end of the day, I'd say it met its goal because it's about on par with the original in my book. While the first film is more focused and grounded in reality, I can't help but slightly prefer the hilarious hijinks present in Ant-Man and the Wasp. I'd actually liken it to Saturday morning cartoon (I say this in a positive light). There's little thematic importance to the journey beyond demonstrating the importance of family and teamwork as we've seen a million times before, but it's still a fun, briskly paced adventure the whole family can enjoy. 

As you'd expect, Reed and crew have found new creative ways to inventively exploit the size-changing gimmick, and it totally works in the film's favor. Now that Giant-Man's on the table thanks to the airport battle in Civil War (which comes up quite often here), there are new toys at Reed's disposal and he can quite literally think bigger in regards to planning out the film's beats of action and humor. On that note, the action sequences are a noticeable improvement over the original and I also found the film to be also much funnier than the first. A win-win for a sequel to an action-comedy. 

I'd also say the sequel's visual effects are among the best I've seen all year. While I wouldn't go as far to saying they beat out Infinity War's grandiose graphics overall, the cinematic de-aging technique that Marvel often exploits is at its very best here and there were no sketchy instances of uncanny video game-esque renderings or poor green screen work which can sometimes be a bane to Marvel (ie. Black Panther and Thor: Ragnarok). The production design inside Pym's new lab is also visually appealing so it definitely deserves a mention as well. 

Like the first, Ant-Man and the Wasp succeeds first and foremost on the merits of its cast. There are quite a few exciting new additions to the ensemble as well as plenty of familiar faces returning from the first film, but Paul Rudd and Evangeline Lily are front and center as the first to co-lead a Marvel feature. Up to this point, everything's been team-based or driven by a solo character with supporting cast, which makes it all the more refreshing to see Scott Lang and Hope van Dyne share title billing. A significant story element from the original was the implication that Hope might be more qualified to wear the Ant-Man suit than Scott, and the sequel certainly pushes that notion even further...

The three year wait to see Lily step up to lead status was well worth it because Wasp is a badass. It was nice to see her steal the show without coming across as an in-your-face feminist. My only insignificant issue with her being such an awesome component of the film is that it often comes at the expense of Scott Lang looking like a total doofus. Granted, I guess that's kind of why Paul Rudd was cast to begin with, but still... I also appreciated that they didn't spin it as if she necessarily needed Lang's help to get things done. Instead, they went for the age-old message that teamwork makes the dream work. She's adept, skillful, and a cunning combatant, but even she can't do it all alone. 

On the flipside, Paul Rudd's winsome charm shines through once again as he provided some of the biggest laughs once more. His chemistry with Lily is even better this time around as the nature of their relationship has significantly evolved, and it continues to change over the course of the film. Through it all, Cassie remains a sweet centerpiece to the whole shebang. Her dynamic with her dad is absolutely adorable and I totally bought into it on the basis of Rudd and Abby Ryder Forston's performances. In terms of supporting characters, she totally stole every scene she was in.

Veteran actor Michael Douglas is also back as Dr. Hank Pym and gets ample opportunity to showcase his character's broken humanity in some of the more intense emotional moments. Opposite Douglas, Janet van Dyne is played by the excellent Michelle Pfeiffer who is essentially the major McGuffin everyone's after. I'd compare her role to Mark Hamill's in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, but the major difference was that Pfeiffer at least had some dialogue. I wouldn't go as far to say Pfeiffer was wasted in this film, but she didn't have a lot to do and that may disappoint some. Another notable actor featured in the film was Laurence Fishburne as Dr. Bill Foster. Fishburne was in it a lot more than I had expected and had an interesting role in the grand scheme of things that I'd rather not spoil. I'll just say what everyone already knows... Fishburne is a highly qualified actor and it didn't feel like he phoned in his performance at all.

Filling out the supporting ensemble, Michael Peña, T.I., David Dastmalchian, Bobby Cannavale, and Judy Greer all do great work with what's provided to them. The trio of Peña, T.I., and Dastmalchian were particularly hilarious in notable sequences. You can tell that Reed and crew took note of people gravitating to Luis in the original though because Peña is in the sequel significantly more than he was last time around. It's not a bad thing because his eccentric character is such a delight, but simply an observation I made about how Reed likely reacted to the response towards the first film. 

Meanwhile, Ant-Man and the Wasp has a very interesting villain situation... There are multiple ANT-agonistic forces, but not really one specific, clear-cut villain so to speak. First up, Ghost turns out to be a compelling character with a sympathetic cause, but is more ANT-agonist than villain. Thanks to Hannah John-Kamen, Ghost has a powerful screen presence and her action scenes are pretty cool, but I ultimately wished she had factored more into the plot. Another character in the stable of ANT-agonists would be Sonny Burch played by Walton Goggins, and I was woefully disappointed by the disposable role he wound up in. Goggins is an immensely talented actor, but his character was honestly wasted here. The other ANT-agonistic force which isn't quite villainous would be the FBI. The head agent checking in on Lang is Jimmy Woo, portrayed by Randall Park, and he was a hilarious addition whenever onscreen.

With a stronger emotional core and bigger action, the tiny dynamic duo's first team-up takes off as a slightly superior sequel, but is unable to fully spread its wings on the basis of being light-hearted popcorn fluff. Marvel fans will surely find it worthwhile for the extra ANT-icipation it brings to Avengers 4, but the adventure may also prove too cartoonish to some. However, I thought it lived up to the buzz and I c-AN'T wait to be stung again. 

Film Assessment: B+

'Tomb Raider' Review

Tomb Raider accompanies Lara Croft, the fiercely independent daughter of a missing adventurer, as she embarks on a harrowing journey to solve the mystery of her father's disappearance. As a result of her perilous quest, Lara winds up marooned on the same island where her father disappeared seven years ago. Suddenly, the stakes couldn't be higher for Lara as she must survive against all odds armed with only her sharp mind, blind faith, and inherently stubborn spirit.

It's no secret that video games haven't quite found sure-fire success in the medium of film. There's yet to be a critical darling and very few have found fortune at the box office (Sorry, but Scott Pilgrim vs. the World and Wreck-It Ralph don't count). Many have dubbed this long running streak of flops to be a "video game curse," and audiences have been eagerly awaiting an entertaining adaptation that would end this jinx and open the door for quality features based on video games. In 2016, there seemed to be hope on the horizon in the form of Warcraft and Assassin's Creed but neither proved worthy of the feat and fell flat critically and financially. Now, eyes have turned upon Tomb Raider to be the breakthrough breadwinner and I suppose you're all wondering if it performed under pressure.

After a longwinded awards season, a palette cleanser in the form of an action-adventure flick is just what one needs to prepare for stacked season of blockbusters. Thankfully, this 2018 reiteration of Tomb Raider proved up to the task! Helmed by Norwegian film director Roar Uthaug with writing credits going to Geneva Robertson-Dworet, Alastair Siddons, and Evan Daugherty, this incarnation serves as both an adaptation of the 2013 video game reboot and a reboot of the Angelina Jolie led Lara Croft: Tomb Raider series from the early 2000s. Talk about rebootception!

Even though I admittedly didn't have the highest of expectations for Tomb Raider due to never having played the game, Uthaug cleared the bar for me and delivered on the exciting action-adventure film I felt the trailers promised. Despite the unpracticality of the film's physics, there was a sense that the stakes were high and characters were vulnerable thanks to the intensity of the action. In the moment, you truly believed Lara could die at any minute because of the suspenseful situations she found herself in. Indiana Jones, The Mummy (1999), and National Treasure all come to mind as comparable franchises in terms of high stakes, enjoyable archeological action-adventure.

Again, while I haven't played the game, a lot of the situations seemed as though they were translating game mechanics anytime Lara solved a puzzle or escaped a perilous predicament, and I found that to only enhance the adventure aspect of things. In truth, this film had just about everything I wanted last year's reboot of The Mummy to deliver on. 

On the flipside, the CGI was wildly inconsistent. There were certain moments with noticeable green screen (as seen above) and others you'd hardly consider to have been altered by a computer. It simply varied from occasion to occasion as is often the case with visual effects in these modern big budget bonanzas. 

Of course, Tomb Raider carries the burden of some pacing problems and uneven storytelling that will leave the viewer to occasionally question why characters didn't simply act another way or do something else to get out of a troubling dilemma. On top of that, the story itself isn't all too original so some story beats come across as genre tropes or cliché in your mind. However, none of this ever compromised the film as a whole and the origin story elements were handled quite well as it's easy to see how Lara went from Point A to Point B when all is said-and-done. In fact, I was able to invest myself in Lara as a character quite quickly largely thanks to Alicia Vikander's strong showing. 

If there was one hurdle this production had to get over above all else, it was the recasting of Lara Croft. While I wouldn't say Jolie's take on the character is quite iconic, audiences are more familiar with that over-sexualized version and the video game itself. As the promotional material for the film made its way online, an unfortunate issue of body shaming across the internet arose that ranged from making fun of the actress' neck to her bust size... Ridiculous... I know. Thankfully, enough internet users stood up to the plate and repelled the criticism quite maturely. 

Anyways, Vikander proves to be more than up to the task of shutting down toxic fans with her committed performance. She not only underwent the necessary training and dieting to properly portray the character's athletic physicality, but took things a step further by performing a number of the stunts herself. Of course, that's all meaningless if she couldn't act... But this is an Academy Award winning actress we're taking about, and Vikander dedicates herself physically, mentally, and emotionally to the role. All in all, Vikander imbues Lara Croft with the proper balance of determination, intelligence, skill, and emotional weight to come out on top as a capable, yet vulnerable female heroine whose abilities are a bit more tempered and realistic than those of the superheroes currently dominating the cinema screens.

As an antagonist, Walton Goggins' Mathias Vogel comes across as a menacing in large part to some great acting from Goggins, but is ultimately underserved by the screenplay to be little more than a two-dimensional baddie on paper. In the ranks of supporting cast members, Dominic West and Daniel Wu do well with their sizable roles and are mostly responsible for the film's comedic and emotional beats where they each are able to excel.

While not quite the game changer many were hoping for, Tomb Raider is a step in the right direction for video game movies. Warner Bros. and Metro Goldwyn Meyer have excavated a forgotten franchise and revitalized it to be one brimming with plenty of exciting possibilities. Under the right guidance, I hope they raid this tomb for all its worth!

Film Assessment: B

'The Hateful Eight' Review

Nominated For: Best Supporting Actress; Jennfer Jason Leigh, Best Original Score, and Best Cinematography.

Won: Best Original Score.

The Hateful Eight is the eighth film to be both written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. This film very unique in the fact that it was filmed in 70 mm and is actually being projected in the 70 mm format in some theaters. I didn't see The Hateful Eight in this format but I do intend on seeing the 70 mm version for my second viewing of the film. Another unique aspect of the 70 mm version of The Hateful Eight's that it has both an intermission and an overture. The digital version I viewed also featured the overture and I can say that the overture allows for some incredible awe-inspiring cinematography showcasing the beauty of a winter wasteland. Tarantino brings this Western Mystery to life through the witty dialogue and interesting vile characters that he crafts so well. Tarantino manages to do the impossible and make the audience care about these foul characters. All of the performances on display make every character quite engaging and help propel the mystery of the story. Samuel L. Jackson gives one of his best performances in film to date since Pulp Fiction. Kurt Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Tim Roth, Michael Madon, and Bruce Dern along with the rest of the supporting cast all help bolster the film breathing life into each of their disgusting characters and proving great performances. Be forewarned that there is quite a bit of gore and some appalling vulgarities, which are a staple of Tarantino's, so just keep that in mind if you are planning on seeing the film or considering it. I quite enjoyed The Hateful Eight and certainly plan on viewing the 70 mm version of the film in the near future. The Hateful Eight is one of Tarantino's best and fans of Tarantino's work will love it.

Film Assessment: A-