Above all else, Ant-Man and The Waspis yet another in the MCU’s winning streak. It’s not quite a heist movie, not completely a romcom and not totally an action-adventure, but instead delights in dancing between genres. Its comedy is wonderfully offbeat, its heart is huge and emblazoned on its sleeve, and its intentions are wildly optimistic and bright. It’s so bright, in fact, that it may help to soothe that Infinity War ache, if only for a little while.
Ant-Man & The Wasp somehow manages to organize laughs, action, theme, small MCU connections and even fairly touching ideas about family, responsibility and what it means to be a hero all housed inside of an undersized blockbuster. It never reinvents the wheel and it might even be a little slight, but Ant-Man & The Wasp proves size is relative and always in the tiny eye of the beholder. [B+]
SOURCE: The Playlist
Given that there's really nothing that the filmmakers could have done to disguise the truth of the matter, which is that Ant-Man really is a pipsqueak compared to the A-cast of Marvel superheroes, Marvel has done a pretty good job with its B team. After the heavy lifting involved in the studio's most recent blockbusters, Black Panther and Avengers: Infinity War, Ant-Man lays out a welcome picnic.
All in all, Ant-Man and the Wasp represents Marvel Studios at its best. The movie balances exciting action, well-timedhumor, and a heartfelt emotional storyline to great effect, letting the heroes shine in their own unique way while also tying the movie into the larger MCU. After the weighty and stuffed team-up that was Avengers: Infinity War, Ant-Man and the Wasp provides a return to form for Marvel. It operates as a reminder of how well the studio works on a smaller scale, even as fans may be more interested in Marvel's loftier goals of tying together a decade's worth of movies for a grand event. [3.5/5]
SOURCE: Screen Rant
Ant-Man and the Wasp is a full two hours, yet even when it’s pulling out all the stops, the movie never gives you that sinking sensation you can get when a comic-book film’s extended climax kicks in, and you feel the visual-effects army taking over the movie. That’s because Peyton Reed invests every moment with personality. That’s not quite the same thing as humanity. But it’s enough to qualify as the miniature version.
SOURCE: Variety
Peyton Reed deftly manages the light comedy of Ant-Man and the Wasp and while the movie acquits itself well at playing with size comparisons, in totality, it is a small movie. At times you forget there are even villains, and you could probably do away with the antagonists entirely and throw up different obstacles in the attempt to save Janet. But the world isn’t at stake, and there’s something refreshing about that. It’s about a family trying to repair itself, and healing fractured bonds. There may not be much depth to Ant-Man and the Wasp, but it’s a nice, fun movie and in times like these, that’s oddly more than enough. [B]
SOURCE: Collider
Ultimately, the film is hard to take seriously, even by MCU standards; we don’t really doubt whether or not Janet will be found since, hey, there’s Michelle Pfeiffer on the poster! But for audiences who like Marvel movies at their tongue-in-cheekiest, this sequel provides some breezy fun while we wait to find out just how permanent Thanos’ genocidal schemes really are. Dexter Riley would approve.
SOURCE: The Wrap
If you look at all of the MCU sequels: Iron Man 2, Thor: The Dark World, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, and Captain America: The Winter Soldier; Ant-Man and The Wasp is definitely in the top-tier. Much like the first Ant-Man, it’s one I’ll probably be re-watching a lot in the future. Definitely do not miss it in theaters, and definitely see it before you see Avengers 4.
SOURCE: MCU Cosmic
Consistently entertaining, AMATW is a blast of pure popcorn fun, and something of a palate cleanser after the weightier likes of Black Panther and Infinity War. As ever stick around for the two end-credit stings: one’s a throwaway gag, but the other is absolutely crucial… [4/5]
Director Peyton Reed is a steady comedy director. He tries his best to inject the action scenes with size-swapping intrigue, but you’ve seen these manic punchfests before. The film has a bland look —gray labs, glorby quantum blobs left over from Doctor Strange. And the Wasp has a cool set of “stingers” that fire energy bullet things at people. That feels like a cheat, somehow. If you have energy bullet things, why do you need to fight the bad guys in a heavily-choreographed body-shifting twirlfight? Just shoot them with the energy bullets. I know, I know, the comics. [C]
SOURCE: Entertainment Weekly
While Ant-Man's technically “the star,” this is most definitely the Wasp’s movie to own, and the smirking, enjoyably no-nonsense role fits Lilly well. It's all romantic tension and witty banter between Scott and Hope, who needles him about his semi-Avenger status: When he gets stuck the size of a kindergartener, she chides him, “If only Cap could see you now.” Her verbal jabs pack as much punch as her fighting ones, and after spending the first movie with her as a capable woman yearning to be a superhero, watching Wasp finally take flight and foil bad guys with a ginormous Hello Kitty Pez dispenser is a cathartic blast.
SOURCE: USA Today
Ant-Man and The Wasp is a creative and self-contained adventure with Lilly's new heroine stealing the stage. As she said in the post-credits scene of the original Ant-Man film, "It's about damn time." With references to the larger Marvel Cinematic Universe and seeds discretely planted for future films, Ant-Man and The Wasp is tremendous fun, action-packed, and Marvel's best second movie in a single franchise since Captain America: The Winter Soldier. [5/5]
But as massive as Scott grows — or as wibbly as things get in the mercurial jellybean hurricane that is the Quantum Realm — the film still feels comparatively minor and light-hitting. There’s no getting away from the fact that Ant-Man And The Wasp, as fun as it is, lacks the sheer, mind-blowing heft of Infinity War. Or, for that matter, the scope and thematic muscle of Black Panther. Or the all-the-way-out-there, inventive deliriousness of Thor: Ragnarok. In this new era of Marvel over-achievement, it really does feel like a lesser work. [3/5]
SOURCE: Empire Online
As a narrative theme, Ant-Man and The Wasp chose Scott’s need for a partner to help him be a hero. It’s a clear call to the film’s title, which finally gives the Wasp — Marvel’s first female superhero and the only woman among the founding members of the comic book Avengers — the title billing she deserves. But it has a much stronger pattern of father-daughter partnerships, like Scott and Cassie and Hank and Hope, that give Ant-Man and the Wasp its emotional through line.
SOURCE: Polygon
Ant-Man and The Wasp is bolder, funnier, and far more daring than the film that preceded it, but also slightly less even and narratively tight. The second solo adventure for the Marvel Cinematic Universe's shrinking heroes is far from perfect, but you'll have so much fun watching it that you will likely find yourself readily willing to forgive the imperfections when they rear their heads. [3.5/5]
What’s great about both “Ant-Man” movies is that they give all this exposition with a whole lot of comedy.There’s Rudd’s gifted talents as a comedian (he’s a credited screenwriter on both movies) as well as the comedy of the tech involved in “Ant-Man.” When you have the power to shrink or enlarge anything at any moment, that gives you an incredible tool to keep the story from getting stale.
SOURCE: Business Insider
Throughout, Reed's sprightly direction is matched by a consistent brightness scarcely found in Marvel films. Ant-Man and the Waspis downright giddy with the notion of characters having the power to make a difference, and this energy informs everything from the unabashedly fun action to the supporting turns, especially Michael Peña as Luis, once again stealing the show with his motormouthed monologues. Because dour thematic arcs, apocalyptic stakes, and ironic wit have defined Marvel and superhero cinema writ large for so long now, Ant-Man and its sequel's old-fashioned vision of superheroism feels vitally, and ironically, fresh. These films are ebulliently funny, visually inventive, and above all passionately committed to the idea that heroism isn't a burden but an uplifting realization of our best qualities. [3/4]
SOURCE: Slant
It is a little strange to go from the madness of Infinity War to the relative calm of Ant-Man and the Wasp. (The film mostly ignores the events of its direct MCU predecessor, although its big cliffhanger ending is addressed.) Ideally, this film would have come out at a time when it didn’t have to deal with Infinity War’s fallout at all. On the other hand, Infinity War’s dense plot meant it had almost no time for the the smaller character moments that are a Marvel trademark. Fittingly, Ant-Man and the Wasp has plenty of them. [6/10]