(3 / 4)
Featuring winning performances from its titular characters and inventive visual gags, Ant-Man and the Wasp is a buzzy feel-good Summer popcorn movie, even if the story’s familiarity serves as a prime example of Marvel’s worst tendencies when it comes to sequels.
In a release strategy reminiscent of 2015’s Ant-Man, we once again find a small-stakes adventure featuring the well-meaning but morally grey Scott Lang following arguably the most ambitious and grand story yet with Infinity War. Although never critical or financial failures, Marvel has had a mixed track record in terms of ingenuity when it comes to their sequels. On one hand we have films like Thor: Ragnarok and Captain America: The Winter Solider which took risks in order to produce superior films to their prior films. On the other hand, however, some sequel efforts such as Avengers: Age of Ultron and Thor: The Dark World are almost carbon copies of their predecessors and despite being enjoyable, they end up coming off as shallow and lazy. Unfortunately, Ant-Man and the Wasp is more Thor: The Dark World than Thor: Ragnarok as it is essentially a retread of the first film’s plot points, leading to a somewhat disappointing chapter for a largely phenomenal Phase 3 of Marvel films. Yet, the film has a lot going for it, and despite being disappointing by Marvel’s standard, Ant-Man and the Wasp is still one of the more enjoyable Summer blockbusters around.