Ant-Man

This is what the critics are saying about the latest Marvel movie, Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania.

No—the middle hour is fun in that patented easygoing "Ant-Man" way." Ant-Man is no longer the pure Paul Rudd vehicle some folks accused it of being. They call it, “lot of fun, carried along by a charming gang of goofball heroes dropped into a weird and wonderful world to face a villain who's big enough to change the entire franchise.” There are many different types of people living within the Quantum Realm, but they’re all science fiction stereotypes,” it says. Here's what the reviewers are saying. Quantumania is entertaining in parts, perhaps a little slight and forgettable, despite amping up its sci-fi themes.

The latest in the superhero franchise is not without its pleasures, but is mostly a strange, headache inducing mess. Film : 'ANT-MAN AND THE WASP' (2018) ...

Janet has not been entirely clear with her family on the depth of her involvement in the quantum realm’s politics and warfare, thus emerging as a leader of sorts when she returns. The bizarre creatures, inhabitants, and spaceships of the world are often fun to watch, even as Star Wars and Dune remain too major of an influence to call any of this totally unique. But even they can’t quite hold the seams together here.

Scott Lang, aka Ant-Man, and his allies return to the big screen on Friday, years after the origin story in 2015's Ant-Man cameos in other Marvel films, ...

Phase 5 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is going big with its tiniest heroes, as Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania opens in theaters on February 17.

If it’s a shame the rest of the film is lacking that, there is at least enough of it to hang on to, and enough goofiness to have a laugh with, including some pretty cool ant shenanigans. To even wonder about the answer is to miss that the only real conqueror in “Quantumania” is the MCU. There's a fascinating world to explore here, and Ant-Man finally gets close to the full realization of the potential of his character and this concept, but it all, unfortunately, gets overtaken by the Conquerer. Even so, Quantumania works as a culmination of the Ant-Man series, a way to start things in motion for Phase 5, and a promising roadmap of where the Multiverse Saga is going. It's not a bad movie, per se, which is on some level probably a credit to the Marvel machine. Phase 5 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is going big with its tiniest heroes, as Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania opens in theaters on February 17.

The 31st film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe has scored only 53 per cent on the review aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes. It has now become only the second MCU ...

CNN.com's Brian Lowry wrote, "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania works on one key level, establishing Kang the Conqueror as a truly formidable and worthy villain. Joining him are Evangeline Lilly as Hope van Dyne, Kathryn Newton as the adult version of Cassie Lang, Michael Douglas as Hank Pym, and Michelle Pfeiffer as Janet van Dyne. The critical consensus reads, "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania mostly lacks the spark of fun that elevated earlier adventures, but Jonathan Majors' Kang is a thrilling villain poised to alter the course of the MCU."

Uh oh. That was my first thought when I saw the review scores rolling in for Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania, the third Ant-Man movie, but a seemingly ...

I do wonder if a few more reviews may sink Quantumania below Eternals, though I will say in the middle to bottom ranking order of MCU movies by critic scores, I think they got a long wrong. That’s obviously something DC can’t say, as the DCEU boasts a number of films under that mark, and early on often split between high audience scores for Snyder-era films and low critic scores. Taking place almost entirely in the Quantum Zone, the film is in turn almost completely CGI, and even in the trailers it looked like that could be a problem. Second, since the movie is actually out now, user scores are in and they are not just higher than critics, which you might expect, but much higher, currently at an 84%. That’s a dismal score for an MCU feature, and marks only the second time that an MCU movie has had a “rotten” (below 60%) score on the site, the first time being Eternals in 2021. The thrill isn't just gone, it's been buried beneath a swarm of plot contrivances and truly hideous CGI.” [Whynow](https://whynow.co.uk/read/ant-man-and-the-wasp-quantumania-review): “Visually, the film is messy and flat; the CGI is shockingly poor and the action looks muddled. It says something that out of 30+ MCU features in a decade and a half, that there are literally only two with sub 60% scores. Of course, many MCU fans may wait and see what audience scores are like. But I would be surprised if this was a huge disparity as this always seemed like a pretty risky film. What’s wrong with the movie? We know there’s currently a visual effects shortage in Hollywood, in part because of the demands of places like Marvel, and perhaps this was too much work given not enough time and the end result is just…not very good. They were never really considered top-tier Marvel movies but this is a huge drop.

Ant-Man 3 finds Paul Rudd's Ant-Man heading to the Quantum Realm to battle Jonathan Majors' Kang the Conqueror.

](https://www.dexerto.com/tv-movies/marvel-movies-in-order-listing-all-the-mcu-movies-in-order-of-release-1850815/) [Post-credit scenes explained](https://www.dexerto.com/tv-movies/ant-man-3-post-credit-scenes-explained-what-happens-at-the-end-of-quantumania-2058219/) [Bill Murray’s character explained](https://www.dexerto.com/tv-movies/who-does-bill-murray-play-in-ant-man-3-krylar-explained-2060713/) [Ending explained](https://www.dexerto.com/tv-movies/ant-man-3-ending-explained-who-lives-who-dies-and-whats-next-2059856/) [Will there be an Ant-Man 4?](https://www.dexerto.com/tv-movies/will-there-be-an-ant-man-4-2051142/) [Darren Cross as MODOK explained](https://www.dexerto.com/tv-movies/how-does-darren-cross-become-modok-in-ant-man-3-marvel-villain-explained-2063381/) [Who is Victor Timely?](https://www.dexerto.com/tv-movies/who-is-victor-timely-ant-man-3-character-explained-2063153/) [Has Kang already killed an Avenger?](https://www.dexerto.com/tv-movies/ant-man-3-has-kang-the-conqueror-already-killed-an-avenger-2062323/) [Ant-Man 3 Easter Eggs](https://www.dexerto.com/tv-movies/ant-man-3-easter-eggs-the-best-cameos-jokes-marvel-references-explained-2059936/) [Ant-Man 3 review](https://www.dexerto.com/tv-movies/ant-man-and-the-wasp-quantumania-review-marvels-phase-5-gets-off-to-dull-disappointing-start-2060778/) [Quantumania characters and cast](https://www.dexerto.com/tv-movies/ant-man-3-cast-all-characters-and-actors-in-quantumania-2060400/) [Who is Kang the Conqueror?](https://www.dexerto.com/tv-movies/who-is-kang-the-conqueror-in-ant-man-3-new-marvel-villain-explained-2062078/)

The movie has received mixed and lukewarm reviews from critics, though, with the threequel getting the second-lowest score on Rotten Tomatoes of any Marvel ...

[The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2023/feb/14/ant-man-and-the-wasp-quantumania-review-paul-rudd-kang-the-conqueror?CMP=twt_a-culture_b-gdnculture) (opens in new tab)'s Ellen E. [Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania](https://www.gamesradar.com/ant-man-and-the-wasp-quantumania-review-marvel/) is hitting the big screen imminently, kicking off [Marvel Phase 5](https://www.gamesradar.com/marvel-phase-5-release-dates-new-mcu-movies-shows-lineup/). [CNN](https://edition.cnn.com/2023/02/14/entertainment/antman-and-the-wasp-quantumania-review/index.html) (opens in new tab)'s Brian Lowry says that the movie "works on one key level, establishing Kang the Conqueror as a truly formidable and worthy villain. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania arrives in theaters on February 17. [Mashable](https://mashable.com/article/ant-man-and-the-wasp-quantumania-marvel-review) (opens in new tab)'s Kristy Puchko, the movie is "a chaotic, woefully unfunny mess that has forgotten why its hero was such fun. The follow-up to 2018's [Ant-Man and the Wasp](https://www.gamesradar.com/ant-man-and-the-wasp-review/) sees the titular characters, played by Paul Rudd and Evangeline Lilly, and their respective families transported to the quantum realm where they must face off against Kang the Conqueror (Jonathan Majors).

It's a real indictment of any movie as unrelentingly loud, bombastic and big when you turn to your plus one in the screening room and find them asleep.

The post-Endgame era of Marvel has been crying out for some kindling, something to throw the afterburners on; this is just more ugly cement. In the meantime, daughter Cassie (Kathryn Newton), who has seen no end of shit and is presumably in desperate need of a therapist, has been getting herself in heaps of trouble, protesting the crisis of homelessness in the wake of the snap. The object, then, is to get back to Big Earth: fortunately, Janet knows a guy from her own 30-year marooning down on the Quantum side, who they meet up with in a jovial (again, It's a shame he's given so much of that aforementioned, dawdling exposition to deal with. It's around an hour in that we're properly acquainted with Majors' Kang, by far the most compelling element at play: he emanates movie star gravitas, helped by the fact that he's the only guy who really seems committed to the bit. It's a real indictment of any movie as unrelentingly loud, bombastic and big when you turn to your plus one in the screening room and find them asleep.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania has received mixed reviews from critics, debuting with a rather low score on Rotten Tomatoes.

[Tom Holland’s 4th Spider-Man film officially in the works at Marvel](https://metro.co.uk/2023/02/15/tom-hollands-4th-spider-man-film-officially-in-the-works-at-marvel-18285232/?ico=more_text_links) [Harrison Ford to join Marvel as US President Thaddeus Ross in upcoming Captain America movie](https://metro.co.uk/2023/02/15/marvel-harrison-ford-to-join-captain-america-cast-as-thaddeus-ross-18285557/?ico=more_text_links) [Michael Douglas](https://metro.co.uk/tag/michael-douglas/) as Dr Hank Pym and [Michelle Pfieffer ](https://metro.co.uk/tag/michelle-pfeiffer/)in the role of Janet van Dyne, andeven comedian Bill Murray in a villain role. [Marvel](https://metro.co.uk/tag/marvel/) Cinematic Universe. [mostly unimpressed](https://metro.co.uk/2023/02/15/paul-rudd-in-ant-man-marks-a-sexy-new-phase-for-the-marvel-franchise-18281765/). [Metro.co.uk](https://metro.co.uk) entertainment team by emailing us [email protected], calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our [Submit Stuff](https://metro.co.uk/submit-stuff/) page – we’d love to hear from you. [The Washington Post](https://www.washingtonpost.com/movies/2023/02/14/ant-man-and-the-wasp-quantumania-movie-review/) decried the loss of ‘sprightly pacing and lighthearted humour’ the Ant-Man movies are known for, writing that it ‘succumbed to… [ to land in cinemas](https://metro.co.uk/2023/02/12/jonathan-majors-studied-paul-rudd-for-hours-to-be-good-antagonist-18269946/) on February 17, almost five years since its predecessor. [Entertainment Weekly](https://ew.com/movies/movie-reviews/ant-man-and-the-wasp-quantumania-review/) calling it ‘fun’ and ‘bonkers,’ and [ Variety](https://variety.com/2023/film/reviews/ant-man-and-the-wasp-quantumania-review-paul-rudd-evangeline-lilly-jonathan-majors-1235514462/) labelling it ‘bedazzling, relentless and numbing, then fun again just when you think you’ve had enough.’ [Comment Now](#metro-comments-container) [Associated Press ](https://apnews.com/article/ant-man-and-the-wasp:-quantumania-film-reviews-movies-peyton-reed-paul-rudd-b1bea5a54041bb6a4aed34f3d0569c90)was of the opinion Quantumania was ‘trying to be too many things,’ while the [ Los Angeles Times](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2023-02-14/ant-man-and-the-wasp-quantumania-review-marvel-paul-rudd) scathingly called it a ‘bore.’ [Paul Rudd](https://metro.co.uk/tag/paul-rudd/) return as Scott Lang for his third headlining film. [Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania](https://metro.co.uk/2023/01/10/ant-man-and-the-wasp-quantumania-trailer-delivers-quantum-realm-mayhem-18069729/) has received mixed reviews from critics, debuting with a rather low score on Rotten Tomatoes.

The third film in Marvel's Ant-Man trilogy sends the MCU's tinest titans into a subatomic universe, where they — and we the viewers — get stuck.

The characters of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, at least, are flat. Just look at the standard line item in the budget for, say, the Mysterious Glowing Object That's Terribly Terribly Important To Everyone In Whichever Marvel Movie This Happens To Be — in this case, that yellow orb thingy with all those metal rings flying around inside it that Kang wants, for reasons I can't remember now. ... Oh and also throw in a few bucks on coconut oil while you're at it. The voice actors record their tracks in separate sound booths at separate times. In previous Ant-Man films, we may all have looked past the thinness of his characterization, because the charming Ruddishness of the performance blinded us to it. She might as well be one of the CGI barstools.) But as I sat there watching Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, I started to wonder if perhaps, back when we as nerdy little kids wished for it, all those long years ago, someone snuck a monkey's paw into the whole affair. But in absolutely no way does it look like they did, and it sure as hell doesn't feel like they did. They could have made a film together at any time during that period and now, finally, here they are and here it is. When we eventually get a The Making Of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, we might well learn that those three actors actually filmed that scene together. Even more mind-boggling: This third Ant-Man film posits the purple, time-traveling despot Kang the Conqueror as a bad guy to take seriously. This time out, it's the entire Ant-Family that gets sucked down into the MCU's own microscopic Whoville, with its sunless, surreal, slimy Color Out of Space production design.

Paul Rudd returns in the third instalment of the Ant-Man trilogy.

The first Ant-Man film has an 83 percent score, while its sequel Ant-Man and The Wasp sits at 87 percent. At least Quantumania has one of the best casts in a Marvel film.” Jonathan Majors is an absolute beast as Kang the Conqueror. The MCU’s Phase Five starts on uneven footing.” This marks just the second time an MCU film has received a rotten score, following 2021’s Eternals which currently sits at 47 percent. Making his MCU feature debut is Jonathan Majors as villain Kang the Conqueror, who arrives to shake up the future of the franchise. The superhero sequel is set to hit cinemas on Friday (February 17), and critics’ reviews have already come flooding in online. Its official synopsis reads: “Super-Hero partners Scott Lang and Hope Van Dyne return to continue their adventures as Ant-Man and the Wasp. [Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania – release date, cast and everything you need to know](https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/whats-on/film-news/ant-man-wasp-quantumania--25885083) [TikTok](https://www.tiktok.com/@curiouslymedia), [Facebook ](https://www.facebook.com/CuriouslyMedia)and [Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania](https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/whats-on/film-news/marvels-ant-man-written-very-26153565) have dropped, and they’re not good. [Marvel Cinematic Universe’s](https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/whats-on/film-news/marvels-ant-man-written-very-26153565) (MCU) hotly anticipated Phase 5 and introduce the franchise’s next major villain post Avengers: Endgame.

This is only the second Marvel Cinematic Universe film to earn a Rotten rating. Jonathan Majors shines as Kang the Conqueror, but the film is an overstuffed ...

"Michael Pena's absence should have been a warning," wrote Kristy Puchko in her review of "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania" for Mashable. "Ant-Man and the Wasp in Quantumania" held a 53% "rotten" rating from 148 reviews, as of Wednesday afternoon. "The result is an undercooked, overstuffed action movie that feels like a shadow of better pulpy adventure sendups before it." to buckle at the knees," O'Sullivan wrote. "Ultimately, 'Quantumania' does a middling job of both. The film itself is anything but light. There, they face off against Kang, a dimension-hopping tyrant who is trying to escape from the realm after being exiled there for his rampages across time and space. (Majors will also appear as the antagonist in next month's "Creed III." Critics praised Majors' performance in the film, as the actor was able to bring gravitas to the the role and exude the kind of menace that made previous big bad Thanos (Josh Brolin) such a compelling, and threatening, villain. He was introduced in the Disney+ show "Loki." However, Kang's larger-than-life presence overshadowed the quirky and charming narrative that fans have come to expect from Ant-Man side quests, critics say. Peyton Reed's previous Ant-Man installments offered the MCU a smaller-than-life look at what it means to be a hero.

The loopy humor and style of the first two “Ant-Man” movies have been flattened by the M.C.U.'s franchise formatting.

The feeling of giddy wonder is what distinguishes the first two “Ant-Man” films; they help to restore the brand name of Marvel to a common noun and to a verb, and they do so starting from the top, with a sense of the filmmaker’s own experience—his ardent curiosity, free-ranging inventiveness, and imaginative sympathy. What’s absent is a sense of experience—conveying to viewers the extraordinary and quasi-miraculous aspects of what the characters are undergoing, observing, and doing. The best thing about “Quantumania” is, surprisingly, its script (by Jeff Loveness), which is like saying that the best thing about a building is its blueprint. The occasional spectacular idea—such as the weirdness unleashed when Scott is caught in a “probability storm”—gets submerged in a sludge of imagery that offers little but the concept itself, unmoored from its surroundings, its implications, and, above all, the perspective of the characters. It’s sadly appropriate for the degree zero of superhero-franchise synthetics to have been reached, or asymptotically approximated, in the infinitesimal realm in which “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” is set. The scant grounding and bare inner life of the characters give the remarkable actors little to work with. (The MacGuffin is a “multiversal engine core” that Kang needs.) They also encounter the principled underground leader Jentorra (Katy M. The second film in the cycle, “ [Ant-Man and the Wasp](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-front-row/ant-man-and-the-wasp-should-have-been-the-godfather-part-ii-of-superhero-movies),” felt tethered—Reed unleashed intermittent flourishes of inspiration, but now they were completely bound by the M.C.U.’s gravitational field, pulled down to the franchise’s established map, and sent forth to do their duty. Its modelling on the “Star Wars” template is made all too explicit by a scene (the liveliest in the film) that’s a parody of the celebrated cantina set piece. (As one of the newly arrived fivesome exclaims, “There’s quantum people in the Quantum Realm.”) It’s not just humans but also a humanoid who can read minds (William Jackson Harper), plus vaguely human-shaped beings with glowing blue heads, others with green floret-topped heads that Hank likens to broccoli, lizardy hybrids, jellyfish-like floaters, gigantic flying stingrays, and buildings that are alive. Hank Pym (Michael Douglas), who devised the technology with which they shrink down to bug size yet exert colossal force; and Janet van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer), Hank’s wife and Hope’s mother (and the original Wasp), who was trapped for thirty years in the infinitesimal, subatomic Quantum Realm. Just as the trouble with Bible-thumping is the thumping, not the Bible, the problem with superhero-franchise movies isn’t the source material but the uses to which it’s put.