© 2024 KSUT Public Radio
NPR News and Music Discovery for the Four Corners
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Review: 'Ant-Man And The Wasp'

MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:

At the end of the Marvel movie "Avengers: Infinity War," there were a lot of unanswered questions. Now, the question, where was Ant-Man - that was maybe not the most urgent question. But our critic Bob Mondello says the answer to that question does figure in the new movie "Ant-Man And The Wasp" sort of.

BOB MONDELLO, BYLINE: Did we know that Ant-Man was under house arrest?

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "ANT-MAN AND THE WASP")

PAUL RUDD: (As Ant-Man) Can I just wait inside? 'Cause I'm not supposed to be out here.

MONDELLO: ...For the last two years apparently. I'm not going to pretend I remember the original "Ant-Man" movie all that well. What I do remember is that it was pretty funny and that Paul Rudd's Scott Lang made a nice, kind of unassuming change from the broad-shouldered superheroes elsewhere.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "ANT-MAN AND THE WASP")

RUDD: (As Ant-Man) I seem to mess it up almost every time.

MONDELLO: Super-confidence - not his strong suit. But give him a good enough reason, and he'll shrink to the occasion. What gets him going this time is multiple bad guys or gals and a mission to head for the Quantum Realm, which is subatomic. And, well, there's a lot of plot virtually unspoilable because it makes so little sense. So why don't we let Ant-Man's pal Luis handle it?

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "ANT-MAN AND THE WASP")

MICHAEL PENA: (As Luis) You opened up the Quantum Realm. That's when this crazy creepy ghost who, like, walks through walls and stuff stole your tech. Now she wants to take over the world or whatever.

MONDELLO: That's pretty much it, which means the first half hour is really slow as they're laying everything out and digressing, which, when this movie isn't shrinking things to ant size, is pretty much what it does.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "ANT-MAN AND THE WASP")

DAVID DASTMALCHIAN: (As Kurt) Help yourself.

PENA: (As Luis) Hey, what's up with the fancy pastry? We got to keep the food budget down.

T.I.: (As Dave) Well, what are we supposed to have for breakfast?

PENA: (As Luis) The oatmeal packets.

T.I.: (As Dave) Oatmeal packets.

DASTMALCHIAN: (As Kurt) It's insult.

PENA: (As Luis) Why is it an insult?

DASTMALCHIAN: (As Kurt) Because it tastes like sand.

PENA: (As Luis) Put some cinnamon, put a little honey and whatever you want...

(CROSSTALK)

RUDD: (As Ant-Man) Guys, guys, guys, guys, guys, guys. Come on, man. We got bigger fish to fry. Is that my desk?

PENA: (As Luis) Yeah.

RUDD: (As Ant-Man) Why do I have such a small desk?

PENA: (As Luis) Well, 'cause you weren't there when we were choosing desks.

MONDELLO: There are also fights and chases involving micro cars, macro Pez dispensers and, since Ant-Man, unlike the Wasp, is wingless and has to call in flying ants when he wants a ride, hungry seagulls.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "ANT-MAN AND THE WASP")

RUDD: (As Ant-Man) Oh, sorry. Sorry. Hey, not cool. Come on, man. One time, please. Yes. I'm going to call you Antonio Banderas.

MONDELLO: Alas, another seagull.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "ANT-MAN AND THE WASP")

RUDD: (As Ant-Man) No. No. No. Antonio.

MONDELLO: Paul Rudd's amusing, especially when he gets to channel his inner Michelle Pfeiffer, and Evangeline Lilly's exasperated Wasp is easily his equal.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "ANT-MAN AND THE WASP")

RUDD: (As Ant-Man) You go low. I'll go high.

EVANGELINE LILLY: (As Wasp) I have wings. Why would I go low?

MONDELLO: The others are mostly smarter than the jokes they're asked to sell. Director Peyton Reed and his army of screenwriters haven't made "Ant-Man And The Wasp" a terribly clever movie, but it's clever enough to keep you from reaching for bug spray. And in the summer, Marvel has apparently decided that's all that's required. I'm Bob Mondello. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

Bob Mondello, who jokes that he was a jinx at the beginning of his critical career — hired to write for every small paper that ever folded in Washington, just as it was about to collapse — saw that jinx broken in 1984 when he came to NPR.