When Marvel first announced Ant-Man, I had one thought: of all the superheroes available, they chose the one who shrinks until he’s practically invisible? Even with Paul Rudd—forever boyish, forever charming—it didn’t seem like a winning formula. The trailer didn’t help either. Next to Iron Man’s charisma, Captain America’s nobility, and Thor’s shampoo-commercial hair, Ant-Man looked more like the filler dish you only eat at a buffet because you’ve already paid for it.
And yet, sometimes the movie you expect the least from ends up surprising you. Ant-Man doesn’t try to win by being bigger, louder, or more explosive than the rest of Marvel’s catalogue. Instead, it charms you with its smaller scale—lighter jokes, more playful action, and Paul Rudd being the sort of protagonist you want to root for, even if he’s basically stumbling through most of the film.
Scott Lang (Rudd) is not your typical superhero candidate. He’s an ex-con, skilled at breaking into safes but hopeless at staying out of jail. He just wants to be a better father to his daughter Cassie, who’s impossibly adorable. His ex-wife sets the bar clear: no stable job, no visitation. Fair enough, except Scott’s past makes him unhirable. Even Baskin-Robbins, the place you’d think is desperate for staff, finds out his record and sends him packing. That running gag—“Baskin-Robbins always finds out”—is so funny it almost deserves its own sequel.
Enter Luis, played by Michael Peña, who walks away with every scene he’s in. Luis tempts Scott into another heist. The target? A mysterious safe. The loot? Not cash, not diamonds—just a strange suit with a helmet. Which, of course, turns out to be the Ant-Man suit. Cue Dr. Hank Pym (Michael Douglas, in full grumpy mentor mode) and his daughter Hope (Evangeline Lilly, all sharp edges and purpose), who recruit Scott to stop the ambitious Darren Cross (Corey Stoll) from selling the shrinking tech to very bad people.
The story itself isn’t groundbreaking. Science bends so much you wonder if it’s still science. The villain is your typical corporate megalomaniac. But Ant-Man doesn’t win by the details. It wins by tone. The movie knows its premise is slightly absurd, so it embraces the absurdity. Fight scenes play out on toy train tracks, a giant Thomas the Tank Engine crashes through walls, and somehow it all feels fresh rather than ridiculous.
What I liked most was how Ant-Man never tries to outdo the Avengers films on their terms. It doesn’t need to. It’s smaller, more contained, and funnier. Like finding a hawker stall hidden in the corner of a food centre that doesn’t bother with fancy menus but serves up something comforting and good. By the end, I walked out smiling, surprised that the movie I expected to be Marvel’s most forgettable entry turned out to be one of its most refreshing.
Written by: Adi Jamaludin
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