Small pleasures

After a shocking directorial exodus and a series of rewrites, Marvel’s Ant-Man finally makes it to the screen as a reasonably enjoyable piece of summer fare thanks to the total charmer playing the title character.

Paul Rudd is Scott Lang, a professional, wisecracking thief given a new lease on life when scientist Dr. Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) shows him the wonders of his incredible shrinking suit.

Rudd was given the Ant-Man job by Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World), who left as the film’s director after working on the project for years. While Wright still gets an executive producer and some writing credit, Peyton Reed (Yes Man), relative newcomer to big-budget flicks, wound up at the helm with a script rewrite from Adam McKay and Rudd himself.

Reed does a good, although not outstanding, job in Wright’s place. The framework for the movie plays it mighty safe, with an emphasis on family viewing and very little of the offbeat touches that are hallmarks of a Wright affair. A wonderful moment involving the band The Cure is as strange as this movie gets.

After a setup that involves Lang’s release from prison, some business with his ex-wife (Judy Greer) and daughter (Abby Rider Fortson) and a short-lived job at Baskin-Robbins, he winds up in the company of Pym, who is justifiably concerned that his invention has fallen into the wrong hands. His sinister business partner Darren Cross (Corey Stoll) has uncovered Pym’s shrinking technology, and has created his own suit and a new bad-guy persona, Yellowjacket, for nefarious purposes.

Lang is hand picked by Pym to break into his own company’s headquarters and steal the new suit. Pym’s daughter Hope (Evangeline Lilly), who wants her own suit, reluctantly trains Lang in the ways of punching, shrinking and conversing with Ant-Man’s insect friends.

Rudd is so good as Lang/Ant-Man, and the film would’ve likely been a dud without his presence. He’s a naturally funny guy who can play schmaltzy drama and make it seem cool. The soap opera stuff with his daughter, for example, has a silly edge and actually becomes almost heartwarming.

The mostly CGI special effects are well done. The first shrinking sequence, involving a bathtub and eventual placement on a crowded dance floor evading feet in the dark, is a true stunner. Lang’s interactions with insects are reminiscent of another shrinking movie, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, in which an ant was treated like a pet horse. It’s a little cutesy, and the kids will dig it.

Ant-Man acknowledges the Avengers universe in many ways (in the comics, Ant-Man was a founding member of the group), including a prominent appearance by Anthony Mackie as Falcon and John Slattery as Howard Stark (Iron Man’s dad). The film wisely takes a tongue-in-cheek approach with the Avengers, playing things mostly for laughs.

Overall, Ant-Man is fun, but less than remarkable. The movie feels very much like a typical Marvel movie on par with the likes of Iron Man 2 or the first Captain America. It plays it safe, and that’s probably why Wright left the scene.