Ant-Man review: Despite its flaws, watch it for Paul Rudd's great performance

Film: Ant-Man
Director: Peyton Reed
Cast: Michael Douglas, Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michael Pena, Corey Stoll, TI, Bobby Cannavale, Judy Greer
Rating: ***1/2 (Three and half stars)

What's it about:
An engineer turned hacker turned cat burglar, Scott Lang (Rudd) is exactly what genius scientist Hank Pym has been looking for. You see, Pym (Douglas), in an era gone by used to be Ant-Man and has long since abandoned any and all heroic pursuits, choosing to let his advances in technology stay hidden in cold storage. Even though he's ousted by his protege Darren Cross (Stoll) from a company he built, he refuses to share his secret for fear of it falling into the wrong hands. Yeah, training a cat burglar makes complete sense, right?

Well, Lang's a divorcee fresh outta jail, while his ex (Greer) is married to a cop (Cannavale). He shares a warm bond with his daughter and visitation rights are kinda hard to come by without child support (doesn't look like she needs it, so it's probably the responsibility part of it?) and some sorta job. So he gets a tip about something big. When you have two big safes holding something, it has to be important, right? Except, it's something that looks like a biker's jacket. An unplanned trial run of the suit leaves Scott scared (or scarred, take your pick) and he decides to return it to Hank Pym, its rightful owner. And gets caught while doing so.

Well, Pym would like him to hold on to it a little longer. And even breaks him out of jail to prove a point. He brings him to the safety of his home and his training to become Ant-Man (and turn ant-sized while in the suit), much to the disdain of his daughter, who's been yearning (and training) to wear the suit. But Hank has made up his mind.  And so, they begin to try and ensure that Cross and his evil intentions don't come to fruition. Easier said than done?

What's hot:
There's always a bigger picture, where Marvel is concerned, something that becomes apparent at three places - when Lang breaks into a secure Avengers facility, during the middle of the end credits and after the end credits. So really, if you've been following the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) closely, it will all make sense. But let's return to Ant-Man. Rudd's the kind of hero - flawed but really likeable - that we were introduced to, with Chris Pratt as Star Lord in Guardians Of The Galaxy. Both are thieves who find redemption after choosing the right side to fight on. You find yourself rooting for Rudd despite his obvious foolhardiness. Then, there's Pena (and that infectious smile!) and he really is something else! 

It's refreshing to see things from an ant's perspective after over a quarter of a century. It's really telling to see how far we've come, effects-wise from the Honey, I Shrunk The Kid days. The one-liners come in the middle of the film, thick and fast, and build to an end, that's all kaleidoscope lights, magic, a fair bit of luck, much special effects and a promise of more... action, one-liners, villains et al. Well done, Mr Reed!

What's not:
It's a few minutes shy of two hours, yet feels like it's so much longer. The film could easily have shaved 20 minutes of running time without any seeming loss to the story. Especially, the revelation why Hope (Lilly) has such a complicated relationship with her father Hank, should have come much sooner and also, why he won't let her wear the suit. Cross doesn't come across as strong a villain as most other ones in the MCU. In fact, the only time he kinda gets interesting is when he wears his Yellow jacket suit.

What to do:
This is a film that deserves to be seen on the big screen. Yes, despite its flaws that become quite apparent as you watch the film. At the same time, it's entertaining, Paul Rudd is great in it and we'd really like to see more of him.