The Marvel Cinematic Universe enters Phase Five with the film Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania directed by Peyton Reed. With Marvel Studios and Disney at the helm, Kevin Feige returns to co-produce.

Avenger-turned-bestselling author Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) and his girlfriend Hope Van Dyne (Evangeline Lily) bail his daughter Cassie (Kathryn Newton) out of jail after she causes trouble for the police. When he confronts her about it, she and Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) have been working on a device to scan the Quantum Realm. When Cassie reveals it uses a signal, Janet (Michelle Pfeiffer) tries to stop it, but they are pulled through a mysterious portal. Hank and Cassie are captured by Darren (Corey Stoll) who has become MODOK. As Hank, Janet, and Hope search for them, the Conqueror known as Kang (Jonathan Majors) is revealed to have been exiled there and he wants to escape in order to retake the universe.

What a snooze fest. I do not know who to blame for this. Was it Peyton Reed falling asleep at the wheel or Disney meddling? Whatever the case may be, this was a dud and a total letdown for anyone who was there for the MCU since Phase One. It was boring, superficial, and peppered with lame political talking points that no one cares about.

First of all, the movie was really about Janet. Granted, she spent the most time in the Quantum Realm, but Scott felt more like a mascot while she galavanted with her husband and daughter. I was expected to believe she was some great hero when she was the reason for Kang’s terror in the first place. Disney has been using a “bait-and-switch” tactic against their fans. I was expecting Hope or Cassie to be the “switch” while Scott was the “bait.” Not so, we got a bunch of wasted time learning about how Janet cheated on her husband while she was trapped in the Quantum Realm, but it’s cool because Hank did too. Yeah, way to support morality and ethics, Feige.

The second issue involved Cassie. Everyone is afraid to say this, but it is true. Emma Fuhrmann, who portrayed the character in Avengers: Endgame, did a better job. Newton portrayed her as a self-righteous, entitled brat. Seriously, the movie tried to push that she was somehow more heroic than her father, you know who helped save the universe, because she harassed some cops. While I can honestly say she never entered Mary Sue levels, she was just annoying. When Kang threatened to kill her, I was kind of hoping that would happen. Yeah, she was that bad.

I could go on. The bad CGI, wasted cameo from Bill Murray, bland dialogue, MODOK designed by a child, and a villain who never truly felt like a threat, but I will leave it at that.

If there was one redeeming quality, they at least made Ant-Man a hero. Sure, he got some unnecessary put-downs from his bratty child, but he was shown to be courageous and strong throughout the film. There is one tender scene between him and Hope. Trust me, it needed more of that. Apparently, Disney agreed. The film’s writer Jeff Loveness has been fired from future MCU flicks following the poor box office performance.

Bottom line, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania promised mania, but we got a dud. It was full of stuff everyone hates about the MCU when it could have been better.

PARENTAL CONCERNS: Violence, Foul language, Inappropriate humor

FAVORITE QUOTE: They’re beginning to touch the Multiverse. And if we let them… they will take everything we built.

Check out the trailer below:

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