Ant-Man Press Conference & 1st Impressions (Teri’s Take)
Ant-Man opens in the United States July 17, 2015.
While, I was not too sure what this movie was going to bring to the Marvel Comic Universe, I have to admit, this was an absolutely awesome and funny film that I still have not stopped smiling about.
Here is the official boilerplate which offers a quick spoiler free summary of the film:
The next evolution of the Marvel Cinematic Universe brings a founding member of The Avengers to the big screen for the first time with Marvel Studios’ “Ant-Man.” Armed with the astonishing ability to shrink in scale but increase in strength, master thief Scott Lang must embrace his inner hero and help his mentor, Dr. Hank Pym, protect the secret behind his spectacular Ant-Man suit from a new generation of towering threats. Against seemingly insurmountable obstacles, Pym and Lang must plan and pull off a heist that will save the world.
Marvel’s “Ant-Man” stars Paul Rudd as Scott Lang aka Ant-Man, Evangeline Lilly as Hope van Dyne, Corey Stoll as Darren Cross aka Yellowjacket, Bobby Cannavale as Paxton, Michael Peña as Luis, Tip “T.I.” Harris as Dave, Wood Harris as Gale, Judy Greer as Maggie, David Dastmalchian as Kurt, and Michael Douglas as Dr. Hank Pym.
Peyton Reed directs Marvel’s “Ant-Man” with Kevin Feige, p.g.a. producing and Louis D’Esposito, Alan Fine, Victoria Alonso, Michael Grillo, Stan Lee and Edgar Wright serving as executive producers. The story is by Edgar Wright & Joe Cornish and the screenplay is by Edgar Wright & Joe Cornish and Adam McKay & Paul Rudd. Marvel’s “Ant-Man” delivers a high-stakes, tension-filled adventure on July 17, 2015.
Not being a big comic book fan, I first heard the title and thought, really? Ant-Man was a comic book character? Not only is he my new favorite Marvel Super-Hero, Paul Rudd was the perfect person to play this character.
He was so perfect for the character that he himself had a very hard time taking off the Ant-Man costume.
PAUL RUDD: I’m biased because I loved the suit and I think it’s the coolest-looking suit of all of them, and I loved wearing it. It was not that uncomfortable and –
MICHAEL PENA: Wear it all the time.
PAUL RUDD: Even on my days off.
PAUL RUDD: Yes, that’s right. It helped me feel the part, you know, there’s something that happens when you get in that thing, that it’s inevitable. I would stand differently, I would feel different, I’d feel like Ant-Man in that thing.
EVANGELINE LILLY: Even though he looked like a total dork.
PAUL RUDD: And – thanks.
MICHAEL PENA: I’m like, you can take it off now, bro.
PAUL RUDD: Yeah, no, no, just five more minutes. Five more minutes. And you know, they keep the sound stages a little bit cooler, because, you know, it doesn’t really breathe that well. But it was cool. I would just sometimes catch myself as I was – oh, gosh, this thing is amazing-looking. And as far as like, you know, getting skinnier to try and fit in it, I mean, I didn’t eat anything for about a year. I worked out all the time. I took that Chris Pratt approach which is just basically eliminate anything fun for about a year, and that’s a good way to prepare to play, you know, a superhero. And again, it also helped me feel the part, which is I kind of got into that aspect as well.
Michael Pena’s character in the movie “Luis”, was a big reason that I kept laughing throughout the movie. A great movie needs a great supporting cast and they nailed it! Michael enlightened us as to how he came up with his character.
MICHAEL PENA: It’s a real person, by the way, that I’m imitating. His name is Pablo, he’s a criminal, not bullshitting at all. Like the guy lives in Chicago. My best friend just flew in, you know, for the premier, and he’s in and out of jail. He’s the kind of guy, swear to god, when I’m like: “What’d you do this weekend?” He’s like: “I went to jail, Dawg.” Like who really says that for a weekend trip,
When asked if his lines were in the script or not the rest of the cast chimed in for him:
EVANGELINE LILLY: None of that was on the page.
MICHAEL DOUGLAS: He never saw a page.
EVANGELINE LILLY: He wouldn’t shut up.
MICHAEL PENA: Yeah, I basically wouldn’t shut up.
This was a different type of movie for Michael Douglas, he had never done something like this before, so when he went to his kids about this opportunity, his son had a very interesting reaction.
MICHAEL DOUGLAS: My 14 year old’s reaction was like an agent. He said, “You know, Dad, this could be a whole new audience for you.” So I took that to heart and here I am.
My Impressions:
How long has it been since you just had a great time at a movie? Where you found yourself laughing out loud… I mean really laughing and enjoying yourself… Well this movie did that for me… It was just a fun, and entertaining movie from start to finish.
Beneath all of the action and super hero goodness, Ant-Man is a story of redemption. Two fathers have made mistakes in their lives that cost them dearly, and in this film, they are trying to atone for these mistakes and be the men that their children need them to be.
The story is great, has a well thought out background, is action packed and has hilarious dialog that kept a big grin on my face the entire movie.
We have grown to expect the action, special effects, CGI, and the drama that comes with Marvel’s movies, and this movie certainly continues that tradition. However, more so than previous Marvel movies, Ant-Man takes time to show a softer, more human, and definitely more humorous side to these action heroes. I thought Paul Rudd said it best:
“You know, you can have a movie that has amazing effects, and this certainly has that, and brilliant visuals, a lot of action, humor, whatever, but whenever you see something that you can connect to, that’s emotionally resonant, it stays with you in a very different way. I think that’s the key to any movie and that’s what I thought about throughout this whole film. This is what the movie is about.”
Overall:
I went into this film with very little understanding of where Ant-Man fits into the Marvel Universe, and I really didn’t know what to expect from the movie. I mean it is a movie about a guy that shrinks to the size of an ant? What’s so super about that? So I did not really have high expectations for this movie. But this movie surprised me with just how entertaining it was.
It was the perfect combination of action, comedy and story line to consume my full attention and keep me engaged throughout. It had a great cast that seems to really work well together and enjoy what they were doing, and it came across in their performances. I think Ant-Man could be the unexpected favorite for many this summer.
PS Just a warning for those that are not huge fans of bugs… There are a lot of ants in this movie… a lot…
