Small Hero, Big Fun

Marvel Goes Big Time With A Little Help From A Little-Known Avenger

ON CONTINUITY

ARTH VADER (AV): As one of the founding members of the original Marvel Comics Avengers, Ant-Man’s been a big part of the Avengers since 1963. While being strangely absent from the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), Hank Pym (aka Ant-Man, Giant Man, Goliath and Yellow Jacket) has been a key Avenger on Numerous occasions, though hardly a character on any comic fan’s ‘top five favorite heroes’ list. So it stands to reason that Ant-Man is only just now getting rolled into the MCU fold. The continuity is loose at best wouldn’t you say, Ponty? 

THE PONTIFICATOR (TP): Well Vader, the Marvel Cinematic Universe continues to expand with it’s newest addition…Ant-Man. As usual the introduction is seamlessly done with the current continuity and incorporates elements from the past and present of the MCU. We left the books behind a long time ago. 

CASTING, ACTING & DIRECTION

AV: A curiously delightful cast makes this film breath with a life of its own. Comedy front-man Paul “Ant-Man” Rudd is a solid choice for the Scott Lang role. Academy Award winner Michael Douglas appears as the MCU’s original Hank Pam, and one of my favorites of the film Michael “Fury” Pena brings the now expected Marvel brevity to the screen in a very unexpected way. Director Peyton “Bring It On” Reed made this a part hero, part heist, part world-building film for Marvel and it I would think was fairly successful. Pontificator, what did you think of this movie’s casting? 

TP: This film was well cast and very well acted Vader. With Paul Rudd taking the helm, he actually held his position in the film and complimented veteran actor Michael Douglas (Hank Pym). With both actors elevating their roles, it was that much easier for Evangeline Lilly (Hope Van Dyne) to play the daughter/reluctant love interest roles. Corey Stoll was a great villain and unexpectedly so since he constantly plays the hero on television’s “The Strain.” Michael Pena was both brilliant and memorable and really put the icing on the cake of this film.

ON SPECIAL EFFECTS

AV: As a Marvel movie, Ant-Man spared no expensive in making Ant-Man a delight to watch. Watching the Pym Particles in action was another movie milestone every comic nerd has longed for. As a kid reading about Ant-Man (and later Yellow Jacket) the eye-dizzying amazement that comes from watching Scott Lang run with a swarm of ants and then zip seamlessly back and forth from the little world to the big, was visual effects triumph that was so fluid, I couldn’t help but be awestruck over. Was it the same for you P-Man? 

TP: IMAX 3D. There…said it Vader. The effects were stellar and expected to be so this late in the game when it comes to a Marvel film. Usually there is nothing new to discuss, but here we have effects that give us a new perspective for a Marvel film (although not new to films in general) and they are brilliantly done, especially using…IMAX 3D. There…said it again.

TAKING A CLOSER LOOK

AV: Here’s the big news, Ant-Man is fun, a bit kooky, highly MCU connected and unexpected. Marvel took the same gamble with Ant-Man as it did a year ago with Guardians of the Galaxy. As the number one movie studio on Earth, Marvel can–and MUST–experiment outside the traditional hero formula. It’s how the genre matures, moves on and lasts. In all fairness, the movie is kind of a clown romp, Scott Lang is a buffoon, as are his comedy relief, Heist cronies. The film is silly an feels very rushed at the end with a VERY odd ‘world-within-worlds’ sequence that feels almost dreamlike. 

TP: I guess there were a lot of low expectations for this film and understandable so since the trailers really didn’t compliment the actual film. Fortunately the film greatly exceeded those expectations and was another “win” for Marvel Studios. Despite the gaping plot holes to how the Ant-Man technology worked (think size and unchanging mass) the film still sold itself, especially if you are not into doing hard science while watching it. I have also long since stopped caring that the MCU does not follow any book or story to the letter and am therefore pretty positive that the Red Queen will not be showing up anytime soon. The mix of drama (Scott Lang’s determination to be a father to his daughter), action, and comedy (both Rudd and Pena deliver here) was perfect for this film and gave it it’s own flavor within the greater MCU. 

ON SEQUELS

AV: This is a tough one to call of ram, Ponty. Ant-Man is good, make no mistake, its fun and is a great Marvel movie follow-up to the intensity of The Avengers: Age of Ultron. We are given all kinds of hints at the potential for more tiny Avengers, aka The Wasp (played by Evangeline Lily), but while this films performed at a solid $375 million (better than each of the Thor films, BTW) I wonder how vested audiences would be in an Ant-Man sequel. That remains to be seen (likely with a microscope). 

TP: Of course we will see Ant-Man again in his own film (Marvel said so in this one) and we will of course see him in the greater MCU as we continue the journey in Captain America: Civil War.

RATE IT!

ARTH VADER rates Marvel’s Ant-Man: The magic of the MCU is alive and well and live large (ahem) in Ant-Man. A light-hearted, slightly forgettable film that has some strong ties to future MCU events (can anyone say “Captain America: Winter Soldier?”). The ‘fight’ between The Falcon (Anthony Mackie) and Ant-Man is onscreen gold. While not without it’s small (sorry) shortcomings, I think Ant-Man was a big hit. That’s why Ant-Man swat’s eight (8) Busted Blocks. 

THE PONTIFICATOR rates Ant-Man:  This film was better than I expected and really delivered something different from other MCU films, but still upheld the quality expected from Marvel Studios. With the perfect blend of drama, action and comedy, Ant-Man easily shrunk eight (8) busted blocks on it’s way to saving the world from nefarious machinations. 

Marvel’s Ant-Man: 8 / 10 Busted Blocks

This Dracula Doesn’t Suck

The gritty vampire re-boot drives audiences batty in the surprisingly entertaining Dracula Untold. 

ON CONTINUITY

ARTH VADER (AV): For a character that bears no introduction, the re-imagined origin of the infamous Vlad the Impaler–more commonly known as Count Dracula–menaces his enemies and delights us, somehow, in this latest vamp en fuego film. All the story elements are in place to make for what could have been an epic origin tale. Keeping line with Dracula's mythos, the film takes place in Transylvania and spins the tale of a desperate Vlad eager to save his people from invading Turks while holed up in Castle Dracula. 

THE PONTIFICATOR (TP): The story of Dracula has probably been one of the most told stories on the silver screen. We have certainly had our fair share of vampire films in recent years. For me it was refreshing to have this “untold” tale told. The attempt to incorporate history was well intentioned, if not at all accurate. With a little more effort and attention to historic detail, it would have been much more enjoyable, at least for me.

CASTING, DIRECTING & ACTING

AV: Director Gary Shore pulls no punches in this latest vampire epic with a story of ‘super-Drac’. Luke Evans plays  Transylvania’s original pain in the neck as an insanely handsome and brooding Vlad. To me, Ponty, there are only a couple of roles that even matter in this film. Other than Vlad, is the role of The Master Vampire played by Charles “Lord Tyrell” Dance. He is over-the-top ominous, creepy, frightening and oddly compelling as ‘Vampire Zero’. The only other role that has any (AHEM) tooth, is the role of the twisted Turk overlord, Mehmed, played by Dominic “Howard Stark” Cooper. While hardly in a league to stop the Prince of the Undead, Cooper’s portrayal is cardboard clone but that seems somehow strangely fitting. Thought’s P–Man? 

TP: The performance of Luke Evans carries this film Vader. He brings Vlad the Impaler to life in a way that diverges from what I expected. As the antagonist, Dominic Cooper had very little to do and the script did not allow much breathing room to expand his character. In fact, at just 90 minutes, there wasn’t too much that could be done except to focus on the progression of Dracula. The film moved along steadily and never really gave me time to ponder all the plot holes while it fed me candy.

SPECIAL EFFECTS

AV: Oh boy, were there ever visual effects in this movie, Pontificator! There were so many bats in this film, I thought the title character was Bruce Wayne (insert crickets here). Seriously, are there this many bats on Earth? Vlad is able to summon an obscene number of flying rodents in to–literally–crush his enemies. We aren’t talking a few hundred thousand here, folks, its millions and millions of the little flying rats. Drac not only turns into one himself, but apparently he can summon a seemingly endless number of them and the film does a beautiful job of portraying this onscreen. Other notable effects are the over-the-top but enjoyable combat scenes and effects in the cave are disturbingly authentic. Ponts? 

TP: IMAX is the preferred medium for…everything, and this film was visually pleasing. There was no new ground broken for special effects, but there were also no mistakes with them. The scenes with the sunlight searing vampire flesh looked genuine, the landscapes were enthralling, and the costuming was done well… if not entirely accurate historically.

TAKING A CLOSER LOOK

AV: As the first installment of the Dracula trilogy and the vanguard (film) of Universal Studio’s new ‘monster cinematic universe’ (MCU), you can read more on that here , Dracula Untold shows promise in the visual effects department but lacks in quality storytelling. As part of this new universe of monsters, Dracula delivers a good-looking, empty-headed film devoid of character connectivity but still, strangely enough, holds promise for future installments. Many of the characters in this film are mis-cast or phone-in their often dopey, poorly-delivered or dodgy performances. Hopefully this less-than-spectacular opening salvo for this new MCU will help universal build on its new ‘universe’ the right way; with quality screenplays, a focus on meaningful writing and proper casting. 

TP: This film wasn’t the best film ever made, but it also was not the worst. I enjoyed it very much, but not because of the special effects and gore (or should I say lack of gore as it could have been much bloodier). What intrigued me most about the film was the story of Dracula being the “hero.” I have never seen him told in such a way, so the title of the film turned out to be very accurate to what it delivered. The characterization of Dracula as a family man willing to sacrifice his humanity to protect his family and people made him someone worth watching and made me actually care about his circumstances. This film turned a monster into a hero…and if that isn’t a story that has never been told before about Dracula, I don’t know what is.

ON SEQUELS

AV: This one’s in the bag already, oh Pontificatorious one. Universal is all-in with a three-Dracula film trilogy and that is just the start. With a whole phalanx of movies streaming at us filled with werewolves, mummies, Frankenstein’s Monster(s?) and the like, we will soon see theaters filled with more monsters than we can shake a pitchfork at. Lets hope for Universal’s sake, those theaters won’t be empty. 

TP: Usually the box office bottom line determines the future fate sequels, but it seems Universal is “all in” and the film certainly set itself up to continue the story… and the next chapter will most assuredly be very different than the first. 

RATE IT!

ARTH VADER rates Dracula Untold: From its dopey name to the downright non-sensical story, Dracula Untold is bleeding opportunities (see what I did there?) trying to tell a good story with a lot of holes. If this new ‘universe’ is to move forward in the right direction, Universal has to do better. With sparks of promise in the performances of the two primary Vamps and strong visual effects, this Dracula reboot (now that its been told and stuff) has potential but still has a long, long way to go. Still, as entertaining as it is ridiculous, I grab my garlic and my holy cross and jam wooden stakes into the hearts of 6 busted blocks in the hopes that Dracula Untold will rise again, better than ever. 

THE PONTIFICATOR rates Dracula Untold: Love, sacrifice, revenge and hope are what carried this film for me. Yes, I loved the action. Yes I loved the effects. What got me most was the underlying theme of all the entirety of the film happening for a love so strong, it trumped the thirst for blood. With a story truly “untold” this film drained seven (7) busted and bloody blocks. 

Dracula Untold: 6.5 Busted Blocks