Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania Review: A Universe Out of this World!

Tae
Feb 21, 2023
3 min read

The wait is over as the next anticipated movie from Marvel has arrived kicking off Phase 5. The premise of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania follows Scott, Hope, Cassie, Hank and Janet being pulled into the Quantum Realm after Scott’s daughter, Cassie, sends a signal from a device. Trapped, looking for a way out, they work together encountering allies and enemies to return home as they face a much larger threat the Quantum people and Janet fear the most.

We first get a glimpse of Janet van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer) as she encounters a mysterious traveler, Kang (Jonathan Majors), exiled to the Quantum Realm. Moving forward, the movie picks up after the events of Avengers: Endgame as everything is back to normalcy after the Blip. Back in San Francisco, Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) is well-known to the public, a successful author who wrote his memoirs called Look Out for the Little Guy, and is still in a happy relationship with Hope van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly). We meet 18-year-old Cassie Lang (Kathryn Newton) who is bailed out of jail due to her political activism activities from a peaceful protest, and standing up for what’s right. When they visit Hope’s parents, Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) and Janet, Cassie reveals not only has she studied the Quantum Realm during the Blip, but she created a device to send signals to the Quantum Realm, without ever having to actually go in. Once Janet panics and requests to shut the device down, the message is already received pulling them all in.

As Scott and Cassie are separated from Hope, Hank, and Janet, they are found by natives, while Hope and her parents explore a different, quirky city to seek help and some answers. With Janet as their guide, we learn more about her time in the Quantum Realm and her reservations about this universe. While watching I definitely questioned her skepticism about the Quantum Realm. Is there more to her story then she's really telling us? Is she a wanted woman? Once we receive more answers, the dots start connecting and truths are revealed.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania starts off the Multiverse Saga, as we get a better insight into the Quantum Realm understanding how the other universe works and how time plays an important factor and also functions so much differently than Earth. Although Phase 4 did introduce us to some Multiverse storylines surrounding timelines, it was only a perfect set up for Phase 5 and Phase 6, as future films are going to explore that leading up to Avengers: Secret Wars. Not to mention more connected stories from the post-credit scenes as well. For those who don’t know, stay until the very end once the credits are done rolling!

I definitely enjoyed this film with the setting taking place in a totally different environment because we hear so much about the Quantum Realm, so now that we get to actually explore it was really fun to watch including Paul Rudd of course. Jonathan Majors was a pleasure to watch as Kang the Conqueror. He plays the villainous role exceptionally well, and from projects he has previously starred in including Lovecraft Country, Devotion, The Harder They Fall, and Loki, where he was first introduced as He Who Remains, this will definitely not be the last appearance we see of him. I believe Kang the Conqueror is another villain to not underestimate.

There were some burning questions that did cross my mind while watching. Where was Luis? And where is Cassie’s mom and stepfather? Luis was definitely one of my favorites to watch in the Ant-Man movies because he was so funny, very likable, and Scott and Luis had great chemistry as friends. And now I’m questioning if Cassie lives with her dad and Hope permanently? Did her mom and stepfather move from San Francisco? I need answers!