Disney's Marvel films no longer need to introduce or describe their heroes. We're so deep into the never-ending machinations of the various phases that the idea of a central character has become outmoded or even useless. Rather than just focus on either of the title heroes, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania also has to find space and axis for Michelle Pfeiffer's quantum cast away Janet Van Dyne, Michael Douglas' ant enthusiast Hank Pym, and Kathryn Newton as Cassandra Lang, Ant-Man's ebullient daughter. This overabundance of gallantry can't help but affect the basic language of Peyton Reed's film: shots and assembly must account for several distinct and constantly evolving perspectives, often in the same scene. Take this group-based coverage and add to it a fantastical sub-atomic realm that must be created with purely digital tools and you have a film that often feels unduly synthetic and theatrical in its presentation. Hundreds of millions of dollars are being directed at a mise-en-scène that feels innately disconnected from human view and touch. We're seeing a foreground space of abandoned actors having to imagine their immediate surroundings while a cauldron of background information swirls behind them. Quantumania is built to be fantastical but it's not a psychedelia any one of the onscreen people seem to be actively experiencing.
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