Marvel’s long-awaited Phase 5 is off to a pretty rocky start, at least critically. The first entry, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is currently rated rotten on Rotten Tomatoes. The consensus so far seems to be that the film has absolutely no identity of its own. Instead of being another fun outing with Scott Lang and Hope van Dyne, a lot of critics say the film ends up lost in the same old Marvel formula we’ve seen time and time again.
As of this writing, the film currently sits at 53 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. The site’s “Critics Consensus” reads:
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania mostly lacks the spark of fun that elevated earlier adventures, but Jonathan Majors’ Kang is a thrilling villain poised to alter the course of the MCU
ANT-MAN AND THE WASP: QUANTUMANIAMarvel
The film’s rating — which could still improve — does not bode too well for the rest of Phase 5, especially when the response to Phase 4 from both fans and critics alike was often very lukewarm. That’s when Marvel got its first rotten score on the site (Eternals, which received a 47 percent) and several other middling ratings (Thor: Love and Thunder holds a barely fresh 64 percent.)
There is one small redeeming factor here, and that lies simply in the fact that Phase 5 is going to include a ton of new projects. Just based on sheer output alone, something has to click. It’s also worth pointing out that Kang’s appearance seems to be the most interesting part of Quantumania. And there’s going to be a lot more of him moving forward.
Not all critics are down on Quantumania; ScreenCrush’s own review is positive. It reads in part:
Your reaction to Quantumania will probably be determined by what you want out of the movie. If you want to see a lot of strange CGI visuals and the you’re interested in the groundwork of the next phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, you’ll likely walk out satisfied (if maybe a little confused about the specifics of Kang’s larger plan). If you want to see an Ant-Man��movie like the previous two Ant-Man movies — with wry humor, simple stories, and inventive uses of Ant-Man’s shrinking powers — you’re as out of luck as Scott Lang after Kang drags him to the Quantum Realm.
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania opens in theaters on Friday.
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