Early reactions to Marvel's Ant-Man were mostly positive, but James Gunn's reaction to the film was 100% glowing. He not only calls the movie his "favorite Marvel film since Jon Favreau's Iron Man," but goes on to highlight the performance strengths of stars Paul Rudd, Michael Peña, Judy Greer, and Michael Douglas. Gunn goes on to praise Peyton Reed's direction but is also quick to point out Edgar Wright's presence throughout the film. He also gets a plug in for his own upcoming film The Belko Experiment, which he wrote, and which is currently filming in Colombia.
Ant-Man may just be my favorite Marvel film since Jon Favreau's Iron Man (well, maybe excluding one film to which I'm partial). Honestly, the movie is a complete blast! I was so happy after seeing it. It's never boring for a second and it's hilarious and warm throughout. It doesn't get caught up in the webbing of its own science-fiction concept like so many movies do these days, remaining simple and elegant. It's a part of the Marvel universe without being ruled by that fact. Paul Rudd is nuanced and charming and funny and is a surprisingly natural fit as a modern superhero (side-fact - Paul must be a nice guy, because he and I dated the same girl in college, and yet I still love him). Michael Peña KILLS IT - this movie is going to make him a huge star. My old pal Judy Greer (she was Deadly Girl to my Minute Man in The Specials (film) many moons ago) is great in a small role. And Michael Douglas is awesome. I think all of Peyton Reed's years directing have led him to making something as deft and nimble and joyous as this; he did an incredible job. And, despite Edgar Wright's parting from Marvel, his spirit is felt through the entire project, and there is no doubt everyone owes him a huge debt of gratitude. I left the theater incredibly happy. So often I see movies by people I love which are just okay - it's great to love a movie as much as I love the people who made it.
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This is a photo of me and David Dastmalchian at the premiere after-party last night - David plays a Russian hacker in the movie and nearly every single line out of his mouth gets a laugh. He's getting on a plane this morning to fly back to Colombia to resume filming his other movie - my movie, The Belko Experiment.
Congrats to the the whole Ant-Man team. Amazing work, guys! And, for the 99.99% of the people reading this who aren't part of the Ant-Man team, go check it out when it hits theaters (in a lot of places) July 17.
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