Ant-Men Be Good To Your Daughters

Ant-Man is a small movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe canon. Yet, Disney/Marvel does justice to the character, both Scott Lang and Hank Pym.

Good Things Often Come In Small Packages

Ant-Man was a good movie. It wasn't the best movie, but it certainly tugged at my heart as a comic book fan. There's plenty of action, comedy and super-heroics for what it's being called: a heist movie. Paul Rudd as Scott Lang & the titular Ant-Man was the right choice for the role. He's funny, charming & probably the most human of all the heroes to date. 

Father's Rights and Disney-fied Storytelling

I love movies with redemptive themes. As fans of the comics know, Scott Lang is a devoted if not responsible father. He's also the poster-boy for failed fatherhood in the Marvel Universe except for in the eyes of his daughter Cassie. It would have been nice to explore the relationship more, but the writers had a message to send. Men, fathers, often seek second chances. We see this in the movie.

As a child-less husband, I feel for Lang. He wants so much to be a part of his daughter's life. She sees the good in him when others, even Lang himself at times, doubts it. Yet, his new life as the Ant-Man stands to put her and her mom at risk. We also see this tension between Michael Douglass' "Hank Pym" and his daughter "Hope" as portrayed by Evangeline Lilly. Fathers who've messed up & are looking to redeem themselves in the eyes of their children should insist on taking their son or daughter to see this film as one, albeit "small," step in the journey toward reconciliation.

Sometimes Thinking Small is "OK"

I think Ant-Man was what it was supposed to be: a small film in the canon of the MCU that didn't need to be Iron Man, Thor or Captain America. It's the little movie that could because, right now, everything is possible with Marvel Studios. Ironically, the movie is not trying to, which sits in line with the humanity of Hank Pym. Marvel Studios has proven itself, and that means more than box office sales. Ant-Man, like the hero, is tried and true.