Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania will be an important test for the CGI of the Marvel Cinematic Universe
Ant-Man and The Wasp
After having delighted its fans for a decade with visual spectacles of rare beauty, during Phase Four the Marvel Cinematic Universe let emerge some critical issues in terms of CGI, computer graphics which, especially in a narrative context based on superguys and superpowers, it plays an essential role in involving the viewer. Criticisms that even Marvel Studios have ironically revealed that they have grasped, as demonstrated by the amusing metanarrative scene of the last episode of She-Hulk: Attorney at Law , in a sort of unwritten promise with the fans that wants to guarantee a return to a high quality in the industry. A rather important examination for the franchise, especially now that Phase Five begins with a first chapter, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania , where the CGI of the Marvel Cinematic Universe must show itself in the best shape.
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After the disappointments of Phase Four, Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania will be a major test for CGI of the Marvel Cinematic Universe
The Quantum Realm is a dimension that has so far been explored in a matter of minutes in previous films starring Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) and his gang, but the now imminent clash with Kang the Conqueror (Jonathan Majors) forces Marvel Studios to make a flawless visual rig. Between the need to recreate exciting sets of alien beauty and the portrayed incredible beings, the CGI of the Marvel Cinematic Universe in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania cannot fail to treasure the words of the cybernetic K.E.V.I.N., especially after the fans' expectations were further galvanized by the statements of one of the protagonists, Evangeline Lily, alias Hope van Dyne :There will be only assassins that can swallow you, shapeless masses that can mutate, broccoli that flies during battles and buildings that are part of the rebel brigade. We have scenarios that you can't even imagine on Earth, things like gravity work differently, so we have water flowing from below, and clouds moving in ways that are not normal at all. It will be crazy and fun, but also epic and beautiful. It will be really elegant and graceful.
Similar premises can only be seen with a certain apprehension by fans, above all that the serial dimension of the franchise, during Phase Four, showed many flaws in this sector. If seriality has certainly imposed a harsh production regime, thanks to a rich offer to Disney Plus subscribers (WandaVision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Loki, Ms Marvel, HAwkeye, Moon Knight, She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, Lycantropus and Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special ), we cannot forget that the raging controversies in the working conditions of the CGI workers have certainly contributed to the creation of visual systems that do not live up to the tradition of the franchise.
To reverse this trend , returning to the typical spectacularity of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it must be Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania . Not only because the beginning of Phase Five must prove to be a new start after the complex Phase Four, often criticized also on a narrative level, but because Scott Lang must shoulder the hopes of both fans and Marvel Studios, who count on being able to regain credit even among the most disappointed fans.
There is no shortage of reassurances, of course. Will Htay , production designer of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania , Jeff Loveness , screenwriter, and Stephen Broussard , producer of the film also reiterated during a behind-the-scenes with Marvel . Broussard wanted to enhance the visual potential of the Quantum Realm, promising a show without equal:
The Quantum Realm is an incredible idea like the other fantastic worlds we have explored in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It's a world of its own, not all that different from Asgard or Wakanda or Doctor Strange's world of the mystic arts. Having the ability to establish such a massive setting, within the third part of the film, was really fun.
The very idea that the Quantum Realm could become the scene of such an important adventure for the continuity of the franchise could only lead to obsessive care in the construction of all the components of this setting. A responsibility that was addressed in a heartfelt way by Will Htay, who followed director Peyton Reed's requests very carefully:
When Peyton Reed came to me, we started talking about how the Quantum Realm is a vast, epic and incredible world within worlds, he wanted you to feel how immense it is. We didn't want to use macro photography, we didn't want to use too obvious CGI. Even knowing that we would ultimately have to resort to VFX and CGI, what we really wanted to try was to try and make this world tangible, real in every way possible. In this way, when we explore it with our protagonist we can feel it, touch it, smell it. We wanted it to feel like an actual place that's hidden away in the multiverse.
This identity of the Quantum Realm is then prominently featured in the characterization of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantummania. Far from the 'traditional' world explored in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, this fragment of the Multiverse is governed by its own laws of physics, offering visual spectacles that also differ chromatically from what has been seen so far.
