The superhero team The Fantastic Four are about to welcome a new addition to their family when The Invisible Woman (Vanessa Kirby) finds out she’s pregnant. The world stops on a dime when the Silver Surfer (Julia Garner) arrives and heralds the coming of Galactus (Ralph Ineson), an evil space entity what wants to devour Earth. Mr. Fantastic (Pedro Pascal) and the team try to reason with Galactus, who offers them a compromise: Hand over their unborn child and he’ll spare the planet.
For a movie with the subtitle “First Steps”, it sure gets off to a shaky start. Since there’s already been four Fantastic Four films, this new version is keen on not rehashing a lot of the previous versions (although it features the same basic story as Rise of the Silver Surfer) or lingering too long on an origin story (which is wrapped up in a brief 60 Minutes-style TV special at the beginning of the film). That is a bit of a mixed blessing though as the first act often feels like it’s moving in fast forward. It would’ve been nice to let things breathe a little bit while we were getting to know these iterations of the characters.
Once the team’s baby Franklin is introduced, the movie improves. Thanks to the increased stakes, the film becomes rather engrossing. Kirby is especially good once her motherly instincts kick in, and her speech to an angry mob lands surprisingly well. Joseph Quinn is solid as The Human Torch, who is allowed to be kind of smart in this one while still keeping his smartass posture. Ebon Moss-Bachrach is pretty good too as The Thing, and I liked his scenes with Natasha Lyonne, even if they weren’t fleshed out all that well. Pascal is fine as Mr. Fantastic. He captures the egghead side of his personality well enough, but he still feels a bit miscast even if he isn’t necessarily bad in the role.
Despite some quibbles, there is plenty to enjoy here. The scene where Sue used her invisibility powers to show Reed their baby growing inside her was surprisingly moving. I also liked how The Thing called Reed “Stretch”. The retro futurism of the film might be its biggest selling point. The fact that it’s set in the ‘60s makes the inventions in the Baxter Building look like something out of those old “Kitchen of Tomorrow” cartoons, and the inclusion of the team’s robot pal H.E.R.B.I.E. was an amusing addition. Not only does the movie take place in the ‘60s, it’s set in an entirely different Multiverse, which allows it to do its own thing without being tied heavily to the MCU stuff.
Sure, I could nitpick here and there. I honestly wasn’t crazy about the new Silver Surfer or the fact that Reed sports a Clark Gable mustache, but that’s mere surface stuff really. I for one missed the goofy tone and humor of the ‘00s versions, but this is a perfectly acceptable redo.
Marvel Cinematic Universe Scorecard:
Spider-Man: No Way Home: ****
Avengers: Age of Ultron: ****
The Incredible Hulk: ****
Iron Man: ****
Thor: Ragnarok: ****
Avengers: Endgame: ****
Ant-Man and the Wasp: ****
Spider-Man: Homecoming: ****
Iron Man 3: ****
Captain America: Civil War: *** ½
Ant-Man: *** ½
Guardians of the Galaxy: *** ½
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2: *** ½
Avengers: Infinity War: *** ½
Werewolf by Night: *** ½
Black Panther: *** ½
The Avengers: ***
Captain America: The First Avenger: ***
Captain America: The Winter Soldier: ***
Deadpool and Wolverine: ***
Fantastic Four: First Steps: ***
Thor: Love and Thunder: ***
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness: ***
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings: ***
Captain Marvel: ***
Spider-Man: Far from Home: ***
Thor: ***
The Marvels: ***
Captain America: Brave New World: ***
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3: ***
Thor: The Dark World: ***
Iron Man 2: ***
Thunderbolts*: ** ½
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania: ** ½
Doctor Strange: ** ½
Black Widow: ** ½
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever: **
The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special: **
Eternals: * ½
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