Good Popcorn Fun
Summary
The Fantastic Four: First Steps is elevated by some gorgeous visuals and an amazing score from Michael Giachinno. The cast all do their best with a forgettable script and there isn’t much action for the first half, but any scene with Galactus is what makes this worth watching on the big screen.
Plot: Forced to balance their roles as heroes with the strength of their family bond, the Fantastic Four must defend Earth from a ravenous space god called Galactus and his enigmatic Herald, Silver Surfer.
Review: The Fantastic Four haven’t had the best run in terms of live action pictures, but I did quite enjoy the two starring Jessica Alba and Chris Evans for what they were. Marvel’s first family have finally joined the MCU and I feel like this film has been getting a lot more hype than other recent projects.
I have to thank my buddy J-Man who posted a video on his YouTube channel (below) the other day where he discusses everything you need to read before seeing this movie. As someone who has never read a Fantastic Four comic before this was gold, so I had an idea what to expect.
The cast includes Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards AKA Mister Fantastic, Vanessa Kirby as Susan Storm, Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm AKA The Thing. Ralph Ineson plays Galactus with Julia Garner playing Shalla-Bal AKA The Silver Surfer.
The performances are first rate as you’d expect with something of this scale and everyone is well cast. Pedro Pascal seems to be in every movie these days, but he is great on screen and I like his iteration of Reed Richards; he is socially awkward and filled with self doubt, blaming himself for every problem the family comes across. Sue Storm is the glue that holds them all together and will stop at nothing to protect her new baby Franklin from Galactus. Johnny Storm also gets to shine showing he has brains too; like everyone else I wish they had done more with Ben Grimm’s voice which just sounds like Ebon Moss-Bachrach. I still think Michael Chiklis did the best live action version of this character.
I found the first half of the film a little slow with very few action scenes and it feels like it’s all just world building for future stories. This is at least a standalone movie where you don’t need to have seen any other MCU features to understand what’s going on.
There are references to the early comics here which fans will eat up, but there are some changes too which has already upset some. The Silver Surfer being female has been the biggest complaint and now that I know the earlier comics and the relationship between Norrin Radd and Alicia I can understand where the frustration comes from. The MCU has always done its own thing with all kinds of changes so I tend not to get too bothered by it.
The highlight for Fantastic Four is as you’d expect Ralph Ineson as Galactus; he’s built up perfectly and his entrance doesn’t disappoint. Ineson has an amazing voice anyway and now it’s even cooler. Galactus is finally realised properly on screen rather than being a cloud and I thought he looked genuinely otherworldly. I also enjoyed Julia Garner as Shalla-Bal even if she does feel a little underused.
Like the Fast & Furious franchise, this movie is all about family and sticking together when things go very wrong; the Fantastic Four themselves are all appealing and sympathetic, so we are behind them all the way. I also love the visual style of this movie with the retro-futuristic look; the Four’s apartment looks awesome and I love that they have a Conversation Pit. If one day I can ever afford a house I’m bringing that back as it’s such an interesting feature.
Michael Giachinno has created one of the best superhero music scores in years; Marvel haven’t had the greatest track record when it comes to their music with only The Avengers and Captain America coming up with anything memorable. This is my favourite music score of the year as it’s so upbeat and optimistic sounding which is refreshing in this era of mostly tuneless dirge.
In terms of action the final showdown with Galactus is spectacular and the team battling the Surfer in space is also a standout. Aside from that there really isn’t that much that’s all that amazing here. It doesn’t really do anything new and I couldn’t help feeling that it’s just setting up the next Avengers movie… which it is.
Overall, The Fantastic Four: First Steps was quite disappointing as I found the first half a little slow and lacking in the action department; still, it lets us get to know the characters and every scene with Galactus is awesome. There is a genuine sense of scale when he is on screen so IMAX is definitely the only way to watch this. The cast are all at the top of their game with solid performances all round, but you can’t help feeling it’s all just setting up what happens next.