If you are not yet tired of loud, colorful and obscenely expensive blockbusters after «Jurassic World Rebirth» and «Superman», «The Fantastic Four: First Steps» — the next film of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which opens its Sixth Phase. Why, despite the obvious superhero template, is this movie still a pleasure to watch, and why it has every chance of becoming one of the most beloved films at least for Dominiс Toretto — in the review below.
Genre superhero action
Director Matt Sheckman
Starring Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, Ebon Moss-Bacrack, Julia Garner, Matthew Wood, Ralph Ineson, Paul Walter Gauser, Natasha Lyonne, Sarah Niles, Mark Gatiss
Premiere movie theaters
Year of release 2025
Website IMDb, official website
Earth 828. For 4 years now, the superhero team known as the Fantastic Four has been protecting the planet from any threats. The family of Reed Richards and Sue Storm is about to have a new addition, but this good news is overshadowed by the imminent arrival of Galactus, as reported by his messenger, the Silver Surfer. This cosmic entity is the size of a Godzilla, with a look decepticon and its planetary-scale appetites are planning to devour another world, so the Four will have to come up with something really fantastic to save their home planet from the encroachments of the voracious giant.
The history of the Fantastic Four dates back to the gray hairs of Reed Richards in the 60s. It was then that the team made their debut in the comic book of the same name by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. A little later, the quartet moved to the screens, though so far in the form of a series of animated series. As for the «live» film adaptation, it only came to some specifics in the 90s, but the low-budget film of that time was nothing more than an attempt by producer Bernd Eichinger to retain the film rights for Constantin Films. As a result, the film was never officially released.
Since then, Hollywood craftsmen have made it a habit to reboot the «Fantastic Four» every 10 years. In 2005, Tim Story’s version was released starring Ian Griffith, Jessica Alba, Chris Evans, and Michael Chiklis. The sequel «Rise of the Silver Surfer» was released two years later, and it featured the Silver Surfer and Galactus. The film received even more favorable reviews from critics than its predecessor, but it did not go beyond passable superheroics. The best of the bunch was Evans’ appearance as Johnny Storm in last year’s «Deadpool & Wolverine».
10 years later, Josh Trank’s Fantastic Four» premiered, featuring Miles Teller, Kate Mara, Michael B. Jordan, and Jamie Bell in superhero costumes. However, in a decent society, it is not customary to mention that terrible failure.
And so, it’s 2025, which means it’s time to update the team with the branded logo on its chest. Moreover, «in the home of» — marks the opening of the Sixth Phase of the Marvel Universe. Like James Gunn in «Superman», the creators do not waste time on unnecessary backstory, limiting themselves to a brief mention of the events that preceded the superheroic transformation in space. Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Johnny Storm, and Ben Grimm have been defending an alternate Earth for a symbolic 4 years, so the «first steps» stated in the subtitle have already been taken.
Let’s be frank and admit that this «Four» in terms of plot has not departed from the standard comic book tropes that many people are sick of. There’s a team consisting of good guys and a girl (okay, still a work in progress). There’s a McGuffin. There’s a little humor to lighten the mood. There’s the obligatory genre antagonist with another unnaturally menacing helmet on his head. And with him comes another danger to the world, which urgently needs to be saved. Will it be saved? The question is rhetorical.
At the same time, the narrative, which is heavily flavored with family values (Dominic Toretto would have been delighted), does not add any significant depth to all those explosions, space flights, or falling skyscrapers.
Being in the safest possible zone of a standard superhero blockbuster, «Fantastic Four» is made with integrity, and that is why it manages to become a good entertainment for the viewer. The latter doesn’t even need to be aware of all the intricacies and numerous events of this clumsy machine to stay in the context of local history. It is a well-crafted template.
Probably only the lazy would not mention the amazing retro-futuristic setting, referring to the hopeful 60s, which became the decoration of the entire movie. If the story falls short in terms of emotions or the density of events, you can always pay attention to the eye-catching interior design, miracle devices from the analog era, quirky cars, or the cute robot H.E.R.B.I.E.
What can we say about the rather daring birth scene for a movie that is not very bold (but don’t worry, there is no content that can shock children) — you will definitely hear this scream in space. In «Eternals» (2021), for the first time in the Marvel universe, there was a sex scene, and now we’ve been shown again that nothing human is alien to superheroes, and they can love, have children, and have to change diapers.
Unfortunately, not all members of the team received enough attention, as the story focuses mainly on the characters of Pascal and Vanessa Kirby. Joseph Quinn’s character, who met the ubiquitous Pedro on the set «Gladiator 2» (2024), has a potentially fascinating interaction with the Silver Surfer, but this arch is not properly developed. The relationship between Ben Grimm and a local teacher goes nowhere at all.
As for the villains, just like in the 2007 version, the Silver Surfer looks much more interesting than the Galactus monstrosity — that’s where the stone-faced feature deck is really useless. But it’s still better than the personality-less cloud that was its on-screen predecessor.
We can also recall the episode, pleasant for all Pedro Pascal haters, in which the space giant does to Mr. Fantastic what children like to do with chewing gum. But the most memorable moment is when we are shown that there is no more powerful force in the world than an angry, desperate woman who is ready to do anything and everything possible to protect her child.
The authors of «The Fantastic Four: First Steps» don’t even try to break the mold of the superhero blockbuster, and they are quite comfortable in the tight pants of a standard movie comic. With this approach, you can’t expect anything more than a one-time unpretentious entertainment. On the other hand, for today’s Marvel, this is a remarkable achievement.
And be sure to wait for the post-credits scenes.
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Cуб'єкт у сфері онлайн-медіа; ідентифікатор медіа - R40-06029.
