by Anthony O'Connor
Worth: $15.00
FilmInk rates movies out of $20 — the score indicates the amount we believe a ticket to the movie to be worth
Cast:
Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Julia Garner, Ralph Ineson, Paul Walter Hauser, Natasha Lyonne
Intro:
… a rock solid, optimistic, fun, cheerful and engaging new superhero flick that finally feels like a fitting ode to its comic origins.
The Fantastic Four hasn’t exactly had a winning run of cinematic adaptations. The comic book family originally created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby was first brought to celluloid life in 1994 with a notoriously dodgy Roger Corman cheapie that was never officially released, and can be found online where it amuses stoners and the chronically ironic.
The 2005 version starring Ioan Gruffudd, Jessica Alba, Chris Evans and Michael Chiklis actually did decent numbers at the box office, even if it was a bit pants, but its 2007 sequel was such a stinker that it killed the series stone dead.
Cut to 2015, and director Josh Trank (Chronicle) had a singular vision for the blue-hued crew: a slow, miserable, drab looking film that focuses on angst and body horror instead of anything resembling the joy and whimsy of the source material. It did predictably poor business and was critically lambasted to boot.
That brings us up to 2025, with director Matt Shakman’s long-awaited The Fantastic Four: First Steps, a film that makes the bold decision to, you know, make the movie like the comics. And guess what? It works, for the most part.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps tells the tale of Reed Richards (Pedro Pascal), Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby), Johnny Storm (Joseph Quinn) and Ben Grimm (Ebon Moss-Bachrach). When we meet this cheerful group on retro futurist Earth-828, they’ve already gone through the cosmic event that has turned them into the beloved heroes Mister Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch and The Thing. Everyone loves the Fantastic Four, and in the opening scenes we find out that they’re about to become the Fantastic Five! Sue is preggers and everyone’s stoked. However, when Earth receives a visit from some silvery sheila named Shalla-Bal aka Silver Surfer (Julia Garner), things take a dark turn. The planet-eating, always hungry dark god known as Galactus (Ralph Ineson) is on the way, and he wants to make Earth his latest midnight snack.
First Steps is a real back to basics approach for the Fantastic Four. It’s a very simple story that focuses mainly on the family dynamics of our heroes and their plight against an objectively evil entity that lives to destroy. There are no attempts at subversion here, no modern “maybe it’s our fault Galactus wants to eat us” tweaks. This is as close to a comic book accurate Fantastic Four as we’ve seen, and generally it’s a lot of fun.
Pedro Pascal delivers his usual, reliable Pedro Pascal performance with plenty of pathos and lingering shots of his soulful eyes. Vanessa Kirby is great as Sue, managing to imbue the character with strength and vulnerability. Joseph Quinn is surprisingly good as Johnny Storm (he looked terrible in the trailers) although it does feel like the more horndog aspects of his character have been left on the cutting room floor. Ebon Moss-Bachrach probably plays the role a little too subdued to suit The Thing, and his CGI is hit or miss, possibly a result of the rumoured reshoots that occurred in recent months. Happily, Ralph Ineson and Julia Garner are both terrific as Galactus and Silver Surfer, with the former being genuinely threatening and imposing and the latter something of a tragic figure.
Marvel’s had a bit of a run of duds lately, what with Captain America: Brave New World and Thunderbolts* underperforming (despite the latter being quite good) and the Ironheart TV show pleasing absolutely no one. They need a hit with The Fantastic Four: First Steps, and while it’s too early to say if that’s going to happen, they’ve certainly delivered a rock solid, optimistic, fun, cheerful and engaging new superhero flick that finally feels like a fitting ode to its comic origins. Like Superman (2025) it brims with hope for the future. Unlike Superman (2025), it doesn’t feel overstuffed and scattershot. Almost the opposite, actually, as it’s quite a streamlined little number, occasionally to its detriment.
Still, it’s fun, it’s bright and it’s a good time at the movies. The Fantastic Four: First Steps is a lowkey success but a success nonetheless and certainly the best adaptation of the iconic family so far, however low a bar that is to clear.
