Here’s the thing… After several failed attempts at launching the Fantastic Four franchise, it’s gratifying to see Marvel finally get it right.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps has everything you’d want in a comic book film. A feast for the eyes that doesn’t skimp on action, cosmic thrill, and family dynamics. All boxes are checked.
Matt Shakman delivers a CBM masterpiece that is unlike anything we’ve seen from Marvel. Fell in love with his work in WandaVision, and Fantastic Four further solidifies how unstoppable he is in his element. The retro-futuristic aesthetic of the film instantly pulls you in, and there’s no going back from there. If anything, it’s a statement project.
I had my qualms about this new iteration of the “First Family”, but the main quartet does an exceptional job in their respective roles and most especially as a collective. Vanessa Kirby and Joseph Quinn deliver standout performances, but that’s not to say that Pedro Pascal and Ebon Moss-Bachrach underperform, because they each have their moments of triumph.
Julia Garner’s Silver Surfer is also quite formidable and is more than deserving of her flowers, but the film’s true highlight is undoubtedly Galactus. He looks menacing and is arguably the franchise’s most imposing villain since Thanos. At long last, we have a Devourer of Worlds that’s no longer presented as a mere cloud, and that is a crowning achievement in itself.
My only gripe is that the CGI can be a bit sloppy at times, but that’s just a minor nitpick of what’s otherwise a fantastically executed (there it goes) film. Overall, if these are the “first steps” they’re taking, it’s surely in the right direction.
It’s no secret that the MCU has been a mixed bag since the Infinity Saga’s grand conclusion, but The Fantastic Four: First Steps is the return to form the franchise truly needed.
After years of cinematic struggles, The Fantastic Four: First Steps proves that the fourth time’s the charm.
Go see it on the biggest screen possible!
Thanks once again to the good folks at Marvel, Walt Disney Studios, and Ardent Communications for the screening invite!
