Ron Does Stuff

It’s been three months since I watched Thunderbolts*, a Marvel movie that I liked but unfortunately was a flop, financially. But it really gave me hope that there’s still juice in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, so when I got the opportunity to watch Fantastic Four: First Steps, I immediately jumped at the chance to see if Thunderbolts* was a fluke or if we’re really back on track.

Movie studios have tried to make a successful Fantastic Four movie multiple times. I kinda liked the early 2000s films that featured Chris Evans as the Human Torch, and found the 2015 one mostly meh even if I have a deep and abiding love for Jamie Bell. While the trailers were exciting, the track record of Fantastic Four films were spotty at best, so I approached the film with lowered expectations.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps is the fourth adaptation of this Marvel comic book property, and follows a group of superheroes affectionately dubbed as Marvel’s First Family. After being exposed to cosmic rays during an excursion into space, Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Johnny Storm, and Ben Grimm develop powers that make them The Fantastic Four and the protectors of Earth-828, another Earth from a different universe. For years, there is no supervillain that can stand against them until the arrival of the Silver Surfer, Shalla Bal.

Shalla Bal is the herald of Galactus, the Devourer of Worlds, and she has marked Earth-828 for destruction. With her and Galactus possessing powers that seem beyond the abilities of The Fantastic Four, Marvel’s First Family has to find a way to save their world or have it be destroyed by Galactus.

I don’t know if my tempered expectations played a part in how I digested the movie, but right from the get-go, the movie had me in its grip. It was visually arresting, from the Marvel Studios logo, to the 60s-ish aesthetic, to the quick and breezy way they explained The Fantastic Four’s origins. It snuck in comic book references so smoothly and even snuck in all the campy elements of the earlier comics without it being overwhelming like the Fantastic Four films of the early aughts.

It doesn’t feel jarring when the film takes a serious turn either, because the movie smoothly builds up to it, starting with Sue’s pregnancy and slowly raising the tension with the arrival of Shalla Bal. The announcement of the coming of Galacatus, and the action that the team decides to take, leads to a breathtaking sequence in space that had me tense and anxious and excited.

And speaking of Galactus, the Devourer of Worlds was definitely given his due in this movie, looking appropriately terrifying and awe-inspiring in equal measure. I know it’s only the second live-action depiction of Galactus, and I know the Galactus from the earlier Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer is an easy bar to clear, but this was everything I wanted from a Galactus live action adaptation.

The main cast also puts in ~fantastic performances~, with Vanessa Kirby being a particular standout. She does so much with those big eyes of hers, especially in the smaller, less cosmic moments, like when she has an argument with Pedro Pascal’s Reed Richards.

For those looking for Marvel continuity, especially considering that post-credit scene from Thunderbolts*, there’s none of that here, as The Fantastic Four exists in an entirely different universe, which movies like The Marvels and shows like Loki have already prepped us for. But I also want to point out that this separation from the rest of MCU continuity is a boon to the movie, as it only has to stand on its own and not be another cog in a bigger story.

By the end of the movie, it’s hard not to feel hopeful not just for the characters, but in the direction of the MCU as well. If they manage to keep this up in the coming movies, we might have another decade of comic book movies coming up.

I also took some photos of all the stuff they had prepared for the premiere yesterday. Check them out below!