Review Fantastic Four: First Steps
Marvel managed to put hardcore fans back on the hype train at the end of Thunderbolts.
With excellent trailers for the Fantastic Four and an unprecedented cast announcement for the next two Avengers films, the whole movie world again turned its eyes to Marvel.
With a lot of pressure on its shoulders, a cast we are used to seeing everywhere Marvel would try to continue the wave.
Even the trailers simply showed the whole thing, and it is no one’s fault in the marketing department. The entire plot of the film can be told in under a minute, events are predictable and can be counted on one hand, and all the characters feel hollow.
So surprise is off the menu.
What remains are tiresome dialogues and a very failed attempt to fit Galactus and the Silver Surfer as villains.
The film begins trying to build a new universe where the Fantastic Four are the defenders of an alternative world stuck in the 1960s.
From the first moment it is clear that many action scenes were cut that would have added personality to the world we should want to save at the end of the film, and instead we get monologues telling us what happened in the world.
The result is completely devoid, lowering the value of the stakes or the value of each of the three conflicts that exist.
This emptiness touches almost every aspect of the film, from characterless dialogues to the hollow story of the villains, making the viewer feel the investment was only in the art, casting, and effects, and everything else just hoped to be good.
Galactus, what should have been one of Marvel’s big villains gets catastrophic treatment.
I don’t understand who thought it was a good idea to tie him to a film like this.
Even stranger, he looks good next to the Silver Surfer version..
One Thing Came Out Good from the Fantastic Four
Although it is beautiful it completely fails to fool us and hide all its flaws.
Still, there are good things.
Some of the cast manages to do a good job despite what was written for them, and the robot Herbie manages to be a charming face to watch even without dialogue.
Huge credit goes to everyone around the production, from the streets of New York filled with creative cars to the final effects giving their maximum.
That effort was not contagious enough,the only area where the work was really good is the soundtrack.
The main Fantastic Four theme is wonderful on its own and made me smile when everything focused on the family’s actions.
Additionally, a moment between Johnny and the Silver Surfer works thanks to the soundtrack, and the only area where Galactus really works is in the sound design of his movement.
Bottom Line
Fantastic Four: First Steps is fantastic in effects and central cast.
With a plot that can be told in the trailer stretched to two hours and particularly lazy dialogues, even amazing art work cannot hide how gray and boring this film is.