Movie Review: ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’
Poster from ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’
Among Marvel’s superhero repertoire, the Fantastic Four (FF) show up time and time again as some of their most iconic characters. The Fantastic Four consists of Reed Richards aka Mister Fantastic (Pedro Pascal), Susan Storm aka Invisible Woman (Vanessa Kirby), Johnny Storm aka The Human Torch (Joseph Quinn), and Ben Grimm aka The Thing (Ebon Moss-Bachrach). This group of heroes, who first appeared in 1961, have been Marvel main-stays ever since, inherited powers due to the effects of a cosmic storm. Susan Storm, the leader of the team, can not only become invisible, but she can also create indestructible force fields. Reed Richards, Susan’s husband, is both super intelligent and super-stretchy; he is able to elongate any part of his body. Johnny Storm, Susan’s younger brother, holds the capability of lighting on fire as well as being able to control it. Ben Grimm, a lifelong friend of Reed, has rocks covering his body. Ben, acting as the brawns of the team, also possesses superhuman strength, and has repeatedly gone up against characters like the Incredible Hulk.
With Reed and Susan being a married couple, Johnny being Susan’s younger brother, and Ben acting as the “family friend,” the quartet have been given the name “Marvel’s First Family.” The four argue and bicker, they don’t always see eye to eye, but most importantly, they always come back to support each other. Within the original Stan Lee and Jack Kirby line of comics, the Fantastic Four have not only quarreled with one another, but they have gone up against frightening villains in Marvel history. Villains such as the infamous Doctor Doom, Annihilus, the Skrulls, and Kang the Conqueror have been but a few adversaries the FF have dealt with. One of their most intimidating villains however, is Galactus, the Devourer of Worlds, who also appears as the main antagonist of Marvel Studios’, The Fantastic Four: First Steps.
Directed by Matt Shakman, The Fantastic Four: First Steps stands as the (third) official introduction of the Fantastic Four in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The first cameo of the Fantastic Four took place in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, where viewers got to see a Reed Richards variant who worked in the Illuminati. The second appearance of the Fantastic Four was in Deadpool & Wolverine, where the two titular mutants came across a Johnny Storm variant, played by Chris Evans, which also acts as a homage to the 2005 20th Century Fox adaptation of the Fantastic Four. First Steps, however, acts as the triumphant launch of Marvel’s First Family as they take center stage in their own dedicated film. Set in a retro-futuristic 1960’s New York City, The Fantastic Four: First Steps, as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s (MCU) Multiverse saga, is placed in an entirely different universe separate from any other Marvel film. In this world, the Fantastic Four have already been proclaimed as heroes who have protected the city from dangerous rivals and archenemies such as the Puppet Master (Issue #8), the Mad Thinker (Issue #15), Diablo (Issue #30), Red Ghost (Issue #13), and the notable Mole Man (Issue #1).
The entire world becomes aware of the Fantastic Four’s biggest and most dangerous foe yet when a strange alien, the Silver Surfer, descends into Times Square. The Silver Surfer leaves the planet with a forewarning of their impending doom thanks to a being known as Galactus, the Devourer of Worlds. It is up to the FF to track the Silver Surfer into outer space and come face to face with the mysterious Galactus. Galactus is a cosmic force of nature that, with the Silver Surfer’s help of locating habitable planets across the universe, goes from world to world, absorbs and consumes their life essences. Upon meeting the menace on his own spaceship, Galactus requests that Susan give up her yet-to-be-born baby, Franklin Richards, as he has the potential for immense power that will “satisfy” Galactus’s eternal hunger. If the four do this, then Galactus will spare the Earth.
The Fantastic Four object to the idea of giving their baby to Galactus, leaving the cosmic adversary to telepathically force Susan to go into labor so that he can take the boy and have Franklin watch the Earth being consumed before his very eyes. The four run away and escape Galactus’s ship as well as outsmart the Silver Surfer, who had been on their tail, as they hastily steer their ship back to Earth.
Upon their arrival in New York, the public, who had assumed that the four had defeated Galactus up in space, go from a state of uncertainty, to confusion, and lastly to anger. The public retaliates and protests against the Fantastic Four after Reed Richards not only explains that Galactus will soon arrive on Earth’s doorsteps to take Franklin and consume the Earth, but also the fact that they don’t know what to do in the presence of an entity so unknown and powerful. For the next few days, protests continue to erupt, and the quartet are at a loss on what to do. It is until Susan gives a heartfelt speech to the angered public, that the world must work together, however, does sentiment begin to change and ideas evolve into action. With the combined efforts of Reed Richards and his inspired plan of developing teleportation beacons all across the globe, as well as the cooperation of the nations of Earth, all of humanity works together to, hopefully, transport the entire planet to a solar system far away from Galactus’s reach.
In spite of that, this ambitious plan fails at the last second when the Silver Surfer finally reaches Earth and, at lightning speed, destroys nearly every beacon, excluding the single remainder located in Times Square. This is thanks to Johnny Storm and his side-plot of decoding the Silver Surfer’s language. Johnny forces Shalla-Bal, the Silver Surfer, to listen to audio recordings of civilizations that had been destroyed thanks to her actions of leading Galactus to their worlds. With Shalla-Bal’s heavy guilt, she abruptly leaves Earth right before Galactus himself arrives on Earth with his ship.
The ultimate battle between the Fantastic Four, humanity, and Galactus, takes place in the streets of Manhattan, where an annoyed Galactus marches through the city, scouting for Franklin. Thanks to the efforts of the Fantastic Four and the now-redeemed Shalla-Bal, however, the heroes defeat Galactus as both he and Shalla-Bal are sent through the remaining teleportation beacon, and are whisked away to the distant ends of the universe, away from Earth for good. The film comedically ends with a timeskip, where the FF abruptly embark on another mission while also struggling to set Franklin’s car seat in place in the midst of an emergency terrorizing the city.
There are many good things that come from this film. One outstanding element of The Fantastic Four: First Steps is the suspense that comes with the central conflict. Viewers are never given clarity on whether or not the heroes will win in the end as they face something in which they cannot even comprehend. Considering that this is set in a separate universe, there’s no telling whether or not anyone will survive. It creates a feeling of cosmic horror and pure dread as the fate of the entire planet hangs in the balance of these four quirky superheroes. Seeing the repeated frustrations of Reed Richards, the smartest man alive, trying to work his way through the infinitely complicated problem of Galactus, a planet-eater who is slowly headed towards Earth, adds to the hopelessness that permeates throughout the movie. Truly, if the smartest man alive doesn’t know how to solve this problem, then what can anyone do?
Another great component of First Steps, if not the best, is its presentation. From the colorful appearance of the Baxter Building (the Fantastic Four’s headquarters), the old-fashioned look of Times Square, and the characters’ stylish, retro attire, The Fantastic Four: First Steps does not disappoint in its effort to pay homage to its 1960s origins. The antique and nostalgic vibe of NYC gets juxtaposed later on in the film to the eerie, mechanical jungle that is Galactus’s ship, as well as the brilliant, unknown wonder that comes from interplanetary space exploration that the quartet embark on.
Still from ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’
In every sense of the word, First Steps is a beautiful, stylized movie. This behaves as a stark contrast to some of Marvel’s other films that have been criticized as looking visually “muddy” or “dull.” The soundtrack also contributes to the presentation with the catchy and triumphant leitmotif of “The Fantastic Four: First Steps Main Theme” echoing all throughout the movie. It truly feels like a breath of fresh air for Marvel, and could potentially leave room for other movies to be set in this universe.
While The Fantastic Four: First Steps excels in visual composition, the movie falls flat in some of its story elements; there are a few complaints that take away from the film’s excellence. One issue that comes from the movie is Ben Grimm and his lack of relevance. With the movie having a lot to do with Reed, Susan, and Johnny, Ben feels sidelined with no real arc or development. Although Ben had a tiny plot that had to deal with a newly introduced character, Rachel Rozman (Alicia Lyonne), it only consisted of two short scenes that never took off or went anywhere.
Another nitpick that comes with this movie is the film’s lack of real action. Apart from the scene where the four escape from the Silver Surfer in outer space and the final battle, not much superhero combat occurs in the movie. Even though the Fantastic Four as a concept are technically heralded as explorers more so than superheroes, it didn’t help the believability of the characters being established and revered heroes. Most of the four’s rogues-gallery are only namedropped rather than actually shown. The Fantastic Four had defeated the Mad Thinker, but it was never shown; the Fantastic Four had beaten the Diablo, but it was never shown. One of the only times we see the characters in action is with a tiny fight between the FF and Giganto, one of the Mole Man’s minions, and a ten-second long scene of Reed kicking one of the Red Ghost’s super apes into the ocean. The Red Ghost (John Malkovich) had also, apparently, carried a greater role in the movie, with there having once existed a fight scene between him and the Fantastic Four. This was, unfortunately, chopped up and largely removed from the final version, as were a number of scenes that were teased in the original trailers. Rumor has it, however, that the reason being for scenes being removed from the final film were done in an effort to make the film have a shorter runtime.
Still from ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’
To conclude, The Fantastic Four: First Steps, as the title suggests, very much feels like a “beginning point.” The film's unique and iconic retro-futuristic style provides a strong foundation for this new iteration of the team, successfully capturing the nostalgic essence of their origins and separating itself from other Marvel movies. Yet, like any first step, First Steps falls short in certain areas. The film's storytelling feels incomplete with cut moments, key characters are sidelined, and the surprising lack of action as a result of shaving off the movie's runtime. Even so, the final product is an undeniable visual treat and acts as a hopeful sign of things to come, especially for what else lies in store for the Fantastic Four in upcoming titles such as Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars, which will hold Reed Richards and Doctor Doom as being pivotal characters in the MCU’s future from here on out. Ultimately, The Fantastic Four: First Steps serves a beautiful foundation that will leave audiences eager to see where Marvel's First Family, and the MCU as a whole, takes its next stride.