Matt Shakman brings Marvel’s “first family” onto the big screen, but is it any good? Here’s our The Fantastic Four: First Steps review.
Historically, Fantastic Four is one of Marvel’s biggest properties, but adapting the quartet to the big screen has been, well, challenging. The 2005 film, starring Jessica Alba and Ioan Gruffudd, wasn’t great to begin with and certainly hasn’t improved over time while Josh Trank’s 2015 attempt promised more than it could deliver. Arguably, it’s Pixar’s pair of The Incredibles movies that have got closest to getting things right.
Director Matt Shakman then brings us the latest take on Marvel’s first family, The Fantastic Four: First Steps. His task comes with added pressure as Marvel is desperate for a hit after a string of underwhelming releases (although Thunderbolts remains an interesting release). Commercially, then, a lot is riding on First Steps and Shankman certainly gives it his all as does the cast.
The new film kicks off with Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby) finding out she’s pregnant, sending her husband Reed Richards (Pedro Pascal) into a panic. Things certainly aren’t helped when a metallic woman on a space surf board shows up, promising a space god is coming to eat up Earth.
More panic ensues, understandably.
Much like James Gunn’s Superman, The Fantastic Four: First Steps skips the team’s origin story. It’s a setup we’ve seen a few times now and, like Man of Steel’s origins, it’s a box that doesn’t need ticking at this point. If you’re unfamiliar with how the Fantastic Four got their powers, not to worry. Shakman and his team of writers – five people are credited for script and story, plus Stan Lee and Jack Kirby for the characters and comics – offer extensive voice over. But once we’re through some necessary exposition, things pick up and we get into the meat of the story.
Plot-wise, The Fantastic Four: First Steps offers very little new. Most of the story follows familiar beats, but I also got a sense of excitement that hasn’t been present in a Marvel film in a while. The Fantastic Four: First Steps isn’t weighed down by the larger Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) either, focusing on giving us an independent film that’s a very welcome and useful jumping on point.
In truth, I found it really exhilarating at best, too. More so than I was expecting.
The cast does a lot of heavy lifting to reach that excitement. Pascal is painfully relatable as Reed, who is often just a sack of anxiety. Here, here’s a man who carries the weight of the world on his shoulders, blaming himself for their powers and fearing he won’t be able to protect his son just as he couldn’t his wife and friends. Reed’s superpowers have traditionally been difficult to bring to the big screen, thanks to the character’s stretchiness. Maybe it’s a deliberate choice then that we see Reed’s powers perhaps the least, but Shakman and his VFX team do an admirable job in making something so bizarre feel at least somewhat real.
More importantly, these characters feel like real people, a real family. Blockbusters often struggle with this. Sue is fiercely protective and able to calm down her overthinking husband. Johnny (Joseph Quinn) is quick to make a joke, but Shakman makes a point of showing how intelligent and selfless he is also. Ben (Ebon Moss-Bachrach), aka the Thing, is a gentle giant, his kindness holding the family together.
If Reed brings a lot of realism through his anxiety, Kirby’s Sue is very much the heart of the film though. This Sue doesn’t fade into the background, but holds her own and her powers prove to be much bigger than originally thought. In fact, it’s the special, palpable chemistry between the cast that fuels much of the film. It’s The Avengers by way of Ghostbusters; Shakman remembers to balance the epic action and high stakes with heartfelt humour and moments of quietness, leading to a superhero film that isn’t trying to impress you. It’s trying to move you.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps is a far cry from Marvel’s previous superhero team-ups. Rather than follow the path forged by previous films and followed neatly by Thunderbolts* most recently, this is more like Sex & The City. Four distinct, differing personalities taking a kind of ownership over New York City and leaning on each other at times of hardship. There’s also a little Little Miss Sunshine in the family dynamics, while Nora Ephron could have worked wonders with the connection between Pascal and Kirby.
Naturally, there has to be a villain in a film like this. This Fantastic Four encounters Galactus, who we’ve seen on the big screen before. Galactus likes to eat planets, as you do, and so perhaps is a worthy villain for the Fantastic Four. He’s a surprisingly neutral one, though. He’s not downright evil like Thanos or after power and revenge like Killmonger. He’s just… hungry. No spoilers, but between Galactus and Reed, I don’t remember when I last saw myself portrayed on screen quite so accurately.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps is, at heart, pure escapism. It doesn’t have the boldness of Superman’s political takes, but it’s Marvel hitting the accelerator, and a recapturing of its verve. Credit to Shakman, who captures that early glee.
It’s a shame the Fantastic Four has to eventually join the larger MCU – stay for the after credits! – because having a completely independent film that works just on its own in this universe would be no bad thing. Still, it might not be a bad thing too to see this quartet again. So far, so impressive.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps is in cinemas 24th July.
