“The Fantastic Four: First Steps” review

It’s no secret that Marvel Studios has been on a steady decline since the release of Avengers: Endgame in 2019. Since then, they have tried to incorporate many new characters into their universe, with mixed results. Here we have their first attempt at introducing the Fantastic Four. While there have been a few F4 movies before, they have all been mediocre to downright bad, and none have been able to crack the code, until now. Thanks to director Matt Shakman’s tight direction and an excellent cast, Marvel has produced by far the best F4 movie to date.

Similar to what James Gunn did with Superman, The Fantastic Four: First Steps decides not to rehash the same origin story we’ve seen multiple times already. Instead, we are quickly caught up to speed with a few short scenes, which lays the groundwork for where the superhero team is at now. Set in the 1960s, the plot follows Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Ben Grimm, and Johnny Storm as the known and beloved Fantastic Four. After Reed and Sue announce that Sue is pregnant, many people, including themselves, wonder if the child will also have special powers. In the meantime, a being known as the Silver Surfer visits Earth to warn of a cosmic entity called Galactus, who is targeting Earth for destruction. Without going into too much detail to avoid spoilers, this is the main conflict that sets the tone for the rest of the movie. 

One of things I admire about this movie, among other things, is how smooth the pacing is. Oftentimes, comic book movies tend to be bloated and feel like a slog to get through, but not this one. Much of the credit for that goes to director Matt Shakman’s tight, well-paced direction and a well-written script. We’re introduced to the characters briefly, and we’re given enough time to get familiar with them before the main conflict is introduced. The movie is also incredibly self-contained. What I mean by that is that it feels like its actual own movie with a story to tell, instead of trying to do too much or set up other events and storylines down the road. Of course, at the end of the day this is a Marvel movie and there is a post-credits scene that does set up future events, but at least it’s just a post-credit scene. This all feels like such a breath of fresh air in the crowded comic book movie genre.

Of course, this movie wouldn’t have worked nearly as well without its stellar cast, particularly Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic and Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm/Invisible Woman. These two are a step-up from past iterations of these characters. That’s also true for Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm/Human Torch and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm/The Thing. The cast also have good chemistry with one another, which not only adds to the believability of them as a superhero team, but also simply makes the interactions between the characters fun to watch. But it is Pascal and Kirby that really stand out, and their performances are some of the best in a Marvel movie in a long time. 

Overall, The Fantastic Four: First Steps is the movie Fantastic Four fans have been waiting a long time for. Shakman’s tight, well-paced direction and a stellar cast elevate it above many of Marvel’s recent entries, and it actually feels like its own movie without trying too much to set up other events. It’s been a while since you could say that about a superhero entry. 

Rating: 4/5