This new iteration of the Fantastic Four has to be one of the most infamous adaptations of a comic book property in recent memory. The online nerd community smelled blood in the water from day one and grew more and more weary with every sliver of info that was released about the film. Most of their concerns wound up being totally warranted. This is not the Fantastic Four movie we were all hoping for.
The Story
Fantastic Four follows the formation of the titular team. The portion of the story prior to the team getting their powers was actually pretty decent. It was interesting seeing a young Mr. Fantastic being a genius from day one. Overall though origin stories in a lot of these movies seem to be getting stale. We’ve already seen the team’s origin story in another movie and it wasn’t needed to attempt a new take on that.
One thing that general movie goers may not take issue with is the tone of the movie. Overall its pretty dark and monotone. As film in general, this is fine, but for a fantastic four film, this just doesn’t seem right. A perfect adaptation would be the opposite. Reed Richards’ powers would look less out of place in this sort of environment as well.
The Characters
They got some things right and a lot wrong when it comes to the characters in this film. The first thing that comes to mind is the ethnicity of the Human Torch. I didn’t much mind that change here, but I’m of the opinion that I’d rather see the studios bring in more characters who’ve always been portrayed as non-white than just changing traditional white characters. Changing characters in this way usually just feels unauthentic to me. With that said, Michael B. Jordan’s portrayal of the character was my favorite part of the movie along with he effects that brought torch to life.
I was disappointed with the Thing. His character should have been a center piece and was instead underutilized and was an afterthought. I liked his character design, but the CG just wasn’t up to snuff when compared to characters like Hulk in Avengers or Groot in Guardians. His personality was also too bland in comparison to the older movies.
Mr. Fantastic was fine and the actor did well as the leading man of the film. I enjoyed Kate Mara as Sue Storm, but some of the effects for that character were awful. I was disappointed we didn’t get to see more of their relationship as well.
For someone who isn’t familiar with the source material, Dr. Doom may have been properly intimidating, but if you’re into the characters, this was the second total failure at adapting the character. Its a shame that such an awesome character keeps getting this treatment. Its like they didn’t learn anything at all from his reception in the last series.
The Action
What action? There’s really only the hallway Doom scene and the team taking him out. It all happens so fast and is over before you know it. I expected more from a comic book movie.
The Verdict
I can forgive a lot with the story in these movies if the movie makers can at least give me a compelling portrayal of the characters and some exciting action. While there are some redeemable qualities, they didn’t nail any of my main points of focus. I’d wait for home video if you’re a fan. Maybe skip this one if you’re not.
