The Fantastic Four: The First Steps

by Philip Price

Photo: Marvel

Director: Matt Shakman
Starring: Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby & Ebon Moss-Bachrach
Rated: PG-13 (action/violence and some language)
Runtime: 1 hour & 54 minutes

 
‘Shang-Chi’ and “The Eternals” didn’t need to be the next “Iron Man.” “The Marvels” nor Anthony Mackie’s Captain America never stood a chance at being such given the climate they were released into (not to mention their generally poor quality) whereas “Thunderbolts*” needed to do a lot of things but it didn’t necessarily need to turn over a new leaf or define the next generation of super hero films in the way 2008’s “Iron Man” did. This third iteration of "The Fantastic Four" in 30 years, though … it did need to be the next “Iron Man”; not necessarily in terms of look, feel or execution, but by doing what that film did for the genre upon its release: revitalizing it. The challenge facing “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” is that it needs to feel fresh, a departure from the MCU thus far, signaling a change in the tide, while retaining audience investment in the future of the universe at large. Herein lies the issue, as ‘First Steps’ is essentially a self-contained, single-issue comic book story that introduces, entices and entertains - all good things on their own merits - yet it still feels uncertain how convincing the film is at persuading casual viewers that they should follow Marvel’s first family into the future.
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The simplicity and practicality of Marvel’s approach to the introduction of this version of “The Fantastic Four” echoes through the story, the design of Earth 828 where the film takes place, as well as extending to the mentality of all of the characters; what is right and wrong not only seems evident to everyone but it is purposefully communicated the majority are on the same page -- tensions only arising once the nuance of Galactus’ ultimatum does and even then, humanity trusts The Fantastic Four enough not to question their methods. Director Matt Shakman began with Marvel on “WandaVision,” so his hiring for this retro futuristic take on the superhero family makes sense, and to him, the editors and the screenwriter’s credit, the film efficiently conveys not only the context within which this team exists but the place they occupy in society and in the world.

The natural chemistry between the core four is certainly present. The screenplay attempts to interrogate each member on a more personal level. Still, Ebon Moss-Bachrach’s Ben Grimm/The Thing draws the short end of the stick despite being the most conflicted. At the same time, Vanessa Kirby’s Sue Storm feels severely underdeveloped and mostly a plot surrogate throughout the first two acts, especially considering what the third asks of the character. In reality, Joseph Quinn’s Johnny Storm is the character most easily dismissed, which seems to have compelled the screenwriters to make this a part of his arc as Quinn spends much of the movie trying to prove himself to his brother-in-law by piecing together the mystery of Julia Garner’s Shalla-Bal, AKA Silver Surfer. Ralph Ineson as Galactus is genuinely epic when experienced on the scale of the IMAX format and Garner, despite concerns over the CGI, pulls off the aura of this "herald" imposing stakes and authentic emotion onto the two major set pieces with the effects-driven sequence featured as more or less the centerpiece of the film is one of the most exhilarating moments of any MCU movie period. It is Pedro Pascal’s Reed Richards who receives the most attention in terms of examining any of these inherently silly characters’ psyches, though, as we learn at the onset of the film that he and Sue are expecting a child after many years of trying with no success. Richards, known as the smartest man in the world, seeks to cope with the idea that his child isn’t an equation he’ll be able to figure out with ease and who will live in a world of factors he can’t control. When he is asked to trade that child for the guaranteed safety of the rest of the planet, his mathematical and emotional intelligence are unable to compute, leaving said smartest man in the world unsure of the correct answer. 

With the chemistry between the actors palpable, the aesthetic of the sets and production design near-perfect, the score from Michael Giacchino being especially noteworthy, and the villains a smart balance of purposeful and menacing the largest complaint is that the relationship we’re able to form thus far with these characters is neither as distinct as the immediate impression of Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark or as impactful as Chris Hemsworth’s Thor. In a similar territory of earnestness in which this very Jack Kirby-esque version of The Fantastic Four operates, I recall not instantly being taken with Chris Evans’ Steve Rogers either. This only makes the idea of jumping straight from this introduction into a two-part ‘Avengers’ story more daunting than exciting, as it would seem more beneficial to the team as a whole and especially the characters as individuals to have another self-contained, solo excursion in order to develop their arcs further before becoming the lynchpin for all of the MCU.

Maybe the idea of comparison, no matter how built into the DNA of the genre, isn’t fair and ‘First Steps’ should be taken solely for what it is and not as part of what these characters inevitably will be. It’s difficult not to consider such things though, when despite trying to allow one’s self to become wrapped up in the moral dilemma Reed Richards faces -- this idea of what is right being that you should probably sacrifice one life, your own child’s life, for that of billions of others -- still comes in second to whether or not they’ll show RDJ’s face as Dr. Doom in the stinger. This isn’t any fault of the movies; it’s the fault of the studio, but it’s an inevitable symptom of the cinematic universe. Would I have enjoyed the film more if it were a stand-alone story with no ties to the greater MCU? Probably not. I currently have a six-month-old at home, so the parental anxieties and infant peril really hit home, regardless of the inclusion of any mid or post-credit scenes. I (obviously) look forward to what might be teased next to reel me back in no matter the verdict of what was just witnessed but something is happening in the MCU specifically as this was the first time, in some time, where the desire to see why these pieces are being put in place is the same as wanting to see more of these characters to flesh them out and affirm what is suggested. I liked this movie a lot, actually, and am trying to reconcile why I feel conflicted, one of the more singular films the MCU has given us since its inception, is still obligated to be a part of this larger story. To put it another way, as I experienced the film, I was impressed by how involved I became. I would easily crown it among one of the better MCU origin stories. Yet, I worry about what might come after the next five years; what if it re-contextualizes this team in such a way that the promise of this initial film isn’t fulfilled? As with the Archimedes quote utilized here, we can only hope ‘First Steps’ is an example of leverage applied at the right time, illustrating how a smaller force can be used to move or propel the larger MCU back to, if not what it once was, what it still so clearly has the potential to be.