Fantastic Four (Marvel Comics Movie Review)

Plot
During a space voyage, cosmic rays alter four scientists, including Reed Richards, who gains the ability to stretch his body; and Sue Storm, who can become invisible. Together, these "Fantastic Four" must now thwart the evil plans of Dr. Doom.

Jason's Thoughts
I don't ever recall ever hearing anything good about Fantastic Four, so I went into the film with low expectations. After viewing it, I can see the gripes people and critics had with it, however, I have to admit that I was entertained by it.

Throughout all of my comic book movie reviews, I have always knocked off points for directors who have taken the comedic/camp route. Fantastic Four didn't quite reach that level, but there were plenty of cheesy lines of dialog or events that got a chuckle out of me. It actually got me to wonder if Fantastic Four was geared more towards children as opposed to hardcore comic book nerds.

For the most part, I thought the casting was spot on for this movie. Chris Evans was spot on in his portrayal of Johnny Storm/The Human Torch with his cocky and brash attitude.  I also think Michael Chiklis as Ben Grimm/The Thing was also great. The one spot where I felt the casting failed, though, was with Julian McMahon as Victor Von Doom/Dr. Doom.

Dr. Doom is an iconic Marvel supervillain and I don't think he was done justice in Fantastic Four. His time on screen as Dr. Doom was very limited at the tail end of the film, and the buildup to his debut really failed to deliver. Not to mention, McMahon's voice just didn't seem as diabolic and evil as I feel the voice of Dr. Doom should have been.

The action was also scarce and slow paced in the movie. I can only recall two instances where a lot of action took place on camera. Sure, like most comic book movies, the first installment usually has to cover the origins of the superheroes, however, this seemed to be extra heavy on the group discovering their powers as opposed to using them. The final encounter with Dr. Doom also came across as underwhelming and anticlimactic.

Even though the movie lacked a little bite, the special effects seemed pretty decent. With the four members of the Fantastic Four having such unique abilities, the special effects needed to be there and I feel they were. The Human Torch looked good and Mr. Fantastic's stretching ability looked decent. I thought The Thing looked a little out of place, but I'm sure the makeup of his character is hard to pull off in a live action film.

Overall, Fantastic Four did not live up to actually being fantastic, but it was an entertaining movie that was a refreshing change from the dark and gritty comic book movies that I have been watching as of late. It probably isn't for everyone, but I think most fans of comic books can find it at least somewhat enjoyable.

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