Earlier this year I wrote about the trailer they dropped for the Fantastic Four film; it was not the most exciting trailer in the world but nevertheless I said I'd reserve judgement on the film until it came out...well the film is out and here is my judgement.
You can watch my video for an oral review
The new Fantastic Four film follows the pattern of taking an originally lighthearted affair and turning it into something gritty a la Man of Steel and like Man of Steel that creates a divide in the experience; on the one hand its a more realistic take on how a person would react to having their lives altered forever, but you lose out on the heart that made the comic work in the first place. I'm not the biggest Fantastic Four fan but even I felt like this film tried a bit too much to be edgy and I believe that to be the fault of the studio trying to be like the other studios. Normally I'd break down the movie based on plot, acting and effects but honestly there is not much to go on here; its a very bare bones film with nothing spectacular that stands out from either categories. I don't fault the actors for this though, they were all given relatively a very small amount of time on screen to build any sort of chemistry and I wasn't really invested in their relationships because everything felt so rushed. The movie did a horrible job with pacing because they just jump around randomly ahead in time and it feels like I'm watching 3 different films; first it's like a sci-fi movie, then it's a lowkey horror/monster film and then sorta a superhero movie with its climatic battle at the end (which was resolved way too easily for my liking).
Now I know I've said nothing good about the film but there are good things about it if you can take the film as just a set up movie for a future film, similar to that of Captain America and Thor (lets be real they were both set up films for the Avengers). I can see the foundations being laid to have a more exciting sequel that isn't so heavy on the angst because my god this movie doesn't like excitement. I feel like this film tried to not be like every other superhero film out there and it succeeds in that but that is also it's biggest detriment, it's not like the other superhero films out there. You aren't going to see massive set pieces or tons of comic references or even a post credits scene. what you see is what you get. But ,and I have no idea why, I kinda of like that. It's different, its a different approach to the characters and yeah they have stumbled out of the starting blocks (seriously they are like wearing lead shoes) but I do think that if it capitalizes on the potential that it's messing around with then it can actually end up being a very decent superhero franchise. All that being said, you don't really need to watch this film, you'll know what's gonna happen before it happens and nothing will surprise you...but if you do watch it I think you'll see what I mean in terms of laying the foundation down for a better film.
Ok but actually do go see it because there a part in this film with Doom where I was like "holy shit yes this is the Doom I've been wanting to see" and I want everyone to witness that because it's the best part of the film.
TL;DR- Its a superhero film that isn't all that exciting but it lays the groundwork for a more exciting sequel. You're not missing out on not watching it but if you watch it you wont be like "man I shouldn't have watched it".
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