The team is rebooted into a new movie franchise. Our superhero films fanatic J.P. give us his take on “Fantastic Four.”
Fantastic Four
(20th Century Fox)
Starring Kate Mara, Miles Teller
Directed By Josh Trank
Studio Synopsis:
FANTASTIC FOUR, a contemporary re-imagining of Marvel’s original and longest-running superhero team, centers on four young outsiders who teleport to an alternate and dangerous universe, which alters their physical form in shocking ways. Their lives irrevocably upended, the team must learn to harness their daunting new abilities and work together to save Earth from a former friend turned enemy.
Set in contemporary New York, this retelling focuses on the Four before they become a team – when they were four young idealistic adventurers who make a headstrong leap into the unknown. FANTASTIC FOUR focuses on the human drama of relatable characters that at first don’t perceive their new physical abilities as advantages, but as daunting, if not impossible, challenges.
FANTASTIC FOUR stars Miles Teller (“Whiplash”) as Reed Richards, Michael B. Jordan (“Fruitvale Station,” “Chronicle”) as Johnny Storm, Kate Mara (Netflix’s “House of Cards”) as Sue Storm, and Jamie Bell (“Billy Elliot,” AMC’s “Turn”) as Ben Grimm.
The film also stars Toby Kebbell (“Dawn of the Planet of the Apes”) as Victor von Doom, a brilliant but rebellious computer programmer and Baxter Institute student; Reg E. Cathey (“House of Cards,” “The Wire”) as Dr. Franklin Storm, Johnny and Sue’s father; and Tim Blake Nelson (“O Brother, Where Art Thou?”) as an unscrupulous Baxter Institute board member.
J.P.’s Take:
Judging by the small press only crowd in the theater, I had an inkling that the new “Fantastic Four” was in for a ribbing. Unfortunately, my gut instinct was correct, as 10 years later, the 2015 version doesn’t quite live up to expectations. After viewing the revitalized super hero family, I felt a void, as audience reactions were less than stellar. Let’s put it this way, I give a bit more credit to the first iterations done in 2005 and 2007 than this one.
Directed and co-written by Josh Trank and written by Simon Kinberg and Jeremy Slater, the filmmakers have given this version the kind of murky grim sheen that just doesn’t fit Marvel’s parameters. Never mind the fact that these are different actors of a younger age group with different ethnic backgrounds, the problem lies within its origins story; one that is devoid of personality or emotional ties.
There is not much substance in the character development for the audience to invest their time into. We’re taken back to the elementary school days of boy genius Reed Richards (young Reed played by Owen Judge) and newfound friend Benjamin Grimm (young Ben played by Evan Hanneman). We find Richards discovering the secret to inter-dimensional travel, while Grimm’s older brother bullies him. You’ll also discover where the phrase “it’s clobberin time” comes from within those scenes. A good chunk of time is spent building this kindling friendship, which I have to say reminds me of the moments in the classic ‘85 movie “Explorers.” Yet it doesn’t take as much time as needed to truly embrace a story.
Before you know it, we flash forward several years later, as Ben (Jamie Bell) and Reed (Miles Teller) are in their late teens. They present a revolutionary project called a “quantum gate,” which they claim takes matter and sends it to another dimension and back again. Astonished by this break through, Dr. Franklin Storm (Reginald E. Cathey) –with his adopted daughter Sue Storm (Kate Mara) — recruits Richards on the spot. There are questions as to why Dr. Storm and Sue were at the fair in the first place, further, why Franklin’s group wasn’t able to achieve the same feats on their own, considering the fact they too had been working on a similar project. After all, these are NASA grade scientists. In any case, we’re introduced to Johnnie Storm (Michael B. Jordan) in an odd fashion. We find him in the midst of a “Fast & Furious”-styled car race, in which his car explodes midway. From what his father claims, he’s supposedly a mechanical genius. I couldn’t tell from that scene. As for Sue, not much is explained about her background, except the fact that Dr. Storm adopted her from Kosovo. Dr. Storm then puts together a team of Reed, Sue, Johnnie and Victor Von Doom (Toby Kebbell), who comes off as a disillusioned eco-activist, cyber punk. Eventually Ben Grimm joins the bunch after Reed puts in a call to have him brought in.
We’re now brought to the second half, which consists of nothing more than contrived action sequences and corny preachy one liners. Victor Von Doom is not the same villain as in the previous films. After his transformation, he feels more like an eco-terrorist than true villain. At least, he has a purpose. Then there’s the shaky dialogue that didn’t inspire heroism at all. The relational aspects of the characters weren’t warranted by their previous experiences.
The comedy was all wrong and the characters just didn’t resemble the first superhero family of ole. And, you can forget about the climatic ending, there isn’t one. Although once again, the door is left open for a sequel, with no inside look or Easter eggs for any of the Marvel entities.
I won’t go into all the contractual obligations between Marvel and their partners for giving their titles a facelift. Nor will I ponder on the many mishaps in making the film. However, this is all 20th Century Fox’s doing, so you can blame them for this botchery. Unfortunately, it pains me to say this is one of Marvel’s most forgettable films so far. I just wished they had of taken the time to really examine how to go about presenting this one.