Fantastic Four Review

Okay... Where do I begin?
Fantastic Four is the last superhero for the year 2015, but it didn't go out with a bang. Quite the opposite in fact...

In preparation for this movie, I watched all the three previous Fantastic Four movies, so let's get those out of the way first.

We begin in the distant year of 1994 with the Roger Corman FF. If you know Corman, he's known for directing very cheesy B movies and this is definitely in that vein, also keep in mind that this was not meant for public release and is still not mass produced today. It was not as horrible as you would expect, but it definitely fell short of its potential. Actors were decent, effects are hokey; but it had a solid plot. It gets great points for having the best onscreen version of Doom.

Moving on to 2005 with the FF movie starring Michael Chickless. Definitely a better cast and effects. Story was a little slow paced, but it made up for that by the good chemistry from the cast; especially pre Captain America Chris Evans as Human Torch and Chickless as The Thing. The movie and its sequel focused more on the comedic aspects of it, which isn't especially bad, but it was the primary focus and it detracted from the plot. Really, just watch it for the character dynamics.

Now in 2015, Fox decided once again to reboot this series in order to stop Marvel Studios/Disney from acquiring it and actually produce something good. How does it fair? Did Fox learn their lesson?

Short answer is no.
The best thing they did do was make the movie as sci-fi instead of superhero, which is smart since the first few comics were about cosmic level adventures, not crime. In fact they didn't have uniforms for awhile. I give the movie points for that, but it doesn't save it.

To simply put it, this movie is boring. None of the characters are memorable, the plot is meh, character relationships are very off, and there is no humor in this thing. I don't even think there was a smile on anyone.

What made the original FF stories strong was that they were a family that didn't always agree with each other, but ultimately loved each other. The previous movies did a good job with that. This movie seems like they're co workers that kinda like each other. Again, great potential, but it fell way short.

I want to also point out something that's missing. Stan Lee.
Lee created the FF, as well as many other heroes; in fact FF was the first foray into the Marvel Universe as we know it today, and modern comics writing as a whole. Without this title, all the stories and titles that we love would either be bland or not exist. And superhero movies? Forget it!

So that's why this story is very close Lee's heart, and it let's you know something is wrong when Stan doesn't appear in a movie with characters that started the franchise.

Now don't get me wrong. It is possible to make a great FF movie. Want proof? Watch Incredible's! That movie is FF in all, but name. You have a family unit consisting of a strong guy, a stretchy person, and girl with invisibility and force fields, and a younger impulsive brother fighting a tech based villain. We all love that film! So if you have talented people writing and acting in this, you can have a great story and make a profit!

There was talk of a sequel and even a crossover with X-Men, but since this flopped, it's confirmed that will no longer happen. The director has even stated that Fox didn't release the story he wanted to tell. It's unconfirmed that's true, but personally I think he's lying given the podcasts of his interview I've heard this week. If they make a directors cut, I'll be interested to see what it has, but I don't have my hopes up.

So my final analysis is for you to save your $11.50 and instead watch the 2005 FF. It has problems, but at least you can enjoy the characters and still be entertained. Or better yet, watch Incredible's.

I give an appropriate 4/10 stars.

My friend House of Darkner did a video review of this on YouTube. Go give his page some love!

What do you think? Agree? Disagree? Yes, no, maybe so? Let me know!

No idea what the next review will be, but when I think of it, I'll tell you. Until then, laters!