By George & Josh Bate
Three movies over the past 20 years have tried, yet failed, to capture the essence, heart, and cosmic charm of Marvel’s first family. In this summer’s The Fantastic Four: First Steps, Marvel Studios attempts to correct the mistakes of the past in finally delivering a Fantastic Four movie worthy of the legendary Jack Kirby and Stan Lee comics. With Avengers: Doomsday arriving next year and murmurs of superhero fatigue abound, stakes and expectations are high for the latest adventure in the MCU, which makes the astonishing visual masterpiece and heartfelt family drama crafted by director Matt Shakman all the more commendable.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps takes place in a universe parallel to Earth-616, the primary universe in which the other MCU stories are set in. Immersed in a 1960s-inspired retro-futuristic New York City, the film follows the titular foursome as they continue their mission to protect the people of Earth from any and all threats. With Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby) pregnant, the superhero family also consisting of Reed Richards (Pedro Pascal), Ben Grimm (Ebon Moss-Bachrach), and Johnny Storm (Joseph Quinn) face their greatest threat yet when the planet-devouring Galactus (Ralph Ineson) and his herald (Silver Surfer) put their planet and Sue and Reed’s newborn baby Franklin (Ada Scott) in their sights.
To make a film true to the spirit of its source material and to subvert the missteps of other theatrical adaptations of the characters, Marvel Studios clearly went back to the Jack Kirby and Stan Lee comic books as inspiration. The Fantastic Four: First Steps possesses a razor sharp comic book accuracy of its superheroes in the same way that Sam Raimi achieved with Spider-Man and Matt Reeves more recently accomplished with The Batman. At its heart, the latest MCU movie revolves around a tight-knit family that, despite their occasional squabbles, love one another unconditionally. One of the appealing aspects of the original Fantastic Four comics was their ability to portray grounded and heartfelt family dynamics within the context of a grand, cosmic superhero tale, something this new film triumphs with from start to finish. Amidst a tale involving a skyscraper-tall, planet-devouring, intergalactic villain threatening Earth, the film intelligently shows it is unafraid to spend intimate, prolonged, even quiet time with the four members of the family interacting and doing seemingly routine things, such as look for items in drawers of their home or gather for a Sunday dinner. A perfect example of this comes in the film’s very first scene, which, rather than plummeting audiences immediately into a large-scale action sequence, simply shows Reed and Sue talking as Reed looks for something in the Baxter Building and Sue finishes up in the bathroom before assisting her husband. As riveting as the cosmic threat is, the movie’s most enthralling sequences come in the form of these more mundane, organic character interactions.
The family dynamics work as well as they do due to the strength and undeniable chemistry of the four lead actors. In a recent interview, director Matt Shakman revealed that the filmmaking team did not do chemistry reads for the Fantastic Four, instead opting to choose individual actors based on their ability alone. In watching The Fantastic Four: First Steps though, one could easily assume that the casting of Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Joseph Quinn resulted from strenuous chemistry reads, which speaks to how effortless and natural their characters’ relationships with one another are. As opposed to other MCU movies, Matt Shakman’s film doesn’t go for overt, laugh-out-loud moments to depict chemistry or add levity. Rather, there is a more subdued sense of humor that adds to how realistic the family feels.
There is not a weak link in the cast of The Fantastic Four: First Steps. Pedro Pascal masterfully embodies the intellect and anxiety of Reed Richards, and creates the most comic book accurate depiction of the character to date. Pascal uses a 1960s mid-Atlantic accent throughout the film that in less capable hands could have proved distracting. Instead though, the accent never becomes over-the-top or comical and fits perfectly into the retro-futurism setting of the film and Reed’s outward composure masking his inner insecurities.
Vanessa Kirby, meanwhile, brings a beautiful warmth to her portrayal as Sue Storm. From the very first scene of the film onward, Kirby and Pascal share entrancing chemistry and ground the film with a genuinely touching romance seldom seen in superhero movies. Motherhood is one of the movie’s key themes and is depicted as moving and touching as it is due to how engrossing Kirby’s performance is.
Similar success is found with Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Joseph Quinn as Ben Grimm and Johnny Storm respectively. Moss-Bachrach is given the least to do out of the four leads but nonetheless shapes Grimm into a wonderfully likable and funny character with an abundance of kindness, and is aided by some of the best motion capture visual effects of all time. Meanwhile, Quinn takes Johnny Storm in a different direction than previous portrayals by leaning less into the bad boy, rebellious nature of the character in favor of a kinder, yet free spirited portrayal. Out of the four leads, Quinn (despite distracting Hera/Ezra-esque blue contacts) is arguably the standout of the impressive ensemble, with a more substantial arc crossing paths with the Silver Surfer and a performance that deftly achieves a perfect balance of humor and heart. If it wasn’t abundantly clear already, Quinn is well on his way to securing his place as an A-list movie star.
All four of the lead performances lean into the 1960s retro-futuristic setting of the film, which is brought to life with stunning production design and makes The Fantastic Four: First Steps the most visually distinctive MCU project to date. Every frame of Shakman’s film exudes craft and detail that imbue this alternate Earth with a life and energy never before seen in a comic book movie. From 1960s, Tomorrowland-esque advertising billboards to costume design to cars to architecture, the production design and VFX teams fire on all cylinders and should most certainly be considered for Oscar nominations come the end of the year. Aided by sleek and color-rich cinematography from Jess Hall, Shakman constructs so many gorgeous frames that leave a lasting impression and tell a story of their own through subtle visual cues and details. The only aesthetic components detracting from the visual marvel are a few odd VFX shots of the baby Franklin Richards, some within-scene discontinuity in Pedro Pascal’s appearance, and a single scene that has the glossy green screen look that marred the likes of Thor: Love and Thunder and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.
With a distinctive visual language in support, a lean script thrusts audiences into an established world populated by established characters with incredible ease. Mirroring Spider-Man: Homecoming and, more recently, James Gunn’s Superman, The Fantastic Four: First Steps avoids getting bogged down in an origin story for the superheroes. Instead, the film begins with a montage, couched within a segment of an Ed Sullivan-like talk show, that recaps the inception of the team and some of their adventures over their first four years as superheroes. This carefully assembled montage exceptionally provides necessary world building and context for the story, while also establishing a breezy pace that continues throughout. On the downside, although the pacing enables the film to move along smoothly, it entails a strange passage of time that sees days, weeks, and months pass by without clueing the audience in exactly.
The refreshing tightness of the script also forms from a straightforward, yet high stakes, conflict for the heroes to tackle. Galactus serves as a threatening and epic antagonist, whose motives create an interesting moral dilemma for the Fantastic Four and, in turn, the audience to consider. As revealed in promotional material, Galactus demands that he obtain Reed and Sue’s baby son Franklin, otherwise he will devour Earth. As a result, Sue, Reed, and the others must consider an impossible ethical question: would you sacrifice your child in order to save the world? Adding stakes to this ethical question is sheer horror that is evoked every time Galactus is on screen. Ralph Ineson’s booming Yorkshire voice and practical effects that position the English actor in an actual suit translate the cosmic horror of Galactus from the comics onto the big screen in a way that puts Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer to shame. Overall, the movie is light on action but, when the action arrives, it hits hard and achieves a level of nail-biting intensity. This is best exemplified during a sequence involving Silver Surfer chasing the Fantastic Four through space that ranks among the most viscerally intense scenes the MCU has ever featured.
Finally, it wouldn’t be an MCU movie without a post-credits scene or two and, in this regard, The Fantastic Four: First Steps overwhelmingly delivers. Without delving into the details of the scenes and breaching into spoiler territory, the word ‘haunting’ best encapsulates how unnerving the mid-credits scene is and elevated our anticipation for Avengers: Doomsday to heights we did not expect.
VERDICT: 8.5/10
The Fantastic Four: First Steps is a quintessential superhero movie that captures the comic book accuracy of its titular heroes in a manner similar to what Sam Raimi did with Spider-Man and what Matt Reeves did with Batman. Although the film features a skyscraper-tall, planet-devouring antagonist and all sorts of cosmic threats, it achieves a groundedness and genuine heart through its moving portrayal of family and boldness to dedicate prolonged time to intimate character interactions during routine activities, something seldom seen in blockbuster fare. There isn’t a weak link among the four core cast members as Pedro Pascal captures the balance of intellect and insecurity that makes Reed Richards so fascinating, Vanessa Kirby brings a maternal warmth to Sue Storm, Ebon Moss-Bachrach makes Ben Grimm a beacon of kindness, and Joseph Quinn, arguably the standout of the bunch, showcases his potential for A-list stardom. All four performances feed into the distinctive, retro-futuristic, 1960s setting, which is brought to life by awards worthy production design and visual effects and makes First Steps the MCU’s most visually spectacular film to date. A lean script that thrusts audiences into this world fosters brisk, yet never overwhelming, pacing and plummets audiences into a high-stakes, streamlined threat. Capping off with a haunting mid-credits sequence that has raised our anticipation for Avengers: Doomsday to unexpected heights, The Fantastic Four: First Steps excels in every department and triumphs as, not only of the best MCU movies to date, but one of the best films of 2025.