The goal of any film based on a comic book (or novel or stage play or television series, etc.) is not to be as much like the source material as possible; the mission should always be to be as cinematic as possible, which means combining competent storytelling with the visual medium. So the fact that this new take on FANTASTIC FOUR is based on Marvel's Ultimate comics take on the team doesn't mean squat if the final product is poorly paced, generic superhero garbage. Director Josh Trank's previous film, CHRONICLE, was an ambitious and creative alternate take on both the superhero mythology and the found-footage storytelling device. And with FANTASTIC FOUR, Trank (who also co-wrote with Jeremy Slater and Simon Kinberg) appears to have retreated (or been forced to retreat) into a style of storytelling that is so ordinary and predictable that one has to wonder why he was hired to take on this iconic group in the first place.
I'll give the film points for not being the same lightweight, jokey take on the team that director Tim Story thought was appropriate 10 years ago, but what we've got instead isn't much better. One of the strangest things about FANTASTIC FOUR is that it feels like it's missing a reel. After spending a ridiculous amount of time giving us this new version of the origin story, the team has exactly one massive fight sequence, and then the film is over. It genuinely feels like something got lost in the editing room, not that I'm in any way suggesting that the film is too short, but at only a 100-minute running time (including credits) you have to question the abruptness of the final act.
The origin story begins when childhood pals, brainy Reed Richards (Miles Teller) and brauny Ben Grimm (Jamie Bell), build a teleportation machine that they believe can send objects from where they are to the other end of the world and then bring it back. But with the help of Dr. Franklin Storm (Reg E. Cathey), they soon realize that the machine is actually teleporting objects to another dimension. Somehow Richards has cracked the return trip part of the experiment, something Storm and his team at the scientific braintrust known as the Baxter Institute have yet to do. Storm's adopted daughter Sue (Kate Mara) and son Johnny (Michael B. Jordan) are also brought in to build the final machine, which they not only get to work but are able to capture images from the other dimension's landscape. Storm also taps a former student, Victor Von Doom (Toby Kebbell), to help out since he had spearheaded the original teleportation project.
When the money men behind the project (led by Tim Blake Nelson's Dr. Allen) make the call that it's time to send humans to the other side, Reed, Victor and Johnny decide that rather than hand over the glory of being the first humans to visit another dimension to some sanctioned astronaut type, they'll take the machine for a test run first. Reed brings his buddy Ben in for the ride, and soon they're dimension hopping. It takes about five seconds for something to go wrong, and before long, the world around them starts spurting out green goo that gets on their skin and instigates physical changes. But before they are able to return to Earth, Victor is separated from the group and is ultimately left behind, presumably to die.
Here's the biggest issue with both versions of FANTASTIC FOUR, but perhaps even more so in this new one: these characters are really boring before getting their powers. And Trank's iteration of the story has far too much time before the rock-encrusted Thing shows up, or Johnny's body is engulfed in flame, or Reed's limbs stretch, or Sue (who is exposed to this other-worldly stink when the three other FF members return and an explosion sends particles all over the lab) can become invisible.
One really odd take on this story is that Reed escapes the facility and is on the run for a year, during which the military turns The Thing into a weapon of massive destruction and is training Johnny to do the same, once he can prove he's capable of controlling his power. All the while, the powers that be are working on building another teleportation machine so they can find ways to give other, better trained people powers. But the fact that Reed is caught and seems willing to help finish the machine made me question why running away was such an important detail.
The portrayal of these characters in action is actually well done. Seeing Richards use his stretching powers to fight and dodge attack is impressive. The CGI-created Thing looks great (I like the crunchy, rock-on-rock sound he makes when he moves). The Human Torch looks about the same, but watching him throw fireballs and ignite just parts of his body at a time was a nice touch. And the film explore's Sue's capacity beyond just turning invisible—using her powers to make other things invisible and generate a force field around herself and others. And we get to see them use their powers exactly one time before the movie decides it's done. At the exact moment when we get to a point where these four realize they're a team, the movie decides to end, almost daring us not to get excited for sequel. I accept that challenge.
And then there's Doom. Not surprisingly, Victor doesn't die. Instead, his protective suit is melded to his body, and his mind is corrupted by the energy from the other dimension. Sure he kills a few people when he's brought back to Earth, but all of the subtle twinges of jealousy at Reed's intelligence and relationship with Sue that we see early in the film are thrown out the window in favor of pure psychotic madness. And relatively speaking, he's a pushover to defeat. Doctor Doom is a complete failure as a worthy villain, and the way he's handled is the film's greatest miscalculation.
While the front half of FANTASTIC FOUR mostly works on a purely sci-fi level, I kept waiting for the characters to pop off the screen, preferably before their super powers are introduced into the mix. But nothing about these people made me care about the upheaval and trauma that is caused to them by these abilities. There's a bit of melancholy surrounding Grimm's predicament of being forever physically isolated from others, but it's never explored fully. You can literally tick off the succession of missed opportunities in this movie.
With a cast of such impressive young actors, it seems a shame to have them all struggling to find some heart in these sketches meant to be humans beings. The film is a textbook example of the dangers of hiring young, untested directors who display a spark of creativity when they are allowed to work uninhibited by piles of notes. Either let these filmmakers do the thing that made you want to hire them in the first place or leave them alone. Don't hire them for the vibe; hire them because they have a take on material that might make it interesting. Rest assure, FANTASTIC FOUR is in no way interesting.
