Fantastic Four (2015)

"You want to be famous?"

"I just want my work to make a difference."

Since childhood Reed Richards (Teller) has been building a teleportation device.  At the school science fair, he and best friend Ben Grimm (Bell), test the device.  It works, but not they way they expect and they are disqualified, but the machine brings them to the attention of Dr. Franklin Storm (Cathey).  Dr. Storm invites Reed to join the the Baxter Foundation to work on a larger device.  Dr. Storm and his team are trying to find a way to get to Planet Zero, and want to tweak Reed's device to reach that goal.

The team consists of Dr. Storms' delinquent son Johnny (Jordan), brilliant daughter Sue (Mara), and protege Victor von Doom (Kebbell).  Their efforts are successful and the guys, aided by Ben, make a secret trip to Planet Zero.  But something happens on the planet and when Sue brings them back, all are changed by an energy blast.  Can they overcome their new abilities?


The Fantastic Four comic was created in 1961 by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby for Marvel comics.  The group were different from other Marvel comics and gained popularity.  Since the 1960s they have headlined 4 animated TV shows and three films.  The first film was made in 1994, a low-budget film that was never released (but bootleg copies exist).  In 2005, Tim Story directed The Fantastic Four and it's 2007 sequel The Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer.  Story planned to make a third film, but after Rise of the Silver Surfer bombed in the box office, the project was cancelled.

With the resurgence of comic book films in the 2010s, Fox decided to reboot the franchise (Fox owns the rights to The Fantastic Four and the X-Men and need to use the characters every so many years or the rights return to Marvel Studios).  They brought Josh Trank on board as the director and Jeremy Slater as the screenwriter.  Simon Kinberg also served as a screenwriter for the film.  This was Trank's second film; his directorial debut was indie superhero film Chronicle.

The film feels disjointed, like it is trying to be different things at different times.  The studio was unhappy with Trank's film and required re-shoots.  The film takes it's time building the characters, without really establishing their relationships and chemistry.  They don't get powers until about half way through the film, and then it jumps ahead a few weeks/months to when they are able to control their powers.  The runtime is part of the problem, if the film was 2 hours it would make more sense to really introduce the characters and then show them learning to use their powers, so the rest of the action and working together as a team would feel earned.

The cast are talented actors and are game for whatever is thrown their way, but they don't have much to work with.  It is a dark and gritty take on the characters, but loses the joy of the original comics (and their TV shows).  Loosing the joy also looses some of the charisma of the characters and the chemistry between the characters is minimal.  Michael B. Jordan previously worked with Trank in Chronicle, and was the director's first choice for Johnny Storm.  He is a talented actor, but doesn't have much to do.  Kate Mara is mostly one-note as Sue Storm.  Miles Teller is the main focus, but doesn't hold your interest.  Jamie Bell doesn't have as much screen time as the others on the team and is never fully fleshed out.  Toby Kebbell does what he can with Victor von Doom.  Reg E. Cathey and Tim Blake Nelson are good in their roles.

If you want to see a Fantastic Four film, watch the 2005 version... better yet find one of the TV shows.  The film was nominated for 5 Razzies and won "Worst Picture", "Worst Prequel, Remake, Rip-off or Sequel", and "Worst Director."

Fantastic Four (2015) 100 minutes
Rating: PG-13 for sci-fi action violence, and language
Director: Josh Trank
Starring: Miles Teller as Reed Richards
Michael B. Jordan as Johnny Storm
Kate Mara as Sue Storm
Jamie Bell as Ben Grimm
Toby Kebbell as Victor von Doom
Reg E. Cathey as Dr. Franklin Storm
Tim Blake Nelson as Dr. Harvey Allen