Movie Reviews
Fantastic Four 
Rated PG-13 (2005)
Starring: Ioan Guffold, Julian McMahon, Michael Chiklis, Chris Evans, Jessica Alba
Direction: Tim Story
Production: Avi Arad, Michael Barnathan, Chris Columbus, Bernd Eichinger, Ralph WInter
Screenplay: Michael France and Mark Frost, based on the comic book by Stan Lee & Jack Kirby
by Vincent St. James
The Lowdown:
If you're expecting another Spiderman or X-men, you shouldn't. Plenty of eye candy and entertaining enough to watch with friends, but this flick is far from fantastic.
Fantastic? Hardly
After what appears to be an extremely expensive science fair project goes wildly wrong, the DNA of four men and a woman are severely altered. There is MIT grad Reed Richards (Ioan Gruffudd) who develops the ability to stretch himself to proposterous proportions; the monstrous Ben Grimm (Michael Chiklis), Richards' best friend, whose external features are so altered that even his wife wants nothing to do with him; pretty boy Johnny Storm (Chris Evans) who can turn himself into a human fireball; Sue Storm (Jessica Alba) who gains the enviable ability to turn herself invisible (unfortuantely, in Alba's case, for male viewers); and Victor von Doom (Julian McMahon), who becomes a metal superconductor capable of controlling electric current. The first four become the "Fantastic Four," while the last fellow turns incredibly evil (for no apparent reason) and calls himself Dr. Doom.
And thats pretty much it. Most of the film, if not all of it, is devoted to how these people become...well, regular people with not so regular abilities. The problem is that for a movie with this kind of plot, it needs time and subtlety, with a touch of acting to really tell the story well. Much can be told about four people with new powers. Instead, we get the popcorn treatment, and unfortunately, since this IS a comic book movie, we have to stick the bad guy somewhere and blow something up. The result is a pretty lame third act compared to other comic stories to grace our screens in recent years. The ending sequence feels too forced, too predictable. This film offers nothing new.
I wasn't expecting any great performances with this film, but hats off to Michael Chiklis. He gives the best performance as the repulsive "Thing," so good that I hope he gets more prominent roles in the future. He has the best lines ("you think YOU have problems?") and he delivers to perfection. I can't imagine anyone else who would've done a better job. He has an onscreen presence that outdoes any of his co-stars. In terms of eye candy, Jessica Alba and Julian McMahon (Dr. Doom) are enough reason to see this film for guys and girls, respectively. The rest of the cast is adequate but nothing to write home about. The chemistry between Alba and Richards isn't all that, but its certainly better than between Alba and McMahon. Heck, I think the best chemistry came from the friendship between Richards and Chiklis and, to a lesser extent, the sibling relationship of Alba and Evans. What does that tell you about the romance in this film? One last note about the acting: personally, I would have preferred Ralph Fiennes (Schindler's List, Red Dragon) to play Dr. Doom, but thats just me.
Now, the movie wasn't all bad. There are plenty of entertaining scenes, and those with Chiklis actually resemble good cinema. There are plenty of entertaining effects, and at least those are done right. At times it feels a bit too cheesy, but once the gene-altering electromagnetic wave strikes the main characters, it never gets boring. I just wish that more had been done to make Dr. Doom seem either more menacing, or just not show him at all and wait for a sequel in order to do it justice. Part of the blame has to rest on the shoulders of the writers, and some has to go to director Tim Story, who's better known for comedies than adventure films.
As long as you view this movie looking for fun, cool sights, and joking with friends, you'll get some of your money's worth. Otherwise, you might be better off looking for a movie who's plot development is a little more...how do I say?...Fantastic
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