ourchair
Well-Known Member
Everybody knows I'm the boards biggest bed-wetting doodyhead of a Fantastic Four fan. Well, I made it a point to see Fantastic Four ASAP, which was tonight in Manila. I've been wetting myself for like eternity for this movie to get out, as the awesome foursome have always been my favorite Marvel property, a childhood fixation second only to Spider-Man and the only team book I really obsessed about.
So how was the movie you ask? It's good, but not great.
[IMGL]http://jawbreaker.ph/tusok/images/05-ffm-ourfuture.jpg[/imgl]The movie starts off quickly: It doesn't indulge us with one of those glorious CGI opening titles like Daredevil or Spider-Man, which is just as well as it economizes time nicely. As everyone probably knows by now, the desperate Reed approaches Victor Von Doom requesting financial and logistical support for an outer space study of a cosmic storm.
Instead of giving us flashback after flashback, the relationships are developed through allusion. Reckless Johnny was booted out of NASA, and the practical Ben resents taking orders from the impetuous hotshot. Reed's obsessive and indecisive nature was the cause of his failed past with Sue. Doom is glad to have Reed under his thumb, and now he plans to marry Sue as the crown jewel in his accomplishments over Reed's.
The origin proceeds swiftly and it isn't more than a few minutes after the five arrive at the station that the cosmic storm hits and they're back on Earth under quarantine by the medical team and the rest of the story is about everyone dealing with their powers. They milk it for a few good laughs too. If you're the smartass who always asks, "Why don't his clothes burn off? Wouldn't she have to be naked to be invisible? What about the sexual applications of stretching?" then this is the movie for you.
[IMGL]http://jawbreaker.ph/tusok/images/05-ffm-tangling.jpg[/imgl]As a fanboy, I'm disappointed there wasn't the kind of showy pizzazz we get from say, Spider-Man. But what Tim Story brings to the film is exactly what Fox and Marvel have promised: the portrayal of a largely dysfunctional superfamily --- Reed is in monkish pursuit of solutions, Ben is completely morose and Johnny makes a nuisance of himself playing pranks on Ben and soaking up publicity while Sue has to keep the peace. It's this bickering dynamic that captures exactly what the Fantastic Four are about.
Ioan Gruffudd wears his character well. Reed is written as a man who spends less time doing and more time thinking, and its the kind of personality trait that holds him back. He's not exactly the stuffy professor that Stan and Jack introduced, and nor is he the capable leader he eventually becomes. Which is fine, as it gives his character an avenue for development.
Jessica Alba is the weak link here. She can't deliver lines like, "It's fundamentally altered our DNA." to save her life. She's not a hindrance to the film though, as her romance with Reed is used largely to develop his eventual growth into the team's commander. As it stands, she's kind of like a Scientist Barbie with a Malibu Beach tan.
[IMGL]http://jawbreaker.ph/tusok/images/05-ffm-soakitup.jpg[/imgl]Chris Evans steals every scene he's in as Johnny, who revels in his powers just as much as he does in the comics. Evans takes the role and runs with it by playing it as loudly as he can. To him, EVERYTHING --- snowboarding, stunt biking, and media hype --- is an extreme sport. Reed on the other hand, doesn't seem to care much. All he wants to do is undo the effects of the storm.
Michael Chiklis, who has been represented as the FF fan of the cast, plays Ben Grimm with a lot of grumpy charm even before he transforms into the craggy monster. My only problem is his pathos doesn't seem to run as deep as it should. The establishing scenes for it are there, sure, but I think they were deeply undercut by a couple of fundamental problems in the film's plot, and this is where I get into SPOILERS:
Once the Four become celebrities, Sue and Reed wisely decide on a self-imposed exile as they go into R&D mode in pursuit of a way to reverse the effects of the cosmic storm. Soon they develop a transformation chamber that can replicate the cosmic rays and reverse their polarity --- basically it's a homemade cosmic storm generator. Reed feels the pressure to find a solution for Ben ASAP, but understands that there is a need for caution.
However, when Reed tests it on himself the machine fails: He needs more power to undo their genetic change. Enter Victor Von Doom: He has developed the ability to absorb and harness electricity. He's basically a living transformer. He plays the tempting snake to Ben, stating that he knows exactly how to get the machine to do exactly what it should.
[IMGL]http://jawbreaker.ph/tusok/images/05-ffm-transform.jpg[/imgl]The Thing steps into the chamber, and after Doom channels insane amounts of energy into the chamber, Ben Grimm re-emerges. And with Reed's "bodyguard" out of the way, Doom catches Reed by surprise and kidnaps him. Once Sue and Johnny discover what has happened they run off to figure out what to do, and tell the now unfantastic Ben that he'll have to sit this one out.
Here is the chance to ham it up for all its worth, for Ben to be the "ultimate simple hero" who gives up being normal in order to protect his friends but instead its brushed aside. Instead of contemplating the gravity of that decision, we cut away to how Johnny and Sue must deal with the current crisis, and suddenly The Thing shows up at a crucial moment to give Doom a good sock in the jaw.
It should be a noble moment, but the fact that the transformation from Ben to Thing to Ben to Thing is done so easily makes the drama somewhat lesser. The fact that the transformation chamber is such a Deus Ex Machina makes things even worse. Now that Reed has technically perfected the technology, all he needs is a reliable supply of power and the transformation between Thing and Ben would be so convenient it would be rendered meaningless.
[IMGL]http://jawbreaker.ph/tusok/images/05-ffm-shocking.jpg[/imgl]Moving on, Doom isn't exactly as sophisticated a villain as he could be, but then again Magneto eclipsed him in that regard decades ago. McMahon plays Doom as a smooth character, with the kind of cool menace that seems to have been patented by John Travolta. But he isn't really given much to do other than snarl at people and be the kind of jerks that seems to be the domain of Ultimate comics.
I won't spoil how they took care of him in the end, but I will SPOIL that Doom is given a cliffhanger that suggests that we won't see the last of him. Which isn't exactly a surprise, as Doom has always been the original bad pennyL you just can't get rid of him.
All in all, Fantastic Four was fun, charming and an entertaining mix that should leave you rolling in the aisles with laughter, even if it lacks the kind of dramatic gravitas that X-Men and Spider-Man have. I give this a 7/10.
:rockon: :rockon: :rockon: :rockon: :rockon: :rockon: :rockon:
So how was the movie you ask? It's good, but not great.
[IMGL]http://jawbreaker.ph/tusok/images/05-ffm-ourfuture.jpg[/imgl]The movie starts off quickly: It doesn't indulge us with one of those glorious CGI opening titles like Daredevil or Spider-Man, which is just as well as it economizes time nicely. As everyone probably knows by now, the desperate Reed approaches Victor Von Doom requesting financial and logistical support for an outer space study of a cosmic storm.
Instead of giving us flashback after flashback, the relationships are developed through allusion. Reckless Johnny was booted out of NASA, and the practical Ben resents taking orders from the impetuous hotshot. Reed's obsessive and indecisive nature was the cause of his failed past with Sue. Doom is glad to have Reed under his thumb, and now he plans to marry Sue as the crown jewel in his accomplishments over Reed's.
The origin proceeds swiftly and it isn't more than a few minutes after the five arrive at the station that the cosmic storm hits and they're back on Earth under quarantine by the medical team and the rest of the story is about everyone dealing with their powers. They milk it for a few good laughs too. If you're the smartass who always asks, "Why don't his clothes burn off? Wouldn't she have to be naked to be invisible? What about the sexual applications of stretching?" then this is the movie for you.
[IMGL]http://jawbreaker.ph/tusok/images/05-ffm-tangling.jpg[/imgl]As a fanboy, I'm disappointed there wasn't the kind of showy pizzazz we get from say, Spider-Man. But what Tim Story brings to the film is exactly what Fox and Marvel have promised: the portrayal of a largely dysfunctional superfamily --- Reed is in monkish pursuit of solutions, Ben is completely morose and Johnny makes a nuisance of himself playing pranks on Ben and soaking up publicity while Sue has to keep the peace. It's this bickering dynamic that captures exactly what the Fantastic Four are about.
Ioan Gruffudd wears his character well. Reed is written as a man who spends less time doing and more time thinking, and its the kind of personality trait that holds him back. He's not exactly the stuffy professor that Stan and Jack introduced, and nor is he the capable leader he eventually becomes. Which is fine, as it gives his character an avenue for development.
Jessica Alba is the weak link here. She can't deliver lines like, "It's fundamentally altered our DNA." to save her life. She's not a hindrance to the film though, as her romance with Reed is used largely to develop his eventual growth into the team's commander. As it stands, she's kind of like a Scientist Barbie with a Malibu Beach tan.
[IMGL]http://jawbreaker.ph/tusok/images/05-ffm-soakitup.jpg[/imgl]Chris Evans steals every scene he's in as Johnny, who revels in his powers just as much as he does in the comics. Evans takes the role and runs with it by playing it as loudly as he can. To him, EVERYTHING --- snowboarding, stunt biking, and media hype --- is an extreme sport. Reed on the other hand, doesn't seem to care much. All he wants to do is undo the effects of the storm.
Michael Chiklis, who has been represented as the FF fan of the cast, plays Ben Grimm with a lot of grumpy charm even before he transforms into the craggy monster. My only problem is his pathos doesn't seem to run as deep as it should. The establishing scenes for it are there, sure, but I think they were deeply undercut by a couple of fundamental problems in the film's plot, and this is where I get into SPOILERS:
Once the Four become celebrities, Sue and Reed wisely decide on a self-imposed exile as they go into R&D mode in pursuit of a way to reverse the effects of the cosmic storm. Soon they develop a transformation chamber that can replicate the cosmic rays and reverse their polarity --- basically it's a homemade cosmic storm generator. Reed feels the pressure to find a solution for Ben ASAP, but understands that there is a need for caution.
However, when Reed tests it on himself the machine fails: He needs more power to undo their genetic change. Enter Victor Von Doom: He has developed the ability to absorb and harness electricity. He's basically a living transformer. He plays the tempting snake to Ben, stating that he knows exactly how to get the machine to do exactly what it should.
[IMGL]http://jawbreaker.ph/tusok/images/05-ffm-transform.jpg[/imgl]The Thing steps into the chamber, and after Doom channels insane amounts of energy into the chamber, Ben Grimm re-emerges. And with Reed's "bodyguard" out of the way, Doom catches Reed by surprise and kidnaps him. Once Sue and Johnny discover what has happened they run off to figure out what to do, and tell the now unfantastic Ben that he'll have to sit this one out.
Here is the chance to ham it up for all its worth, for Ben to be the "ultimate simple hero" who gives up being normal in order to protect his friends but instead its brushed aside. Instead of contemplating the gravity of that decision, we cut away to how Johnny and Sue must deal with the current crisis, and suddenly The Thing shows up at a crucial moment to give Doom a good sock in the jaw.
It should be a noble moment, but the fact that the transformation from Ben to Thing to Ben to Thing is done so easily makes the drama somewhat lesser. The fact that the transformation chamber is such a Deus Ex Machina makes things even worse. Now that Reed has technically perfected the technology, all he needs is a reliable supply of power and the transformation between Thing and Ben would be so convenient it would be rendered meaningless.
[IMGL]http://jawbreaker.ph/tusok/images/05-ffm-shocking.jpg[/imgl]Moving on, Doom isn't exactly as sophisticated a villain as he could be, but then again Magneto eclipsed him in that regard decades ago. McMahon plays Doom as a smooth character, with the kind of cool menace that seems to have been patented by John Travolta. But he isn't really given much to do other than snarl at people and be the kind of jerks that seems to be the domain of Ultimate comics.
I won't spoil how they took care of him in the end, but I will SPOIL that Doom is given a cliffhanger that suggests that we won't see the last of him. Which isn't exactly a surprise, as Doom has always been the original bad pennyL you just can't get rid of him.
All in all, Fantastic Four was fun, charming and an entertaining mix that should leave you rolling in the aisles with laughter, even if it lacks the kind of dramatic gravitas that X-Men and Spider-Man have. I give this a 7/10.
:rockon: :rockon: :rockon: :rockon: :rockon: :rockon: :rockon:
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