The Fantastic Four: First Steps Spoiler-free Review

Family always comes first. This is the major theme presented to us in The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025). This film was a highly anticipated addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with many attempts at the moniker in the last 25 years. However, I think this recency bias was relied a bit too heavily on. Director Matt Shakman clearly did not want an origin story - fair enough, we have had plenty of those, and we have also skipped a few origins in the MCU already (Spidey...). So he instead, drops us in the middle of the throes of The Fantastic Four's first few years as a team, and a family. While the film was beautifully designed, and had impeccable action scenes, the runtime and pacing leave a lot to be desired. 

Shakman is not a film director. Shakman's experience is densely skewed in TV, namely having worked on WandaVision (2021) in the MCU, as well as many notable shows from other studios. His only other filmography is Cut Bank, a 2014 thriller. So, safe to say his experience in making a film feel like a film, is limited. Often during the movie, scenes felt a bit disjointed, or quickly run through, and upon reflection, this story would actually have made more sense as a show, simply by how much time passes throughout the film. This may have been why Marvel Studios chose a TV director for this this film - but this does not save them from odd pacing and an inability to get us to care about these characters. With so much exposition, what we are missing is a larger, more cohesive arc that ties the characters together, something that we maybe would've gotten with a different story choice. The writing, done by team Eric Pearson, Jeff Kaplan, Ian Springer, and Kat Wood is inviting, but we are dropped into a story where we are told to care about these characters, rather than getting a chance to choose to root for them ourselves. It's hard to feel engaged with the story, or have an emotional buy in, when everything is heavily predictable and plotty. With a runtime of 115 minutes, there was room to develop presented story lines more, and give us a reason to love these characters, who were expertly brought to life by the main cast and costuming department. 

One of the best parts of this film, is how much it looked like the classic comic book versions of the characters and world. This is carried by the retro-aesthetic choices, and bright colors. Marvel has been criticized at times for looking dull or sterile, but this is absolutely not the case here. The production team used an impeccable mix of practical and virtual effects to bring this to life. Every piece of technology and fashion are beguiling to the eyes and feels grounded in this charming new world - which is perfect since this story is technically in a parallel universe to the world we mostly see MCU projects in. Our main cast is well suited to this environment, where the feeling of optimism can be seen even more than felt, another strong theme. 

This brings us to Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic played by the brilliant Pedro Pascal, who brings us a calculating Reed who is out of his depths, and we can see how he carries the burden of his intelligence, and responsibility, in a subtle but effective way. I wish this was further explored, but I appreciate how this was held in the acting rather than dialogue. Sue Storm/Invisible Woman (played by Vanessa Kirby) was the for sure standout in this film, feeling a bit as if she was the main character in what is supposed to be an ensamble film. She has many strong moments, and Kirby's portrayal helped to make it feel more real. She is a woman in the 60s with immense power, and newly a mother. She must carry herself in a specific way, and Sue seems to have perfected it. She knows who she is, and who people expect her to be - and she makes the choice to be whichever very intentionally. So, should we be surprised that the other standout is another Storm - Johnny Storm/Human Torch (Played by Joseph Quinn). Johnny seems to historically be a favorite for writers - I mean, everyone loves an underdog in a family of geniuses - and he is cleverly written in this film. His interactions with main antagonist, Shalla-bal (Played by Julia Garner), known in this film as the Silver Surfer, are especially weighty. He proves just how capable he is, even among literal prodigies and this might be the only character to have an on-screen arc that made me want to root for him. Finally we have Ben Grimm/The Thing (Played by Ebon Moss-Bachrach), who, unfortunately, is tossed to the wayside story-wise. His design was delightfully made, looking the best The Thing really ever has, as well as highlighting how he is still made of organic matter. What I do appreciate is the humanity that was brought to this character: he loves to cook, and wear nice clothes, he has feelings outside of anger, and a sense of humor. While he doesn't get too much spotlight in the story, he is still seen as integral to the family unit and serves as a glue between the characters. 

Shalla-bal was a great addition to the cast, and Julia Garner played this character effectively. However, she also suffers from the short runtime, as I feel her backstory could've had just a bit more padding around it. First time audiences, and maybe even some MCU fans, would likely leave a bit confused by the story presented in the film. Certain "why"s just weren't addressed, where they easily could've been. Shalla-bal is the herald of our villain, Galactus, an unfeeling being who must consume as part of the universal balance, and who is tired of the duty. Galactus is played by Ralph Ineson, and for such an acclaimed actor, there isn't much screen time where his acting can really shine. This is a writing issue, but again, the relevant qualities are portrayed well in what we do get to see. 

All the action scenes we get, as well as the casual use of our cast's powers, were all really well visualized. Shakman has a favorite cinematographer in Jess Hall, who I think we can thank for this. While the action isn't necessarily reminiscent of reading a comic book, it is still incredibly fun to watch and is easy to follow - no unnecessary cuts. I especially love when we can "feel" the weight of the camera in how it follows the action. Hall also makes sure that the effort put into the costuming and set is appreciated through intentional blocking. 

The soundtrack and score, composed by Michael Giacchino, was perfect. Giacchino has a massive filmography portfolio, and specifically has hero composition experience of over 20 years now. He knows exactly what he is doing, creating and halting emotion with ease, and Marvel knew what they were doing to hire him for the job. 

Overall, this was a simple story that was produced extremely well on almost all fronts. Almost. For an MCU project to have had so much marketing and hype around it as The Fantastic Four: First Steps had, this film needed to do something groundbreaking, not just something good. This is a major step into the eventual timeline reset that Marvel Studios claims we are ramping up to, and it felt more like a footnote. This movie just gave us enough to build hype towards the upcoming Avengers' films, but as a longtime fan, I expect more from the studio. I hope we get to explore these characters further, in a more meaningful way that actually makes me feel something. But for now, I'll appreciate that Marvel has put some effort back into the practical production of filmmaking in their recent projects, and damn it looks good.