NOW IN THEATERS! We’re finally here. Matt Shakman’s foray into the summer blockbuster is here in The Fantastic Four: First Steps. What did this cynical Disney/Marvel critic think?
The Fantastic Four: First Steps oddly opens with our heroes at home. Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby) is on the can, staring at a pregnancy test. Reed Richards (Pedro Pascal) enters focused on finding iodine (which he can’t find). Sue tells him she’s pregnant, and Reed is stunned but positive. Meanwhile, Johnny Storm (Joseph Quinn) and Ben Grimm (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) are making dinner with a robot called H.E.R.B.I.E. When Sue and Reed arrive late, the news is shared, and everyone is happy. Yes, this is how the movie spends its first twenty minutes.
We get a quick action montage about the origins. Before you know it, Shalla-Bal (Julia Garner), a.k.a. The Silver Surfer, descends from the heavens, warning the people of Earth that the Devourer Galactus (Ralph Ineson) is on his way and Earth is his next target. There’s widespread panic, but Reed and gang say they are going to space once again to confront Galactus to spare Earth. No spoiler here, but Galactus wants Sue’s baby—for very comic book reasons. When the FF return home, the world is outraged that Reed and Sue would choose a baby over their planet.
Scene still from 20th Century Studios/Marvel Studios’ THE FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios/Marvel Studios. © 2025 20th Century Studios / © and ™ 2025 MARVEL.
“Galactus wants Sue’s baby (for very comic book reasons).”
With the movie still fresh in my mind, I find myself struggling to decide whether I liked it or not. Ultimately, I’m here with a mild recommendation, and here’s why. This is a summer blockbuster. I left the theater NOT feeling overwhelmed, neither good or bad…the movie is fine. I remember how I left the theater after seeing the first Avengers movie or Avengers: Infinity War, and I remember wanting to go back and see it again. Not here.
At the same time, Marvel has been releasing many subpar films lately. First Steps is not a stinker. There is fun to be had, but it all just felt like a live-action episode of a Fantastic Four animated series. The upside is that at least the stakes were there, and we clearly had a goal to reach by the end of the film.
"…Don’t give up the baby."
