Movie Review: The Fantastic Four: First Steps

Marvel’s First Family, the Fantastic Four, finally arrive in their first adventure as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). Fortunately, after a few missteps that seemed to cost the current slate of Marvel films a bit of momentum, The Fantastic Four: First Steps rights the overall path of the MCU and delivers an original and creative adventure on par with some of the previous best films of the MCU.

Set in a retro-futuristic, 1960s-inspired world, the film introduces audiences to Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic (Pedro Pascal), Sue Storm/Invisible Woman (Vanessa Kirby), Johnny Storm/Human Torch (Joseph Quinn), and Ben Grimm/The Thing (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) as they battle their most dangerous adversary yet – the ravenous space god known as Galactus (Ralph Ineson). When Galactus’ Herald, Silver Surfer (Julia Garner) arrives on Earth to prepare the Earth for his forthcoming invasion, the Fantastic Four set about devising a way to battle Galactus and keep him from destroying the Earth.

Despite being penned by a total of four screenwriters –Josh Friedman, Eric Pearson, Jeff Kaplan, and Ian Springer – director Matt Shakman’s film is a remarkable cohesive and solid addition to the MCU and more than a fitting film to launch the latest phase of the overall series. The film is the first release of Phase Six of the MCU – a phase that is currently set to include the films: Spider-Man: Brand New Day and Avengers: Doomsday in 2026 as well as Avengers: Secret Wars in 2027.

Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Vanessa Kirby, Pedro Pascal, and Joseph Quinn in “The Fantastic Four: First Steps.” Photo by Marvel Studios/MARVEL STUDIOS – © 2025 20th Century Studios / © and ™ 2025 MARVEL.

Harkening back to the earliest films within the MCU, The Fantastic Four: First Steps focuses on creating characters rather than showing spectacle and that allows the story to not only unfold more organically, but it also makes the characters far more relatable and endearing. The plot moves along crisply, establishing characters and backstory through clever means and tricks so as to not slow down the pace of the overall product. This allows for the film to grab hold of the audience early on without letting up until the end.

All of the actors involved do well with their respective roles. Pedro Pascal’s Reed Richards is obviously trying to do the right thing despite that sometimes not always going as planned, while his wife, Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby) is focused more on the well-being of the family than of the entire world. Her brother, Johnny (Joseph Quinn), however has become obsessed with the Silver Surfer following their all-too-brief first encounter. Holding the family unit together is Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm (aka the Thing). The way the group dynamic is introduced and executed is done so in a flawless in medias res fashion that allows the film to hit the ground running and immediately immerse the viewer in the film’s reality.

Overall, the film sports a unique look courtesy of Jess Hall’s cinematography and Kasra Farahani’s production design. The crisp editing of Nona Khodai and Tim Roche aid the story as it effortlessly moves from scene to scene without ever growing too complicated as it sets up a new universe as well as a new slate of forthcoming films.

Despite the disappointing history of the Fantastic Four’s previous film appearances – 1994’s forgettable copyright grab The Fantastic Four; director Tim Story’s pair of films, Fantastic Four (2005) and Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007); and the oddly body-horror centric Fantastic Four in 2015 – the return of the property to the MCU with The Fantastic Four: First Steps proves to be a resounding success that puts the Marvel Cinematic Universe on a solid path moving forward.

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Mike Tyrkus

Editor in Chief at CinemaNerdz.com

An independent filmmaker, co-writer and director of over a dozen short films, the Editor in Chief of CinemaNerdz.com has spent much of the last three decades as a writer and editor specializing in biographical and critical reference sources in literature and the cinema, beginning in February 1991 reviewing films for his college newspaper. He was a member of the Detroit Film Critics Society, as well as the group's webmaster and one-time President for over a decade until the group ceased to exist. His contributions to film criticism can be found in Magill's Cinema Annual, VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever (of which he was the editor for nearly a decade until it too ceased to exist), the International Dictionary of Films and Filmmakers, and the St. James Film Directors Encyclopedia (on which he collaborated with editor Andrew Sarris). He has also appeared on the television program Critic LEE Speaking alongside Lee Thomas of FOX2 and Adam Graham, of The Detroit News. He currently lives in the Detroit area with his wife and their dogs.

@miketyrkus

Mike Tyrkus

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