Fantastic Four DVD Review (Jessica Alba) Empire Movies

FANTASTIC FOUR DVD REVIEW

Fantastic Four
(Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment)

The Movie

The Extras

Reviewed by

6/10

6.5/10

Liam

In my own opinion, the only superheroes that make good movies are Batman, Spider-Man, Superman and X-Men. These are the golden boys of the comic book world. Anything else is just second rate. Daredevil? Elektra? The Punisher? Bah. Wonder Woman might be okay. Hulk could've been good but it got fucked up. Same with Fantastic Four. There was a remote possibility for something half decent there, but it just didn't happen. The movie was mildly entertaining, but when measured up against the great comic movies, this one doesn't even compare.

In the movie, we start with Reed Richards and Ben Grimm who are studying a cosmic storm. Needing funding for their research, they go to Victor Von Doom. Together, they head into space along with Sue Storm (an old flame of Reed's who now works for Von Doom) and her brother Johnny Storm who is seemingly just along for the ride. When they hit the cosmic storm, all hell breaks loose when things don't go exactly as planned. When they arrive back on Earth, they discover they've each developed super powers. Reed is Mr. Fantastic, able to stretch his body in ways you and I could only imagine. Ben Grimm is The Thing, with his entire body made of rock. Sue Storm is The Invisible Woman, for obvious reasons. Johnny Storm is The Human Torch, able to engulf his entire body in flames. (He can also fly!!) Finally, there's the evil super villain Victor Von Doom, whose body is made of metal and who can pretty much manipulate metal in various evil ways to satisfy whatever evil desire he has at the time. (In case you haven't guessed, he's the bad guy.) So, when things go bad for Victor Von Doom (ie. he loses his fortune and his company due to the failure of the mission with Reed Richards) the Fantastic Four must band together to help each other come to terms with their newfound powers and they must find a way to defeat Von Doom.

This movie had its moments. There were times where I found myself really enjoying it, and other times where I found myself rolling my eyes. In some ways, that's the success of the movie, and in others, that's the failure. Sure, the filmmakers wanted to make a tongue-in-cheek superhero movie, but you've gotta ask yourself, is that what the fans wanted? Yeah, the movie was a success at the box office, but that was more because of little kids going to see it, and not the hardcore, lifelong Fantastic Four fans.

Special features on this DVD include a cast commentary which includes Ioan Gruffudd, Jessica Alba, Chris Evans, Michael Chiklis and Julian McMahon, three deleted scenes (without commentary), a Fantastic Four Video Diary where we go on a "fantastic" publicity tour with the film's stars, a brief making-of promotional featurette, a "making a scene" feature which focuses on the "bridge" scene from the movie, a casting feature where we hear from Stan Lee about each of the characters and the actors who play them, and finally some music videos and trailers.

I'm glad I waited for this movie on DVD, because that's where I think it belongs. The movie was fun, but alongside some of your recent comic book movies, this one pales by comparison. If they can take the characters a little more seriously for the inevitable sequel, I might change my mind, but until then, this one will sit on my DVD shelf collecting dust. It's okay as a Saturday afternoon time waster (and as an opportunity to check out Jessica Alba in a skin-tight superhero outfit) but otherwise, I wouldn't go out of my way to check it out.

Features
Exclusive Inside Look at X3 Hosted by Avi Arad, Full-Length Audio Commentary by Ioan Gruffudd, Jessica Alba, Chris Evans, Michael Chiklis and Julian McMahon, Fantastic Four Video Diary, Deleted Scenes, "Making of Fantastic Four" Featurette, Casting Session, Making a Scene, Music Videos, Theatrical Teaser and Trailer

Video
Widescreen (2.35:1)

Audio
English 5.1 DTS, English 5.1 Dolby Surround, Spanish Dolby Surround

Subtitles
English, Spanish, Closed-Captioned

Release Date
December 6, 2005

Rating
PG-13/PG

Length
106 mins.

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