Review of Fantastic Four (2005)

Fantastic Four is Comics' first superhero family. They've enjoyed success as various incarnations over the years but never got the proper treatment in film until 2005. I use the term proper treatment semi-loosely as Fox studios was in charge of the film and they have a track record of mutilating comic franchises cum movies.

I'll state first that this movie is good and has gotten a raw deal in regards to the reviews. It's not perfect and has a few flaws that really detract from it's entertainment value but stands as a nice adventure film that does a decent job at respecting the source material it came from. Tim Story directs this film aptly as he can with what he's given. Mark Frost and Michael France write the movie and also do an adequate job at adapting the page to film.

Let's talk about the acting. For the Fantastic Four we have Ioan Gruffud, Jessica Alba, Chris Evans and Michael Chiklis as Mr. Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch, and The Thing respectively. Ioan turns in the best performance he can considering his character he portrays is not very charismatic. Chris Evans and Michael Chiklis turn in very excellent performances, making the colorful comic characters translate to screen very well. Then we come to Jessica Alba, easily the worst actress in the film. She was horribly miscast, but we'll talk more about the casting later. Fox single handedly attempts to destroy this movie by allowing Jessica Alba to portray Invisible Woman. There are some exceptions to be allowed when changing comic characters to be adapted to film. Forcing a Mexican actress to portray a White woman and then using horrible makeup that doesn't fit to hide that fact is perhaps the dumbest decision I've seen in big budget film making. This horrid choice has been lambasted on many occasions elsewhere, so I won't repeat it here but rest assured Jessica Alba is an abomination to this film and serves as it's weakest point by far.

Julian McMahon stars as the Fantastic Four's arch villain and nemesis, Doctor Doom. They did make some changes to this character as far as what powers he has and how he receives his ''armor'', but let's face it: Doctor Doom is hard to translate to film. I feel the changes they made were justified. So how is Julian's performance? Well, not bad. Not great either, but I don't think it can be blamed on him. The script gave him cliche, stereotypical villain lines that would be very hard for many actors to do successfully. I don't think is an exception.

The music doesn't necessarily stand out but it is very pleasant and unobtrusive. John Ottman is a great composer and he puts forth an excellent effort here. Oliver Wood was in charge of cinematography and does a good job in making the world bright and fun. The editing in this movie is well done. Everything flows at a brisk pace and nothing is focused upon for an excess amount of time.

The casting was quite good with the exception of Jessica Alba, who was a disastrous choice. I have a feeling Fox forced Jessica Alba upon this movie though, to generate interest and try to get the male demographic more excited for the movie. The set design is very excellent, providing a quasi futuristic feel and a bright, fun setting for the adventure to take place in. The special effects are good for the time and the action sequences are a joy to watch.

Overall I give this film a 7 out of 10 for being fun without being obtrusive. With the exception of Jessica Alba.