The Fantastic Four: First Steps finally does justice to Marvel’s first family

After multiple failed adaptations over the past few decades, Marvel's The Fantastic Four: First Steps gives the iconic superhero team a long-overdue chance to shine on the big screen. The film tells a heartfelt and passionate family-focused story that draws inspiration from the early Fantastic Four comics from the 1960s. The film stands out as perhaps the most unique and accessible Marvel movie in recent times, both in its narrative and visual style.

Despite starting a new phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), the film is set in an alternate, retro-futuristic 1960s timeline and tells a standalone story where the titular team, comprising Mr Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch, and The Thing, must save the Earth from being devoured by an all-powerful cosmic being known as Galactus. The team's origin story and encounters with other minor villains are also told within a quick expository flashback early on, and the movie dives right into the conflict with Galactus. Being set in its own world, it has no direct ties to previous MCU or Marvel films, though the team will return in 2026's Avengers: Doomsday.

Two things in particular make this movie really good: the aesthetics and the interpersonal relationships of the characters. It brings to life the idea of futurism that was envisioned during the 60s, blending elements of technology from that time with more advanced science fiction gadgets. The world of the Fantastic Four is more vibrant and optimistic than the main MCU timeline, displaying how the team has genuinely changed the status quo of society in effective ways. It might be the first Marvel movie to truly embrace the source material, rather than try to reinvent or modernise it.

The Fantastic Four are called "Marvel's First Family" not only because their 1962 debut launched Marvel's success in the comic industry, but also because the team faced relatable, real-world problems within a fantastical setting. This approach inspired Marvel's signature style of relatable heroes, like Spider-Man and the X-Men. The characters truly feel like a family and express their bond in both subtle and obvious ways, making you root for each of them. Every member of the team gets enough depth to feel like real people who are more than just heroes saving the world.

Nonetheless, the villains of the film are not as nuanced as the heroes, but this issue may be attributed to the film's other problem: its runtime. The film attempts to provide some emotional depth to the villains, Galactus and his herald, the Silver Surfer, but it is told through expository dialogue and not explored enough. While the Human Torch has a pivotal dynamic with the Surfer that impacts the film's climax, the film needed a longer runtime to flesh that aspect out.

Overall, though, The Fantastic Four: First Steps is a unique Marvel film, one that doesn't rely on its audience to watch other movies in its catalogue to understand the plot. It's visually distinct and crafted with genuine respect for the source material, and just as the title suggests, it truly is fantastic.