Marvel’s First Step Into the Fantastic Four
The Fantastic Four: First Steps is a 2025 superhero film produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. The film is based on the Marvel Comics The Fantastic Four. It is the 37th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the first Fantastic Four film produced by Marvel after it acquired the characters from 20th Century Fox. It was directed by Matt Shakman and written by Josh Friedman, Eric Pearson, Jeff Kaplan, and Ian Springer. The film is set in a 1960s-inspired futuristic world in which the Fantastic Four must protect the planet and their child from a cosmic being named Galactus. The film runs about 114 minutes. The Fantastic Four: First Steps was released on July 21, 2025.
Marvel’s First Take On ‘The Fantastic Four’
The Fantastic Four: First Steps welcomes the superheroes into the MCU. The addition of this film to the MCU opens up opportunities for the characters to be featured in more films. Marvel took liberties with the plot of the film, as it is a reboot of the original Fantastic Four film. The company wanted to differentiate the film from its previous counterparts and avoid the team’s origin story to make it an original story instead of repeating it. This was a marvelous move for the film. The film is set four years after the characters Reed Richards (Pedro Pascal), Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby), Ben Grimm (Ebon Moss-Bachrach), and Johnny Storm (Joseph Quinn) become superheroes after being exposed to cosmic rays during a mission into space. Since becoming superheroes, the team has progressed technology and led the world to demilitarization and peace while fighting supervillains. When Reed and Sue find out they are expecting a child, they are met with a conflict when a planet-hungry space creature tells them to choose between keeping their child and saving Earth from destruction. It’s an excellent story about saving the world or saving family. The plot of the film was fast-paced and consistent. It did not miss a beat when it came to action. The Fantastic Four: First Steps is an action-packed superhero adventure. It keeps the audience’s eyes on the screen for the entire film. Just when it feels like the film is ending, it keeps going with audiences on the edge of their seats until the very last moment. Overall, the film’s plot was heartwarming and action-packed.
A Band of Superhero Astronauts
The Marvel Cinematic Universe film’s cast includes Pascal, Kirby, Moss-Bachrach, and Quinn. Pascal and Kirby play the couple Reed Richards and Sue Storm. The two actors have stupendous chemistry. Audiences can feel the powerful love that is brought to the screen by the two actors. Kirby and Pascal’s acting makes the film’s conflict felt by the viewer as they project the pain and frustration of the decision between saving their family or saving the world. Moss-Bachrach and Quinn play the comedic duo of Ben Grimm and Johnny Storm. The back-and-forth conversations between the two characters add a comedic aspect to the film in between the intense action scenes.
In scenes that are intense moments, the two are used to break the tension and add some comedy. The most interesting aspect of the character casting is that of the popular character, the Silver Surfer. As most Marvel fans know, the Silver Surfer is an astronomer named Norrin Radd who saves his home planet from Galactus. In the film, the Silver Surfer character is changed to be a woman named Shalla-Bal. This is a welcome change to the comic-based film. The character is played by Julia Garner and used as a love interest for Quinn’s character, Johnny Storm. Garner used motion capture to portray the character and have the Silver Surfer glide through the galaxy.
A Marvel Cinematic Masterpiece
The film brings many memorable moments in cinematography to the table. The film’s designer, Kasra Farahani, and cinematographer, Jess Hall, created the film to have a vibe as if it were a 1960s science-fiction film with a 1960s-style world with a futuristic element. Saturated colors such as deep reds are used to give the film a timeless feeling, and vibrant costumes were used to complete the image of the world that the superheroes are living in. The film uses split screen and grainy features to recreate TV broadcasts during news segments to echo the time of technology the film takes place. In scenes that involved the villain Galactus (Ralph Ineson), the cinematographers used only partial frames to keep him mysterious and as if he were a shadow of doom that was looming over the superheroes until the very end of the film. They used the music score along with the framing to give the terrifying villain vibe. The film used rotating POV shots and cut-ins to create the black hole chase scene. The production crew of the film decided not to use CGI in the space scenes but to use parts of the shuttle to give a physical feeling. Also used in the space scenes is camera lingering to allow the audience to feel the emotional weight of the situation at hand. The aspect of family relationships is a big theme throughout The Fantastic Four: First Steps. Camera work of circling the characters and handheld-style shots are used to tie the characters’ emotions and the cinematography to fashion the family dynamic aspect.
The Fantastic Four Rises to the Top
The factors of the plot, the characters, acting, and cinematography of the film create an amazing Marvel film. Overall, the film is a great addition and brings new aspects to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It brings fan-favorite characters and a story of family with a historical science fiction vibe. The Fantastic Four: First Steps is worth watching in theaters for the first time and then for a rewatch on streaming. Also, stay until after the credits for a mid-credit scene and a fun after-credit scene.
Be a superhero and see The Fantastic Four: First Steps in theaters today.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025) Official Marvel Entertainment Trailer
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Author
Kendra Dennis is a Pennsylvania-based creative and content writer. While her passion lies within the creative realm, Kendra enjoys any time she gets to write. Kendra graduated from American Public University System in June of 2025 with a BA in English. She enjoys writing stories that open up to a larger world where readers can get lost. You can find her daydreaming about her newest stories or reorganizing one of her many bookshelves.