The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025)

[50strat54]

As much as I hate change [Michael B. Jordan, who by the way is a great actor in one of this year's best films] I did dig Shalla-Bal. Hate to admit it but I did.

[50strat54]

Originally Posted by starmike

Funny story time.

6th grade, I'm talking to a kid about FF comics. He says he has issue #1. I ask if he could bring it in so I can see it. He says yes....and "forgets" for months.

Last day of school I see him leaving before summer break (and possibly never seeing him again) and he just runs away. Yeah, he was full of crap.

Oh yeah, never saw him again.

All talk, everyone knows someone like this kid.

[50strat54]

Originally Posted by starmike

Funny story #2 - some prick stole my Tom Seaver rookie card. My dad talked to his dad but he said he didn't steal it. I know he did because it was missing all of a sudden after he said "WHOA!".

I do still have a Pete Rose autograph.

I should have paid the $60 when I saw him in Vegas signing baseballs in a sporting goods store in a Casino shopping mall.

Should be in the Hall of Fame, stupid.

[Mierzwiak]

Originally Posted by MWF6425

First, there is no merit whatsoever to the "it's only a movie" excuse. Regardless of the form, every story seeks to touch the mind or the heart in some way. Relating to the characters is what keeps us coming back to them.

So? It's still an entertainment from one of the biggest corporations on the planet. As long as they don't cure cancer, those are, yes, only movies.

Originally Posted by MWF6425

Secondly, while personal taste is always subjective, high quality is objective.

Yes, to a point. For example, I think Eternals is one of the ugliest big budget movies ever made and others think it looks stunning. How's the quality of its cinematography objectively great / bad?

[MWF6425]

Originally Posted by 50strat54

I really liked the sixties vibe of the film.

There were a few changes from the source material I can live with.

But is it better than Thunderbolts? Not for me, but I'd put it second. It's a lot better than Superman 2025.

I haven't read the comics in years, but I liked the altered '60s vibe as well. I haven't seen "Thunderbolts" yet, but I'm looking forward to it. As for comparing "First Steps" to "Superman", I think that's inherently unfair. They're two entirely different stories, with separate characters and motivations. But I adore them both on their own merits, just the same.

[Jay Mammoth]

Originally Posted by MWF6425

I haven't read the comics in years, but I liked the altered '60s vibe as well. I haven't seen "Thunderbolts" yet, but I'm looking forward to it. As for comparing "First Steps" to "Superman", I think that's inherently unfair. They're two entirely different stories, with separate characters and motivations. But I adore them both on their own merits, just the same.

I can see why people compare them since they are movies based on beloved comic books. I liked Superman more but still enjoyed F4, best Marvel movie since Deadpool and Wolverine. Will definitely be buying this one when the 4K is released.

[RossyG]

Originally Posted by Mecha42

I feel like we all have a story similar to this

I remember a kid gloating about owning super rare trading cards and then them being mysteriously absent for one reason or another when I found myself at their house.

I used to live near Shepperton Studios and a friend in middle school insisted that the full size prop of the Millennium Falcon fell off a lorry outside his house seemingly without the driver noticing and now resided in the garden of his council house.

My favourite detail was when he said that his older brother and dad had leapt into action, ran into the road, and thrown a tarpaulin over it. They then manipulated it through his back gate without anyone wondering what was underneath it.

I pointed out that Star Wars was filmed at Elstree, the other side of London (a fact often mentioned on British TV - we were proud to have helped make it), but he just muttered about the new one being made at Shepperton.

No one believed him, of course. He was always full of shit.

[CinemaScope]

I will watch this on TV, & maybe even buy the Blu-ray if I like it (after it's come down in price a bit), I am intrigued by the reported sort of 60's look & vibe to the film, & that it's quite likeable (the hardest thing to achieve). I don't generally like superhero films (& don't fancy the new Superman film), but on checking, I see that I own a few: the two Burton & three Nolan Batman films, the first Captain America film - I like that it's a period film set in the 1940's & that the baddies kit looks like something out of the old Flash Gordon serials, & the two del Toro Hellboy films.

[RossyG]

Originally Posted by MovinRightAlong

Great year for comics?????? Holy HOW Batman????

Well, manga is selling well and there’s a new Asterix book out in October that’ll sell its usual four million.

I have two comic shops in my town, but both have survived by prioritising Japanese stuff, Nintendo merch and Funko Pops.

The medium in general is still popular but Marvel’ and DC’s market share continues to slide. Even at the height of the MCU sales of their comics were abysmal. In Brighton’s Forbidden Planet (part of a chain of comic book shops) the American comics are in the basement and take up only a few shelves. In the London branch in the 90s they’d have taken up most of the shop.

[DKLou]

Originally Posted by Esox50

I thought this movie (and Thunderbolts*) were both really good. It is concerning the box office continues to not be what it needs to be. Unfortunately, it means budget cuts are coming because there is no way these movies are "going away", no matter how cool some people think it is to hate on them. Economics will have to change, which is interesting given how much they are paying to make the next Spiderman and two Avengers films. Yikes.

Your last sentence is key here. The economics have to change. I still struggle to deduce how they end up spending what they do on some or most of these films. It’s like just to break even they have to get like $350+ million at the box office. That’s quite a hole to dig out of in a genre that’s been over played and has plenty of very ‘meh" films. Disc sales can help and whatever but it does feel like they have to start watching the cash outlay better here.

Originally Posted by 50strat54

Make...less...movies.

Are there anymore superhero films in the pipeline for this year?

Just squeeze every drop out of the golden FRANCHISE goose.

They do it with all the time with horror films like Halloween, Jurassic Park/World [still seems to be a lot of gold left in that goose] etc.

Eventually the franchise is so worn out the studio is forced to take a 10 year break and come back to it or just reboot it.

I will say for an old guy, I knew those superheroes beginning with Iron Man. Yeah, Iron Man looked like Iron Man so did Cap and Spidey and Hulk, Doctor Strange etc. Like First Steps it looked like they jumped out of my 60s and 70s comic books.

Sam Jackson as Nick Fury? Ok, I didn't read or give a sh!t about Sgt. Nick Fury comics. Never read them, not interested. So you wanna make him black? Fine and Marvel turned him into a relevant character.

Thunderbolts, I never knew these characters. Guardians had the benefit of being in the middle of the MCU Universe releases that was riding high and we all knew the movies were interconnected in some way. Of all the superheroes this year, Florence Pugh's Yelena is the most significant. More than Superman or even Silver Surfer girl. She has been killing it in everything she's in, Black Widow, Hawkeye and now Thunderbolts. She should just claim the name Black Widow because no one has been move interesting than her in any of these superhero films

Sam Wilson is the new Captain America? Ok, maybe that's millenial or Gen Z Cap but that's not my Cap. But I did like Brave New World quite a bit. It would have been more palatable to older fans if this was a Falcon movie. But Steve Rogers is my Cap and maybe a lot of the audience felt that way too and didn't want to give the movie a chance. Since I have Regal Unlimited, of course I'm going to check out every superhero movie, even ones I have a negative opinion going in.

and the interconnected TV shows, to beat a dead horse, didn't help and while I'm beating that dead horse, multiverse...kill it.

I also am an older guy and agree about how the first several super hero films really did work. I was never into comics but of course I still knew the characters or at least had heard of them. Those set the bar quite high and that’s why so many recent super hero films seem so bad or mediocre.

Florence Pugh is interesting to me but not because of these tier-4 characters she’s playing. She’s just a hottie. . I’m not really into these lower tier or lesser known characters so I avoid those films myself. I can only do so much of this stuff.

Ugh, the damned interconnected TV shows. Hate that crap. Hate it. It just about ruined the second doctor strange movie for us. Apparently we had to have watched some Wanda vision show to really get the most out of the second doctor strange film. What? Who? Really liked the first DS and was let down that he wasn’t really the lead character in his own movie. That’s just one example. I really wish they’d ditch this interconnecting nonsense but it seems they just can’t help themselves.

Originally Posted by Mierzwiak

So? It's still an entertainment from one of the biggest corporations on the planet. As long as they don't cure cancer, those are, yes, only movies.

Yes, to a point. For example, I think Eternals is one of the ugliest big budget movies ever made and others think it looks stunning. How's the quality of its cinematography objectively great / bad?

Yep, just movies. Sure, we love them for escapism and whatever but once you get back home or shut the disc player off it’s back to your daily routine.

Eternals looked terrible and cheap, I thought. Hated that movie.

[Jaymole]

Originally Posted by starmike

Funny story time.

6th grade, I'm talking to a kid about FF comics. He says he has issue #1. I ask if he could bring it in so I can see it. He says yes....and "forgets" for months.

Last day of school I see him leaving before summer break (and possibly never seeing him again) and he just runs away. Yeah, he was full of crap.

Oh yeah, never saw him again.

I remember as a kid back in the 70's going to a book/comic book store and the owner had a FF #1 for sale for $90 (it was hanging attached to a string above the register). I went home and begged my mom & dad to buy it for me but they laughed and thought I was crazy wanting to buy a comic for so much money.

They aren't laughing now when I put them in the cheapest nursing home I could find.

[bluearth]

This movie and Superman both bombed because they're so safe

This was designed to be as crowd pleasing as possible, and as least offensive as possible.

The result? A movie that everyone likes, but nobody loves. So people dont go see it twice, people dont tell their friends, etc.

What could they have done differently to offend someone? They could have

[Show spoiler]had Galactus win and destroy their world. They could have had the baby get kidnapped.

Anything to make this movie stick with people longer then 15 seconds after they leave the theater.

This movie and Superman was made by corporate algorithms. They're like these basic pop songs you hear from basic pop stars. Designed to appeal as many people as possible, but in turn lose their soul in the process

[Thebunk]

If you have any interest in the Fantastic Four whether it is from the movie or pretending to be a fan, you owe to yourself to read one of the best comic runs of the last 40 years.





Jonathan Hickman is one if not the best working comic writers today. His run here (which leads into Avengers and Secret Wars 2015 - all written by him) has so many layers. Very strong Sci-Fi elements, great Galactus and Doom arcs, plus a lot of heart at the same time.

Next time you go to buy an $85 popcorn bucket, maybe consider putting that money towards something that will be far more enjoyable and may expose you to something you never knew could be told in comic book stories.

[mwynn]

Pinkies up.

[MWF6425]

Originally Posted by DKLou

Ugh, the damned interconnected TV shows. Hate that crap. Hate it. It just about ruined the second doctor strange movie for us. Apparently we had to have watched some Wanda vision show to really get the most out of the second doctor strange film. What? Who? Really liked the first DS and was let down that he wasn’t really the lead character in his own movie. That’s just one example. I really wish they’d ditch this interconnecting nonsense but it seems they just can’t help themselves.

I haven't seen "WandaVision" yet, and I don't recall having a tough time understanding "Multiverse of Madness".

Originally Posted by DKLou

Yep, just movies. Sure, we love them for escapism and whatever but once you get back home or shut the disc player off it’s back to your daily routine.

I don't know if that wink means you're joking, but either way I honestly don't understand people who are serious about dismissing hope and a desire for peace, in favor of the "old routine" that's just constant depression and noise. Narratives of all kinds have made us want to be better for centuries if not longer, and movies are just the latest way of conveying that.

[Galactus123]

Originally Posted by bluearth

This movie and Superman both bombed because they're so safe

This was designed to be as crowd pleasing as possible, and as least offensive as possible.

The result? A movie that everyone likes, but nobody loves. So people dont go see it twice, people dont tell their friends, etc.

What could they have done differently to offend someone? They could have

[Show spoiler]had Galactus win and destroy their world. They could have had the baby get kidnapped.

Anything to make this movie stick with people longer then 15 seconds after they leave the theater.

This movie and Superman was made by corporate algorithms. They're like these basic pop songs you hear from basic pop stars. Designed to appeal as many people as possible, but in turn lose their soul in the process

I haven't seen any articles about Superman doing badly. They always talk about how well its doing.

[CreasyBear]

Originally Posted by Galactus123

I haven't seen any articles about Superman doing badly. They always talk about how well its doing.

Superman sold less tickets than Man of Steel. F4 will sell roughly the same amount of tickets as the 2005 film. The genre needs a reset. It's like the mid to late 90's, when DC and Marvel ran the comic industry into the ground by oversaturating the market.

[BluBonnet]

[Galactus123]

Originally Posted by CreasyBear

Superman sold less tickets than Man of Steel. F4 will sell roughly the same amount of tickets as the 2005 film. The genre needs a reset. It's like the mid to late 90's, when DC and Marvel ran the comic industry into the ground by oversaturating the market.

Yes but tickets cost more now. Normal ticket price here is like over 18 euros which is ridiculous.

[CreasyBear]

Originally Posted by Galactus123

Yes but tickets cost more now. Normal ticket price here is like over 18 euros which is ridiculous.

Yeah. And so does everything else. That's inflation.