Better than the first, but that's not saying much

Rating: 6/10 (11 October 2007)

Let me get what I liked out of the way: The Surfer effects, Reed Richard's speech about being a 'good little nerd' and Jessica Alba's body. What I didn't like: Let me put it this way. Watch the movie all the way through. Then watch the beginning again. Notice something? Think about it. The Surfer was the one who stopped Galactus. The Surfer. Not the Fantastic Four, not Doc Doom, not anyone outside of the Galactus equation. This means that if the Surfer had just an ounce or more brains, he'd have killed his boss much earlier, and avoided the destruction of who knows how many planets. So the whole point of the events in the movie were to... make him change his mind? Even the original comic book had it slightly more complex than that. It took a little more than an encounter with human beings to change his mind. And while I, personally, would probably do a complete 180 if Jessica Alba was in front of me in skintight spandex, I still don't buy that Mr. Shiny from outer space is gonna go against the fate he's resigned himself to from what amounts to about an hour of conversation. Though, this time around Julian McMahon was a much better Dr. Doom than in the previous movie. This time, he actually seemed, I dunno, competent. And, because I have to mention it, the scene in the club was so worthless I actually had to leave the room and come back when it was over. Maybe the geeks in the CGI department thought a stretchy guy would have great moves on the dance floor, but for the love of all that's holy, any director, editor, or producer in their right mind would have cut that out faster than the Flash on crack. So while the dialogue was improved, and some of the actors appeared to have had some acting lessons, this movie is still pretty terrible. And understand my criticism, while harsh, is more than justified. I'm trying to be constructive. Some stuff can be worked with. Other stuff is just better off in the can. This movie, maybe, could have been worked with. Oh, and by the way, this is to Stan Lee. STOP APPEARING IN MARVEL MOVIES, PLEASE!! I actually felt a little ill at that scene.