Poor Usage of Primetime Heroes

Rating: 4/10 (6 May 2008)

I have always loved the Marvel Universe; from the heroes, villains, face offs, and the intriguing story lines. And since they started really making these titles into major motion pictures I have been excited every time I hear of a new one taking off. There have been some true success stories including: Spider-man, Blade, and now Iron Man. And an equal amount of flops: Daredevil, Elektra, The Hulk. So I would have to say that this is without a doubt one of the more disappointing set of heroes to be brought to the silver screen.
At first glance, it does look bad. With Jessica Alba, and Julian McMahon alone this could be flushed on instinct. Dr. Doom can be considered one of the primary villains in all of the Marvel Universe, yet he is undeniably destroyed by the appalling performance of Julian McMahon. Really this isn't McMahon's fault. He was poorly casted as Dr. Doom, and can't really do much since he is a poor actor to begin with. Jessica Alba is arguably the worst actress in Hollywood right now. If you want to debate that, I point to her work in Honey, Into the Blue, and Good Luck Chuck.
The directing, costuming, and set design also make this film such a travesty to the source material and the people who really enjoy it. There are two main reasons that this was successful though. Its aimed at kids, and the general public can enjoy it. This is why they shot it the way it was done. So they could make the most profit without solid actors, a good script, or well known director. Because Tim Story's track record of Taxi and Barbershop don't exactly put him first in my mind for Comic Book action franchise director.
Overall, Fantastic Four is pretty bad. All the characters are shallow and weak. The story is cliché and below average for even this subject matter. But if you have no prior knowledge to the material and are simply looking for a decent laugh and a little action this might be a good movie for you.
4 out of 10