Finally not embarrassing? Yes. legendary? not quite.

Okay, let’s just address the cosmic elephant in the room: Fantastic Four has historically been a hot mess. The kind of mess that makes you double-check if someone accidently released the rehearsal footage instead of the actual film. But here we are, in 2025, and somehow – miraculously – they’ve managed to pull off a version that doesn’t make you want to crawl into the Negative-Zone out of secondhand embarrassment.

This new Fantastic Four? It’s good. Not grab-your-face-and-scream-at-the-sky amazing, but it’s solid. Watchable. Occasionally exciting. And most importantly? It actually treats the characters like real people and not just action figures stuck in a blender.

The cast actually feel like a family

For the first time ever, the “First Family of Marvel” doesn’t feel like four strangers shoved into matching jumpsuits. The dynamic is believable – there’s warmth, bickering, and real affection. Reed isn’t just some stretchy robot spouting science babble, and Sue has more to do than just turn invisible and look concerned. Johnny’s got that cocky charm without being a total pest (progress!), and Ben Grimm finally gets emotional weight and decent rock textures. Not once did I think he looks like a pile of rejected driveway gravel?” so that’s a win.

Visuals That actually make sense (praise be)

Let’s talk effects – because they’re shockingly good. Reed’s powers aren’t horrifying rubber limbs from your nightmares, Sue’s force fields are gorgeous, and Johnny’s flame effects feel crisp without turning him into a flying lava lamp. Even The Thing looks like he belongs in the same film as everyone else, which, based on past iterations, is more than i ever thought I’d say.

The action scenes are clear and easy to follow (remember when that was a thing?) and they manage to look impressive without feeling like the director just clicked “explode everything” in Final Cut Pro.

The Story: simple, but it works

Plot-wise, it doesn’t reinvent the superhero wheel. But you know what? That’s fine. It doesn’t need to be a cinematic TED Talk on the human condition – it just needs to make sense, be entertaining, and let these characters do their thing. And it does. There are a couple of slow bits in the middle where it starts setting up for future movies (because of course it does), but it finds its footing again by the end.

Now, the villain… meh! Serviceable but not ground-breaking. It’s very “insert threat here,” and while it gets the job done, it doesn’t leave much of a lasting impression. Definitely feels like they’re saving the real juice for next time. Which, okay, I get it – franchise building and all that – but it left me wanting a little more oomph.

final thoughts: this might be the start of something good

Is it perfect? Nope. But it’s not a flaming disaster either, and that alone deserves a polite round of applause. It’s well-acted, decently written, and – most shocking of all – genuinely fun in places. It feels like a stepping stone toward something better. The tone is balanced, the visuals are strong, and the cast has the kind of chemistry you cant fake with editing tricks and wishful thinking.

This might finally be the version of Fantastic Fur that makes people stop asking, “Why do they keep trying?” and start asking, “When’s the next one?”

Rating: 7.5/10 – Surprisingly competent with room to grow. If you’ve been burned before (haven’t we all?), this one might just restore a little hope.