The Fantastic Four: First Steps Review: Eye Candy Galore, But Feels Like A Warm-Up

The Fantastic Four: First Steps (PG)

Starring Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Joseph Quinn, Julia Garner

Directed by Matt Shakman

Thirty-seven films in, the Marvel Cinematic Universe is finally rolling out the red carpet for the Fantastic Four — Marvel’s First Family — even though the MCU already started sneaking them in via Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and Deadpool & Wolverine.

Set in a retro-futuristic 1960s on Earth-828, the quartet — Reed Richards (Pedro Pascal), Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby), Ben Grimm (Ebon Moss-Bachrach), and Johnny Storm (Joseph Quinn) — face a cosmic double whammy: Julia Garner’s Silver Surfer and her boss, a planet-munching pest named Galactus (voiced by Ralph Ineson).

Considering this is the fifth time the FF are hitting the big screen (two in the 2000s, one in 2015, and an unreleased Roger Corman-produced version from 1994), First Steps — not unlike James Gunn’s Superman — wisely skips the origin-story route and dives straight into the action. (How did they get their powers? It’s explained in a TV montage sequence.)

The movie moves at a clip — and true to Marvel boss Kevin Feige’s promise, it’s a “no-homework-required” standalone. Still, it feels like a glorified placeholder before next year’s battle royale, Avengers: Doomsday, albeit one with eye-popping visuals (that shade of blue? Pantone PMS 76904, thank you very much) and an insanely watchable cast. 

But some moments are just baffling. Like a heavily pregnant Sue Storm blasting off into space. Sure, expectant women can fly at 35-36 weeks, but space travel? Then again, she’s a superhero, different rules apply. Or that one scene where Sue (you again) calms down an angry mob with a short speech. Not quite how real-life crowd control works, but okay. Honest Trailers is going to have a field day with this. (2.5/5 stars) out in cinemas

Photos: Marvel Studios

Also out...

Bring Her Back (R21)

Starring Sally Hawkins, Billy Barratt, Sora Wong

Directed by Danny Philippou & Michael Philippou

Two years ago, Aussie YouTuber brothers Danny and Michael Philippou turned heads with their debut Talk to Me, a chilling thriller about teens who get high by letting spirits possess them through a ceramic embalmed hand. Their follow-up, Bring Her Back, revisits themes of grief and guilt — but this time, it’s not about contacting the dead, but resurrecting them. The fantastic Sally Hawkins plays Laura, a social worker who welcomes a pair of recently orphaned siblings — Andy and Piper (Billy Barratt and Sora Wong) — into her home. Unbeknownst to them, their seemingly kind guardian has a horrifying plan: to reanimate her dead daughter through a cannibalistic ritual. Like Talk to Me, Bring Her Back blends genuine scares with emotional heft (take a bow, Sora). It has a little more gore, but the build-up to the final act is unbearably drenched in dread — and unforgivably depressing. Footnote: Laura gets her raise-the-dead instructions from a static-filled, line-riddled VHS tape. A prequel exploring its origins? Yes, please. (3/5 stars) exclusively at The Projector

Photo: Sony Pictures Entertainment

Wall to Wall (M18)

Starring Kang Ha-neul, Yeom Hye-ran, Seo Hyun-woo

Directed by Kim Tae-joon

Kim Tae-joon’s urban nightmare begins as a black comedy: Salaryman and budding crypto investor Woo-sung (Squid Game Season 2 breakout Kang Ha-neul) splurges on a condo unit — going from “poor to house poor,” as one character jokes — only to pay far more than he bargained for. Turns out being a homeowner isn’t what it’s cracked up to be. Mounting debts aside, he is plagued by noisy neighbours who accuse him of causing the incessant racket. Watching Woo-sung spiral into madness as he tries to clear his name is strangely entertaining. The second half shifts gears, plunging into darker, more macabre (and spoilerific) territory involving a neighbour who seems sympathetic to Woo-sung’s plight — but isn’t who he claims to be. But the real showstopper? An incredibly intense scene involving nothing more than…clicking a mouse. Honestly. (3/5 stars) on Netflix

Photo: Jeon Young-uk /Netflix

Jaws@50: The Definitive Inside Story (PG)

Directed by Laurent Bouzereau

At 50, Steven Spielberg’s Jaws still amazes. Sure, the shark (nicknamed Bruce by the director) looks a little wonky, but the rest of the movie rocks. Longtime Spielberg archivist Laurent Bouzereau’s retrospective documentary celebrates the movie’s brilliance — with glowing tributes from the likes of J.J. Abrams, James Cameron, and Guillermo del Toro — while revisiting its famously troubled production, including busted budgets, delays, and a frequently malfunctioning animatronic shark. Most of the BTS stories have been told before in Bouzereau’s earlier making-of docs for the DVD, Blu-Ray/LaserDisc releases (yes, kids, I’ve been around that long) — but they never get old. Wouldn’t it something if the doc included interviews with the filmmakers behind other shark movies — the good (The Shallows), the bad (The Meg) and the fugly (Sharknado)? Bouzereau also brings in scientists to discuss the film’s ecological impact (this is a Nat Geo show after all), for better or worse. (To counter the backlash against sharks, the family of Jaws author Peter Benchley have become passionate advocates for marine life conservation.) Over the years, as I rewatched Jaws, I found that while the shark still scares me (thanks to John Williams’ timeless theme), it isn’t the real monster — it’s the town’s mayor, who’s all too willing to turn a blind eye to an avoidable calamity and put profit ahead safety. Tsk, tsk, tsk.  (3/5 stars) On Disney+

Photo: National Geographic

Monster Island (Orang Ikan) (M18)

Starring Dean Fujioka, Callum Woodhouse, Alan Maxson

Directed by Mike Wiluan

Culthood may (just) await this creature-feature — produced by the Eric Khoo-affiliated Gorylah Pictures — from Mike Wiluan (Motel Melati, Operandi Gerhana), which premiered at last year’s Singapore International Film Festival, hit genre platform Shudder, and has now crept onto Netflix. The WWII-set tale is a riff on the Kong: Skull Island prologue: two soldiers, one British (Callum Woodhouse) and one Japanese (Dean Fujikoa), are stranded on a remote island, except instead of a giant ape, they’re up against a bug-eyed Creature from the Black Lagoon-like predator. Three things bugged me: the murky lighting, the general lack of excitement, and that effing monster, which looks like someone in a rubber suit. Like 2023’s Circle Line, the movie takes itself far too serious to qualify as camp, and even at under 90 minutes, it still feels like a slog. Sorry folks, the Great Singapore Monster Picture? Still MIA. One day... (1.5/5 stars) on Netflix

Photo: Shudder