FANTASTIC FOUR: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER

Doug Jones as the Silver Surfer

©20th Century Fox

• themovielord's Grade: C-
• Reviewed Format: Theatrical Release
• Rated: PG
• Stars: Ioan Gruffudd, Jessica Alba, Chris Evans, Michael Chiklis, Julian McMahon, Doug Jones
• Writers: Don Payne and Mark Frost, story by John Turman and Mark Frost, based on characters created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby
• Director: Tim Story
• Distributor: Twentieth Century Fox

0 bang

del.icio.us Reddit

Email This!

On the eve of Mister Fantastic (Ioan Gruffudd) and the Invisible Woman (Jessica Alba) wedding, the planet gets in jeopardy when an alien, riding a surfer board, starts causing massive sink holes all over the place.

The first ‘Fantastic Four’ film was moderately successful. When a film is moderately successful does that warrant a sequel? Nowadays I guess it does, because ‘the Hulk 2’ will be in the theaters soon. Marvel and Twentieth Century Fox have rolled the dice and made a sequel to see if perhaps, they can get past the origin story and give us a truly fantastic adventure.

The film picks up with the F.F. (Fantastic Four) as celebrity superheroes. Johnny Storm/ the Human Torch (Evans) is always on the take for another financial gimmick the team could use to support themselves and keep him in the lap of luxury. Sue Storm/ the Invisible Woman has become more the actual leader in the business sense because her fiancé, Reed/ Mr. Fantastic is more interested in his science than leading the team. Ben / the Thing (Chiklis) is just living life and spending time with girl friend. Alright this is believable and true to the comic. Though this is a film (a short one with 4 lead characters and three bad guys) and not a comic and the story needs to get moving. The opening drags on for twenty or so minutes about the F.F.’s day to day life and the problems Sue is having with Reed about the wedding. Sorry but that is extremely dull. It is fun to see the F.F. living life and using their fantastic abilities on the day to day stuff but this is a superhero movie and not a superhero TV show. Where is my WOW factor? I kept thinking once the Silver Surfer (Doug Jones) shows up things will get going and they do.

The Silver Surfer is basically setting up the planet for some one else to destroy. We get a little bit of the back story on the Surfer but it is not nearly enough. Doug Jones who plays the Surfer in body and Laurence Fishburne who plays his voice are perfect together in the role. They bring a sadness and a believability to this alien who is forced into servitude to fulfill a promise. The saddest part is there just isn’t enough of him on screen.

The film is bogged down with necessary subplot scenes that in the end have no real payoff. Chiklis and Evans are perfect, once again, as the Human Torch and the Thing. Both need a better script and better director to help them carry this movie. Because these guys are doing great work and embody the characters so well that it’s a wonder they don’t give Alba and Gruffudd the big kiss off and jump two new team members into the F.F. as Marvel as done once or twice every decade. Now it isn’t that Alba is bad in the role. She’s actually quite good. The problem is her and Gruffudd have absolutely no chemistry together. I can’t believe that they actually love each other or could even tolerate each other. Alba relationship with Evans as brother and sister has more emotional punch then her love interest one. That’s pretty sad for characters who are to be romantically involved and getting married in the film.

The special effects are good. I’ll say good, because every time Mr. Fantastic stretches it looks incredibly lame. These numerous, and at times unnecessary, scenes ruin the sheer wonder that is the Silver Surfer. The flying scenes, the big chase, the fights with the rockets, are some of the best moments of the film and probably the best moments in movie/ comic history since Tobey Maguire first played Spider-Man and swung through New York City.

I was disappointed in this film. Now if I was ten years old and went to see this movie I probably would have loved it. Since I am not ten and my attention span doesn’t wander I was forced to stay focused on the plot, the characters, the story, and the directing. All of which need more work, more development, and a whole new director to make this a better movie.

‘Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer’ has one great new character, the Silver Surfer. It allows Chiklis and Evans be the actual embodiment of their comic book counterparts. Yet the film, forces me to wonder, again, why would someone take these wondrous mythical characters and turn out, yet another, yawn of a movie?