Fantastic Four

Directed by Tim Story, Fantastic Four follows a group of astronauts (Ioan Gruffudd’s Reed Richards), Jessica Alba’s Sue Storm, Chris Evans’ Johnny Storm, and Michael Chiklis’ Ben Grimm) as they and their malevolent benefactor (Julian McMahon’s Victor Von Doom) are infused with otherworldly abilities after being hit with a hefty dose of cosmic radiation. Filmmaker Story, armed with a screenplay by Mark Frost and Michael France, delivers a somewhat erratic yet mostly satisfying superhero movie that benefits from its streamlined narrative and assortment of charismatic performances, as, in terms of the latter, Story elicits compelling work from his actors that goes a long way towards smoothing over the picture’s bumps and lulls – with Gruffudd’s magnetic, ingratiating turn as the group’s ostensible leader certainly matched by his various costars. (Alba is admittedly a little flat here, but Evans’ often absurdly charming efforts compensate and remain an ongoing highlight, to be sure.) And although the film is never quite as completely captivating or enthralling as one might’ve hoped, Fantastic Four‘s appreciatively brisk pace and brief running time ensure that it remains watchable all the way through to a third act that doesn’t overstay its welcome – with the final result a decent-enough endeavor that fares better than most of its comic-book brethren.

**1/2 out of ****