I just got back a few hours ago from watching Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. My nine-year-old and I are still buzzing about the movie. Although purists will have problems with the presentation, I loved it as a longtime fan and my son loved it just because it was so darn cool. He laughed at all the one-liners at about the same time his dad did — proving the boy is getting really quick-witted or I’m not as fast as I think I am. I actually think we’re meeting somewhere in the middle, probably at about age seven.

As everyone knows from the title, this movie introduces the Silver Surfer to the movie-going world for the first time. There have been previous incarnations of the character, including guest spots in cartoon series such as Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four animated series. There was even a short-lived cartoon series about the Silver Surfer.

It’s going to be interesting to see if the movie crowd reacts any differently to the character than the comics fans. Stan Lee and Jack Kirby created the character back in the 1960s in pretty much the same context as he was used in the movie. When they wrote a comic book series just about the Silver Surfer, it only lasted eighteen issues the first time. Fans loved the character of tormented Norrin Radd when he was exiled by Galactus to be bound to the earth, but it was just too much of a good thing. They didn’t pick up the monthly series.

There have been a couple of comics series runs since then, but even though the character fascination is there, the longevity for the fan base isn’t. It’s almost like people love stories about people reacting to the Silver Surfer’s plight more than watching him deal with it himself.

Although the Silver Surfer’s backstory was touched on in the movie, there’s not a lot of detail. We know that he’s in servitude to Galactus to save his own world and he gave up his love to do that. That was one of the main conceits of the comic book version, that idea of noble self-sacrifice. And the fact that, despite all the power cosmic he had, he could never go home again.

It will be interesting to see, if there is a Fantastic Four 3, if the Silver Surfer is mentioned again.

As for the movie, I feel it could’ve been ripped from the pages of one of those early comics written by Stan and drawn by Jack. The feel of family was ingrained in every scene. They argued, bickered, misunderstood, hoped for, and loved each other all the way through the movie. In some ways the movie is very simple. There’s no real surprise about how things are going to turn out. There’s not supposed to be. This is the Fantastic Four. People who know the characters know what they’re gonna get in this film, and it’s delivered.

Ioan Gruffudd returns as Mr. Fantastic. Jessica Alba is the Invisible Woman. Chris Evans is the Human Torch. And Michael Chiklis is the Thing. Julian McMahon returns as Doctor Doom.

Maybe movie purists want deeper plots and characters, maybe the comics fans want an updated version of the team, but I love this version. These are the characters, more or less, that I grew up with. These are the characters, without the John Byrne dark side and without all the soap opera complications of splitting the team up and bringing in She-Hulk, etc., that I want my nine-year-old son to learn to love, too. Comics scribe Mark Waid’s run on the comics series was one of the best to come along in years. Waid really had a handle on the characters.

The whole idea of Reed and Susan trying to get married while watched by the world, invaded by the media, and dealing with their own shifting pecking order is great. Throw in the threat of a planet-devouring entity and you’ve got all the ingredients of a successful Fantastic Four movie.

The action sequences were utterly impressive. I believed in each and every one of their superpowers. In the last movie, Johnny Storm’s Human Torch abilities blew me away. But in this movie, watching Mr. Fantastic in action was a treat whether it was a serious situation or a comic one. The director (Tim Story) and the scriptwriters (Don Payne and Mark Frost) took advantage of Reed’s super-stretching abilities for comic relief a lot as well. Watching Reed get loop-legged while thinking about getting married and smashed flat behind the Thing during a fight were absolutely hilarious.

The Silver Surfer admittedly got short shrift regarding what his powers could truly do, but it was wild watching him sink through the surfboard and remain connected to it while upside down and flying at near full-speed. Movies and special effects have come a long way. Comic books used to be the only place you could go to see that kind of action, but now movies bring it all to the big screen. Of course, comics still beat them because of the monthly frequency with which they come out.

The shifting loyalties within the story played a big part in keeping me satisfied. There was never a dull moment. Something was always happening to someone somewhere. And despite how tense everything got, there was always a laugh to be had somewhere.

One of the really cool things about the movie is the full-size lobby display that comes with it. I took a picture of my son in front of it, which he thought was totally cool. You’re not going to get that in the DVD box! But we’re anxiously awaiting the DVD release because we’re ready to see the movie again.

Definitely worth seeing on the big screen.

This entry was posted on Sunday, June 24th, 2007 at 9:24 am and is filed under Celebrity Gossip, Movie Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Two years ago, the movie audience was introduced to the adventures of the Fantastic Four. That film was moderately entertaining, though it had serious flaws which prevented it from coming anywhere near the quality of the X-Men or Spider-Man franchises. However, while it made story, character, and casting missteps, it was not nearly as bad as the critics would have had you believe. In any case, it did well enough at the box office, and on DVD, to warrant a second film be made.

The teaser trailer promised to payoff on the promise of that first film. The final product, alas, does not live up to that first trailer. Still, it is head and shoulders above the original, and a much more satisfying superhero romp than the exciting spectacle, yet lousy story mash that was the much hyped and anticipated Spider-Man 3.

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer seems to pick up the team in a real time span between the first film and now. The team has been doing the hero thing for awhile. They are heroes, but they have also become celebrities and media darlings. Much like in the comics, they do not conceal their identities and do not have the same PR issues that someone like Spider-Man has.

It appears that, at the moment, the biggest issue is trying to get Reed (Ioan Gruffudd) and Sue's (Jessica Alba) wedding to go down without a hitch. As for their celebrity, the four are dealing in a variety of ways. Johnny Storm (Chris Evans) loves the publicity and uses it to his hotheaded advantage, while Ben Grimm (Michael Chiklis) takes it in stride. Meanwhile, Reed keeps his head buried in his experiments, while his wife-to-be tries to get him to work on the wedding.

As the four are doing the super-powered family thing, strange things are happening around the globe, where there have been sightings of a silver streak preceding each event. It isn't long before the army is knocking on Reed's door, looking for help in finding, and stopping, the cause of these strange occurrences. Enter the Silver Surfer, a strange silvery being that is at the root of these problems. The rest of the film has our four heroes track down the interloper, and with begrudgingly accepted help from Dr. Doom, they succeed in capturing the Surfer. But that only sets off a new series of issues, as we know Doom has ulterior motives, not to mention the coming of Galactus — the destroyer of worlds whom the Surfer serves as herald.

This sequel, while infinitely superior to the original, is nowhere near perfect. It is still a highly satisfying tale. The movie is free of any delusions of grandeur or aspirations for greatness. It targets an entertaining story and hits the mark. It has the advantage of not having heaps of hype laid on it. It has neither the overbearing box-office expecations of a tent-pole film, nor the promise laid out by an incredible predecessor. It also does not set its heights so high, but rather it is content to target a slightly younger audience. This movie delivers a nice blend of comedy, action, and adventure in an inoffensive mixture that is enough to satisfy the kids as well as the adults in the audience.

The look and tone of the film is just right, brightly colored, yet tempered with a bit of darkness. There is family-like squabbling among the four, an end of the world scenario, and a cool new character, all working together to deliver a fun summer adventure. Still, while it all works on the whole, this is far from a perfect scenario.

The acting is a mixed bag. Ioan Gruffudd seems to be considerably more comfortable in Mr. Fantastic's shoes, although he still isn't written quite "brainy" enough. His partner in crime, Jessica Alba is not so lucky as Invisble Woman. She is just horribly miscast, selected more for her "it girl" factor than for being anywhere near being right for the role. Each successive film seems to expose her mediocre at best acting ability, on top of her being seriously creepy looking with the blue eyes and blonde hair.

Also, is it me, or does Alba keep getting skinnier everytime I see her? Seriously though, the weight dropping is a little alarming in this age of eating disorders among celebrities. Michael Chiklis and Chris Evans remain the rock solid team that seems to be perfectly cast. Chiklis does a fine job as Ben Grimm, the gruff muscle of the group, while Evans as the sarcastic hot headed ladies man couldn't be more right. The interactions between those two are spot on. Finally, Julian McMahon as Dr. Doom, never seems to be on his game. His line delivery is blase, and his attempts to portray a stone-faced menace fall flat. I think he is decent for the role, but is let down by screenplay and direction.

Newcomer Doug Jones brings a beautiful otherworldliness to his performance as the Silver Surfer. I am sure that much of what you see is the creation of a computer, but it is Jones who was onset providing the guide to the character. He has been carving out a nice niche playing these types of roles, previously appearing in Hellboy and Pan's Labyrinth. He brings a grace and serenity to the screen, despite being forced to assist in the destruction of planet after planet. It is a wonderful character, and I hope they lock him up to be in the proposed Silver Surfer film.

I still do not feel that Tim Story is the right director for this franchise, but there is no denying that this is a step in the right direction. There is a better balance between the crisis and the family dynamic among the four. I just think that there is room for improvement if another director took the reigns to push this to the next level.

In the end, there is no denying that this movie was a lot of fun. It was better than I had hoped, even with my lowered expectations. One of the bigger things to have bugged me is the ease with which they believed in alien life, from the talk of planets being left barren and lifeless, to the automatic assumption that the surfer was an alien, as opposed to another super powered human. It was almost as if there was a movie in between which introduced alien life as true within this universe. I know, it is a minor nitpick in the face of the Alba issues, but it bugged me anyway. But then, there is also the issue of the Dodge branded Fantasticar…

Bottomline. I liked this movie, it was not great, but I found it to be very entertaining with a tone that seemed to be more in line with the comics. It was a significant improvement over the first entry, and provided me with 90 minutes of fun.

Recommended.

Christopher Beaumont spends much of his time writing about entertainment when he isn’t sitting in a movie theater. He is known around the office as the “Movie Guy” and is always ready to talk about his favorite form of entertainment and offer up recommendations. Interests include science fiction, horror, and metal music. His writings can be found at Draven99’s Musings, as well as Film School Rejects.

This entry was posted on Sunday, June 17th, 2007 at 7:42 pm and is filed under Celebrity Gossip, Movie Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.