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Otago Daily Times
3 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Otago Daily Times
Saturday morning heroism in a world fit for Jetsons
The Fantastic Four: First Steps, is not a flashy or over-the-top special effects extravaganza, the type we've become used to over 36 previous Marvel entries. Rather, it feels intimate in its own way, which is surprising considering its villain is a colossal being who devours planets whole and wants to consume Earth and then move forward on his path of intergalactic destruction. The gang of Four is led by Reed Richards (Pedro Pascal), who goes by Mister Fantastic, a supergenius scientist who, due to an incident in outer space, can now stretch his body like Silly Putty. He's so low-key and dialled down in the role that it's a running joke that people around him are always yawning when he's talking. In terms of Marvel, where personality is a superpower, he leaves a bit to be desired. Same goes for his three fellow partners, his wife, Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby), who has the ability to make herself invisible; his best friend Ben Grimm (The Bear's Ebon Moss-Bachrach, in a mostly motion capture performance), who is made of rocks and possesses super strength; and hot-shot Johnny Storm (Joseph Quinn), who can fly and has the ability to set himself ablaze. First Steps takes place in a Jetsons vision of the future-past, where it's simultaneously 1960 and 2060, where midcentury modern design meets flying cars and friendly service robots. It's this loving production design and the warmth of the world that gives First Steps its pizzazz, far more than any of its performances. About this planet-eating business: Galactus (voiced by the gravelly Ralph Ineson) is a consumer of entire globes, and he has a hunger for Earth. The only thing that can stop him is Reed and Sue's newborn baby boy. Director Matt Shakman (WandaVision), working from a script credited to four writers, sets First Steps in motion and lets it move at its own pace. It's a nimble, fleet-footed piece of entertainment, which never feels any weightier than a Saturday morning cartoon. In that sense, it feels like a win, or at least the first steps towards a much needed smaller, more manageable world of superhero film-making. — TCA
Buzz Feed
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Buzz Feed
Fantastic Four Review, Meryl Streep In Devil Wears Prada 2, And More
This week in Screen Time, my brain is consumed by how much I loved Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm in The Fantastic Four: First Steps. I also share what's all over my FYP — like Katie Holmes and Joshua Jackson reuniting for a movie — and what we've got going on over on BuzzFeed Celeb's YouTube channel, plus so much more. Listen, I even find time to explain who THE best TV ships are, according to me. Thanks for joining me! The Fantastic Four: First Steps — watch for: Vanessa Kirby. A new Marvel woman I would die for. In theaters now The Fantastic Four: First Steps finally brings Marvel's first family to the MCU. The movie doesn't spend time on origins, and instead drops you right into the action of the Fantastic Four facing the Silver Surfer (Julia Garner) and Galactus (Ralph Ineson). The dynamic between Reed (Pedro Pascal), Sue (Vanessa Kirby), Johnny (Joseph Quinn), and Ben (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) is everything I could've wished for. While each of them is great, it's Vanessa as Sue who is the heart of the film. Her portrayal of motherhood is spectacular and endearing. So, basically, Vanessa, welcome to the club of Marvel women I would die for. Plus, when she and Pedro have moments together, you can see the love behind their eyes that really solidifies the Reed-Sue dynamic. And it's just a visually cool movie from director Matt Shakman, the mind behind WandaVision. They finally got the Fantastic Four right on screen, and it poetically took exactly four tries. The Gilded Age — watch for: Honestly? Stunning costumes, wild storylines, and a great cast Streaming on HBO Max; new episodes every Sunday As someone who watched Downton Abbey religiously every week, The Gilded Age is a show that feels like it was made in a lab specifically for me. Created by Julian Fellowes, who also created Downton, the show is set in NYC during the 1880s and follows the social scene and conflicts that arise between old money and new money in the city. While the show started off as a guilty pleasure watch for most, with its current third season, it has found its footing and become one of the best shows you might not be watching. Anchored by riveting performances from Carrie Coon, Morgan Spector, Taissa Farmiga, Denée Benton, Louisa Jacobson, and more, each episode of this new season has been better than the last. So, yes, my comfort show right now consists of living in 1880s NYC, and I am totally okay with that. Severance — watch for: Once-in-a-lifetime performances from the entire cast Streaming on Apple TV+ Leading into this year's Emmy Awards in September, I figured I would spotlight the Emmy-nominated shows that you should watch (or rewatch) before then. So, we're starting off with Severance, which has the most nominations with 27! This brilliant series follows the employees of Lumon, who have elected to have a procedure that splits their personalities in half. Their 'innie' exists only at work, while their 'outie' lives out their personal lives outside of work. I genuinely believe this is one of the greatest (and smartest) TV shows airing right now. With brilliant performances from literally everyone in this cast, like Adam Scott, Britt Lower, and Tramell Tillman, to name a few, you're honestly missing out if you're NOT watching. Please, join me in worship at the altar of Lumon (and Helly R.). These are some of my favorite things from my FYP, feed, and more: My entire feed this week has been flooded with Katie Holmes and Joshua Jackson. Twenty-two years after starring as Pacey and Joey on Dawson's Creek, the duo is currently filming Happy Hours, a romance movie written and directed by Holmes. The photos of them smiling and laughing while filming in NYC caused widespread panic on my feeds because, yes, Katie and Joshua really do have the best chemistry ever committed to film. At the end of the day, all we want is new projects starring actors who have unmatched chemistry. See: what Nora Ephron did with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan, or even what Mike Flanagan does. And in other filming news, The Devil Wears Prada 2 has begun filming in NYC, which means we've been able to catch glimpses of Anne Hathaway, Stanley Tucci, Meryl Streep, Simone Ashley, and more filming, and I'm honestly getting more and more excited. Not only did Anne post from her first day back, but the minute photos of Meryl as THE Miranda Priestly hit the internet, it's all anyone could talk about. And can you blame them? LOOK AT HER: This week, over on BuzzFeed Celeb, the I Know What You Did Last Summer cast — Madelyn Cline, Chase Sui Wonders, Sarah Pidgeon, Jonah Hauer-King, Tyriq Withers, and Gabbriette Bechtel — swung by to compete in a game of Cast Wars, aka a trivia game about themselves. Right out of the gate, things got competitive when Chase, Tyriq, and Gabbriette named their team "Pogues for Life," and it only got more hilariously wild from there. We tested them on each other's past roles, like Sarah's turn in The Wilds, as well as the OG IKWYDLS movie, like what was the color of Helen's dress? Watch it all now: Where I answer YOUR questions about TV, movies, fandom, and more: Question: Who are your top five TV ships of all time? If there's one thing you need to know about me, I live and die by the ships I love that have become part of my personality. I have very strong opinions about which sides of love triangles are correct. I often tweet and flail over my unyielding love of characters who make me swoon. This question was made for me. I also stand by all of my picks. Coming up with a top five is hard, but I think I feel confident in this list: 1. Nathan and Haley from One Tree Hill 2. Mark and Lexie from Grey's Anatomy 3. Glenn and Maggie from The Walking Dead 4. Caroline and Klaus from The Vampire Diaries 5. Waverly and Nicole from Wynonna Earp And we're continuing the discussion over here: Tell me who YOUR top five TV ships of all time are! Well, that's all I've got for this week's edition of Screen Time. Come back every week to get more TV and movie recommendations, find out which celebs we're working with, and so much more! Have a question for me, or want to tell me what you're watching right now, or have a suggestion of what I should watch next? Send it to me now at screentime@ at this Google form, or let me know in the comments below. Do you love all things TV and movies? Subscribe to the Screen Time newsletter to get your weekly dose of what to watch next and what everyone is flailing over from someone who watches everything!
The Hindu
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps' movie review: Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby's star power propels first family's stratospheric ride
WandaVision's Matt Shakman does retro so elegantly; not as a museum piece but a living, breathing world, no matter how unreal. And so it is with The Fantastic Four: First Steps, the second reboot of MCU's Fantastic Four movies based on Stan Lee and Jack Kirby's comic books. Set in 1960, the film revels in its 2001: A Space Odyssey aesthetic. It was a conscious choice by Shakman, who wanted the film to look like Stanley Kubrick had made it in 1965. So there are practical sets and props, fashions, colours and sequences shot using a 16mm film camera. The Fantastic Four: First Steps (English) Director: Matt Shakman Cast: Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Joseph Quinn, Julia Garner, Sarah Niles, Mark Gatiss, Natasha Lyonne, Paul Walter Hauser, Ralph Ineson Runtime: 114 minutes Storyline: With earth as the next dish on a planet-eating cosmic being's menu, it is time for the Fantastic Four to swing into action The ensemble cast sends the film's likeability index soaring. Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards and Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm light up the screen with their crackling chemistry, with Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm, Reed's best friend; and Joseph Quinn as Johnny, Sue's younger brother, completing the quartet. Like Superman, The Fantastic Four: First Steps also eschews the origin story. On Earth-828, talk show host Ted Gilbert (Mark Gatiss) gives a recap of the four astronauts, Reed, Sue, Ben and Johnny, getting their superpowers from cosmic rays on mission to outer space in 1960. Four years on, the Fantastic Four are perceived as guardians of the earth. When Reed and Sue's long-cherished dream of becoming parents comes true, it seems like everything is going to be super fine. Disaster strikes right then with the appearance of the Silver Surfer (Julia Garner), who informs the fab four of the planet-devouring Galactus' (Ralph Ineson) plans for earth. The ravenous being offers to spare Earth in return for Reed and Sue's son, Franklin, putting further pressure on the super-beings and turning the frightened humans against them. Reed puts his super brain to work to figure out a way to defeat Galactus while keeping his family and the world at large, safe. Sue uses her high emotional intelligence to calm the earthlings. Johnny, who is deeply enamoured with the Silver Surfer, deciphers her language and tries to communicate with her. He has clearly eschewed his womanising ways, which was anyway very '80s. Ben is the proverbial Rock of Gibraltar everyone leans on when they need a moment. Family is the new superpower with everyone stepping up for each other. There are jokes and eye-wateringly spectacular action sequences (Johnny's first contact with the Silver Surfer is heartbreakingly beautiful), for sure, but that baby Franklin is beyond sweet, even if his idea of light reading is Charles Darwin's, On the Origin of Species! Natasha Lyonne further ups the charisma quotient as Ben's love interest, the school teacher, Rachel Rozman, while the sociological underpinnings are provided by Paul Walter Hauser's Mole Man. This first film in Phase Six of the MCU, with a sequel in development and a mid-credit sequence pointing to Avengers: Doomsday, The Fantastic Four: First Steps, has all the ingredients for blistering fun at the movies. May the Four be with you. The Fantastic Four: First Steps is currently running in theatres
India Today
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- India Today
Matt Shakman, Vanessa Kirby, Pedro Pascal on rebooting Fantastic Four
In Marvel Studios' 'The Fantastic Four: First Steps', the world's most iconic super-family steps into an alternate, retro-futuristic universe, and back into audience favour with a film that balances style, substance, and the emotional chaos of becoming a parent amidst cosmic a recent global press conference, director Matt Shakman, actors Vanessa Kirby, Pedro Pascal, Joseph Quinn, and Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige unpacked the journey behind Marvel's 37th film, and its very first standalone story set in a brand-new universe. The result is a film that may be set in the 1960s, but speaks to very modern anxieties, especially those around family, vulnerability, and Vanessa Kirby, who plays Sue Storm, the film's emotional arc was crystal clear from her first meeting with Shakman and Feige. Responding to a question about how Sue Storm fits into today's world, Kirby said, 'Matt already had this vision of putting it into the '60s for years. I remember being so blown away. How do you distill decades of stories into one movie for 2025?' The answer, she said, lay in one word: parenthood. 'The very DNA of the story reflects the experience we had making it. One moment we'd be in this domestic scene, Reed smelling Sue's socks, Sue brushing her teeth, and the next, we were in this epic, intergalactic cosmos. And somehow, that's exactly what the film is,' Kirby Kirby, playing a pregnant superhero was not only revolutionary, but deeply grounding. 'The baby is the heart of it,' she said, adding, 'That became the soul of the film. I was discovering Sue all the time through the script, through the other actors, through this baby that grounded us all. If we ever gave a bad take, we had Michael [Giacchino] scoring the baby! It kept us in check.'But the journey wasn't just about balancing domesticity with spectacle, it was also about embracing the film's "weirdness." 'Marvel's always been counterculture, hasn't it?' Kirby said, and added, 'There's a weirdness and an otherness to the comics, and Matt really leaned into that. There's beauty in what he's done." For director Matt Shakman, who previously helmed 'WandaVision', building an entirely new universe from scratch was both a challenge and a thrill.'I've been a 'Fantastic Four' fan since I was a kid, so it was an honour,' he said. 'Because they're such public figures, we knew we couldn't set them in the regular Marvel timeline - we would've already heard of them. So, we put them in a different universe, a different Earth, and created this retro-future 1960s world. Think Jack Kirby meets 2001: A Space Odyssey," he echoed that sentiment, calling 'First Steps' 'our 37th MCU film, and yet really the first standalone we've done that sets up its own new established universe.' The approach, he added, was simple: no strings further stated, 'Matt would often say, there's no homework required. Everything you need to know about the 'Fantastic Four', you learn in the first 10 minutes - they're a family, they're human, they're emotional, and they want to help.'advertisementFeige also pointed to Marvel's return to counterculture roots, noting, 'It's also counterculture to take someone like Pedro Pascal, arguably the coolest human alive, and make him cool not because he's a bada*s, but because he's smart. That's what makes him cool in this movie. He's a genius.'To which Pascal quickly quipped, 'And Pedro's so dumb,' sending the panel into who plays Reed Richards aka Mr. Fantastic, dove deeper into his character's emotional trajectory. 'What I loved most was that Reed can solve the most complex scientific problems, but he doesn't know how to handle relationships,' he said. 'As a partner, a friend, a father, he tries to baby-proof the world instead of just being present in the experience. That was my way into the character, and Matt really helped me navigate that arc.'Pascal also joked that Matt Shakman's daughter helped him land the role. 'She sold me lemonade, and that was it. But honestly, the conversations with Matt were my entry point into Reed.'There's no denying 'First Steps' is a bold departure from Marvel's formulaic multiverse spectacles. It's an alternate universe story, but it's also surprisingly intimate. Kirby calls it 'modern and retro at the same time,' and Feige frames it as 'a return to counterculture through family.'In the end, 'The Fantastic Four: First Steps' isn't just another superhero flick. It's a reset button, a retro experiment, and it somehow has managed to strike the right chords.- Ends
Hindustan Times
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Fantastic Four: First Steps doesn't just bring back Marvel's original comic book family — it brings back the fun
For a studio once capable of turning obscure comic-book characters into global billion-dollar phenomena, Marvel has spent the post-Endgame years behaving like a magician who's forgotten how to pull a rabbit out of a hat — and keeps blaming the audience. After a string of bloated sequels, forgettable series, and increasingly tangled timelines, the studio has finally delivered something that feels like… well, a movie. Fantastic Four: First Steps may not reinvent the genre, but it does something arguably more impressive — it makes the superhero film fun again. A still from Fantastic Four: First Steps Directed by Matt Shakman (WandaVision), this much-needed reboot brings Marvel's First Family back to life with a kitschy, retro-futurist twist set in an alternate 1960s New York — a world where the Cold War rages, the Baxter Building glows, and superhero uniforms look suspiciously like blue pajamas. The film stars Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards, Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm, Joseph Quinn as her fire-happy brother Johnny, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as the lovably grumpy Ben Grimm. And unlike past iterations, this one skips the tedious origin story and assumes the audience has at least a Wikipedia-level familiarity with the quartet. A wise choice. The Fantastic Four are already famous when we meet them — beloved by the public, doing variety shows, and fighting off quirky comic-book baddies like Mole Man (Paul Walter Hauser) and the Super-Apes (sadly just name-dropped). They live together in the stylish Baxter Building, where domestic bliss looks like a cross between The Jetsons and a Mad Men-era sitcom. Sue has just discovered she's pregnant — a miracle in any timeline, but especially one where everyone's DNA has been fried by cosmic rays. Reed, ever the scientist, is unsure what powers their child might inherit. Ben, cursed with a rock-like exterior and sensitive soul, longs for a connection with local schoolteacher Rachel (Natasha Lyonne). Meanwhile, Johnny has a spark — pun intended — with the Silver Surfer (a gender-flipped Shalla-Bal, played with chrome-plated intensity by Julia Garner), who arrives bearing a warning: Galactus, the planet-devouring god-thing, is en route. Yes, the world is ending again. But for once, the apocalypse has style. The good The biggest triumph here is tone. Mark's direction leans into the weird, the whimsical, and the genuinely warm — a welcome break from Marvel's recent obsession with existential dread and time travel. The 1960s setting is gorgeously realised, full of neon signs, futuristic kitchen gadgets, and a robot butler named Herbie who doubles as childcare. Pedro Pascal plays Reed with a bemused detachment that works — less tortured genius, more science dad with a stretch problem. Vanessa's Sue is quietly formidable, grounding the film with emotional heft (and looking suspiciously well-rested for a woman about to give birth in space). Joseph nails Johnny's reckless charm, and Ebon's Ben is the soul of the film — a CGI creation with real pathos and a deadpan delivery that hits just right. Michael Giacchino's score gives the film a nostalgic buoyancy, and the production design leans heavily — and successfully — into comic book absurdity. Also: any film where The Thing earnestly reads Dr Spock's Baby and Child Care deserves points for originality alone. The bad Yes, there's a big third-act battle. Yes, another city folds in on itself. No, Marvel still hasn't figured out how to end a movie without throwing buildings at the sky. The gender-swapped Silver Surfer will raise eyebrows among comic-book purists, and her shiny design — somewhere between Terminator 2 and an avant-garde shampoo ad — is more distracting than intimidating. Also, while the film mostly stands on its own, Marvel can't resist teasing future conflicts and characters, and the film occasionally feels like it's winking at sequels we haven't asked for yet. The verdict Fantastic Four: First Steps isn't just Marvel's best reboot in years — it's a reminder that superhero movies can be silly, heartfelt, and self-contained. It's not perfect, and it's not trying to be. But after years of convoluted cinematic calculus, watching a group of mismatched heroes argue in a pastel kitchen while the world teeters on the brink feels oddly refreshing. The film lives up to its subtitle: this is a genuine first step forward. And for Marvel, that's a giant leap back toward what made it great.
