Fantastic Four: A plain and hasty reboot

There’s nothing much fantastic about this year’s reboot of Stan Lee’s first ever super-hero team.

My expectations could probably have been high because I experienced the same feeling I got from watching 'High School Musical' after watching this reboot - bleak and unaffected.

A line-up of considerably younger cast, 2015’s Fantastic Four it feels like they are trying too hard to lure the audience to re-envision the birth of this amazing quartet, minus the improvement of any of those characters.

Ever since their original 1961 introduction, Marvel's Fantastic Four have been portrayed as somewhat a dysfunctional, yet loving family. And I thank the director for keeping this element.

There were some hits and solid moments and then there were a lot of rushing to the point and speedy climax and in between were a series of slow, jam-packed with scientific reviews and tech-y facts that computer geeks would love.

31-year-old American film director and screenwriter, Joshua Benjamin Trank or Josh Trank is very well-known for his feature film Chronicle in 2012 and now Fantastic Four, the reboot.

With producer Simon Kinberg, famously known for his work with the X-men film franchise, together, created this new breath of the amazing quartet by giving a throwback. Way back when they were just kids.

Maintaining the original elements of the comic and with some modification of the 2005 adaptation, Fantastic Four kicks-off with a story of a science prodigy named Reed Richards. Together with his best friend, Ben Grimm, they invented a device which could teleport any organic form. However, their invention was not taken seriously.

Until when in their teens, at a science fair, both Reed played by Miles Teller and Ben played by Jamie Bell got discovered by Dr. Franklin Storm played by Reg. E Cathey and his adopted daughter, Susan Storm played by Kate Mara. The Storms too was looking for the final formula for the teleport device and has Reed and Ben to thank for, for unveiling the scientific mystery of making the teleportation machine functioning like it should.

The Storms then took Reed in to be part of the project group. With Susan who designed the suit for outer space and her younger brother, Johnny Storm, the biological son of Dr. Storm who is also a delinquent and a gear head and lastly, Victor Von Doom who is perpetually vengeful and angry with how the world turned out to be yet brilliant and smart, together they became a team whom painstakingly finished the teleport machine that functions perfectly.

The teleport machine which enables human and any organic forms to travel to another dimension brought Reed, Ben, Victor and Johnny to outer space and this was when an accident occurred while there were out there somewhere in the galaxy.

This was when this fantastic team lost their friend,Victor to the unknown galaxy. This too was when the rest of team gained their superpowers, including Susan.

Just like its original version, Fantastic Four comprised of Mister Fantastic alias Reed, the science genius who can stretch his body as long as he wants and in all sorts of shapes; the Invisible Woman alias Susan ‘Sue’ Storm who can render herself invisible and project powerful force fields; the Human Torch alias Johnny Storm can generate flames and fly; and then there is the intimidating and freaky, grumpy Thing alias Ben Grimm who possesses superhuman strength and endurance, thanks to his stone-like flesh.

Victor who they thought was killed during the accident, has revived himself from the galaxy as the evil villainous sovereign, Doctor Doom.

After travelling to another dimension and back, their lives irrevocably upended, the team (Reed, Sue, Jonny and Ben) must learn to harness their new abilities and work together to save Earth from a former friend turned enemy (Victor).

Cast: Miles Teller, Michael B. Jordan, Kate Mara, Jamie Bell

Director: Josh Trank

Written by: Simon Kinberg, Jack Kirby, Stan Lee, T.S. Nowlin, Jeremy Slater, Josh Trank

Watch the trailer here: