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Fantastic Four

Play trailer 1:11 Poster for Fantastic Four PG-13 Released Jul 8, 2005 1h 46m Action Adventure Fantasy Play Trailer Watchlist
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27% Tomatometer 212 Reviews 45% Popcornmeter 250,000+ Ratings
Scientist Reed Richards (Ioan Gruffudd) persuades his arrogant former classmate, Victor von Doom (Julian McMahon), to fund his experiments with cosmic energy. On von Doom's space station, the crew -- including astronaut Ben Grimm (Michael Chiklis), researcher Sue Storm (Jessica Alba) and pilot Johnny Storm (Chris Evans) -- are exposed to a mysterious cosmic storm that bestows super powers upon them. As they cope with their transformations, von Doom vows his revenge.
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Fantastic Four

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Critics Consensus

Marred by goofy attempts at wit, subpar acting, and bland storytelling, Fantastic Four is a mediocre attempt to bring Marvel's oldest hero team to the big screen.

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Critics Reviews

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J. R. Jones Chicago Reader Marvel Comics continues to empty out its stable of superheroes with this entertaining tale. Apr 25, 2007 Full Review Mark Salisbury Time Out Fantastic it most certainly ain't. Jun 24, 2006 Full Review Keith Phipps AV Club A garish mediocrity. Sep 26, 2005 Full Review Matt Neal Movies Ate My Life Not as bad as you remember, thanks to some spirited performances, strong casting, a couple of cool sequences, and a vibe of campy fun. Rated: 3/5 Nov 3, 2021 Full Review Mike Massie Gone With The Twins Though definitely not one of the best comic book concepts to end up on film, it still has heart and quite a bit of entertainment value. Rated: 7/10 Sep 29, 2020 Full Review Danielle Solzman Solzy at the Movies Fox was never able to give the Fantastic Four the justice they deserve. Rated: 2.5/5 Jul 8, 2020 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Alex B Idk anything abt the fantastic four the only reason why I watch this is cause of the new one coming out this year (2025)but for this movie being 20 years old It was a good movie in my opinion Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 07/12/25 Full Review Audience Member It’s been 20 years now This was the first big screen adaptation of the beloved 1960s comic book series of the same name A previous version by Roger Corman was released but it’s not highly regarded as far as quality Here 20th Century Fox and director Tim Story have the budget for a big summer blockbuster featuring Mr. Fantastic, Invisible Woman, The Thing, and The Human Torch A pretty colorful cast consists of Ioan Gruffud, Jessica Alba, Michael Chiklis, Chris Evans, and the late Julian McMahon Much like the comics it focuses on four people; scientist Dr. Reed Richards, his astronaut buddy Benjamin Grimm, Susan Storm previously Reed’s girlfriend, and her reckless hotshot brother Johnny Reed proposes to billionaire tycoon Victor von Doom to go on a space expedition to find curable diseases for humankind But during the trek they are accidentally hit by cosmic rays and their DNA structures are changed in fantastic ways; Reed can stretch any part of his body, Sue can become invisible and create force fields, Johnny can light himself on fire and fly, and Ben even though he has super human strength is a giant rock looking monster Turns out Victor was also affected by the cosmic blast making his skin stronger than titanium/harder than diamonds and having him control electrical currents Reed and the rest of them attempt to reverse the effects particularly Ben who wants to be normal again but the fame and attention they get from the public seems to overwhelm them Each of them also constantly fights with each other having issues like a real family unit having that palpable dysfunction It’s only a matter of time before Victor becomes the villainous Doctor Doom willing to wipe out the Fantastic Four for taking away his success, his company, and settling the rivalry between him and Ben It’s interesting each of their powers match their distinct personalities; Reed always reaches for the stars, Sue wants to be seen and heard, Ben is hard as rocks, and Johnny acts like a hothead These films are way more fun and colorful than the dreaded 2015 reboot, I really wanted a 3rd film but it’s a shame Story and company never got around to it I didn't even bother with watching the Corman version (on a side note both Fox and Marvel tried to wrestle away the rights just to get this one made) This movie has some fun action scenes mainly the climax, very lighthearted, has a good score by John Ottman, and I didn’t mind the casting, it’s actually impossible to completely fault the players embodying these characters McMahon actually did a good job playing this villain going from slick, suave to cold, ruthlessly intelligent plus that he has a history with Reed creating a love triangle between them and Sue Even Chiklis’ makeup as The Thing looked pretty convincing being all prosthetics plus as Ben he finds solace in a woman named Alicia Masters A pretty fun soundtrack to boot as well There’s lots of Easter eggs for fans hidden throughout too Susan Storm by Alba looks great in that outfit but more importantly she is a more active character than she ever was in the comics, she was always regulated to her feminine ways being the least fleshed out and this movie handles the family dynamic enough with good character interplay Ok not all the effects are perfect and there's some corniness here and there, not to mention there’s barely any crime fighting like in the comics but it's less dark and bleak than the other versions The stakes are purely emotional which aligns perfectly with Jack Kirby’s original comic storylines Being different isn’t always a bad thing, if it’s not one of those times to feel good about being different it’s more if you don’t want it to be, what does someone look like who embraces their destiny?, does fate turn us into gods to refuse gifts?, what if we have powers for a reason, for some higher calling?, is it more important to think and never act?, sometimes in life there are no variables This definitely was a success as far as merchandise and licensing deals, heck the video game is still very good being it expands on the movie itself This lead to a sequel in 2007 but underperformed with no more follow ups At least with Evans’ Johnny Storm they were able to rectify a few things in ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ since like many characters of Fox comic book movies their arcs didn’t wrap up properly It’s far from a bad movie even after all this time since it had joy and charm to it and because it lead to several more attempts to bring the comic to life even rebooting the comics themselves being contemporary Still, with the Disney/FOX merger it looks like they can perfect this comic book series along with the X-Men and I'm anxious to see how they do it in the MCU today Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 07/08/25 Full Review YAGO M Filme ruim pra caramba 3/10 Rated 1 out of 5 stars 07/07/25 Full Review Audience Member Flame On! Favorite Phrase! Rated 4 out of 5 stars 07/07/25 Full Review RJThePro T This movie felt like it was an hour long. Nothing happened in it. The characters basically did three things, that’s not enough in any movie. This movie did have some funny moments, but they weren’t anything special. All of the cast was forgettable except for The Thing, played by Michael Chiklis. There were also some minor plot holes and you immediately knew who the bad guy was. All in all, only watch this movie if you love cringy early century movies or are an insane Marvel fan. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 07/07/25 Full Review Jon T RIP Julian McMahon Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/05/25 Full Review Read all reviews
Fantastic Four

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Movie Info

Synopsis Scientist Reed Richards (Ioan Gruffudd) persuades his arrogant former classmate, Victor von Doom (Julian McMahon), to fund his experiments with cosmic energy. On von Doom's space station, the crew -- including astronaut Ben Grimm (Michael Chiklis), researcher Sue Storm (Jessica Alba) and pilot Johnny Storm (Chris Evans) -- are exposed to a mysterious cosmic storm that bestows super powers upon them. As they cope with their transformations, von Doom vows his revenge.
Director
Tim Story
Creator
Stan Lee
Producer
Chris Columbus, Avi Arad
Screenwriter
Mark Frost
Distributor
20th Century Fox
Production Co
20th Century Fox, Marvel Enterprises, 1492 Pictures
Rating
PG-13 (Suggestive Content|Sequences of Intense Action)
Genre
Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jul 8, 2005, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Jan 26, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$154.7M
Runtime
1h 46m
Sound Mix
Surround, Dolby SRD, DTS, SDDS
Aspect Ratio
Scope (2.35:1)
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