Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer Review

by Homer Yen (homer_yen AT yahoo DOT com)
June 23rd, 2007
Not Very "Fantastic 4"
by Homer Yen
(c) 2007

Ok, so I'm thinking that the Pixar film, "The
Incredibles" is a grand knock-off of the
Fantastic 4. In both cases, there's someone who
can travel very fast, someone who's incredibly
strong, someone who can turn invisible and create
forcefields, and someone who can bend in all
sorts of directions. But, at least those cartoon
superheroes can pony up a great adventure. I
wasn't enamored with the first "Fantastic 4".
And, my appreciation for this second installment
is tepid at best.

The new "Fantastic Four" reunites the quartet of astronauts-turned-mutant-superheroes. Mr.
Fantastic (Ioan Gruffudd) can assume
two-dimensional shapes, Sue Storm (Jessica Alba)
can turn invisible and conjure up energy fields,
The Thing (Michael Chiklis) has the appearance of
hardened clay but the hardness of granite, and
The Human Torch (Chris Evans) would come in handy
at the international Sterno convention. This
time, the comic-book heroes join forces with
archenemy Dr. Doom (Julian McMahon) to solve the
problem of the Silver Surfer, an intergalactic
alien who is leading a planet-destroying entity
to Earth.

It sounds way more exciting than it really is.
Truthfully, the confrontation with the Silver
Surfer seemed less exciting than they hype
surrounding the long-overdue marriage of Mr.
Fantastic and the Invisible Woman. There is a
very down-to-Earth feel about that subplot. The
Thing is wondering which China patterns were
chosen. The Human Torch wants a D&G tux, but
would absolutely hate it if some emergency
occurred and he would have to turn into flame
(which would not mix well with a high-end tux).
The Invisible Woman wonders how many ceremonies
will be postponed due to world calamity and
whether superheroes can raise a family beyond the
reach of the paparazzi. Oddly, no one is really
sure what's going on in Mr. Fantastic's mind.
Some heroes yearn for adventure. Some heroes
want the girl. This one wants a science
fellowship. I'm puzzled. There is a nice
sequence when he is cajoled by Torch to go out to
a club for a pseudo-bachelor party. That power
to become stretchy and two-dimensional makes him
quite the dancer! However, without some kind of
passion behind the person, then what's the point?

The action is ok. To earn the PG rating to
attract more family-oriented crowds, the film
seemed toned down. There is one nicely conceived
scene when all of the powers of the Fantastic 4
unite, and some serious clobbering-time finally
occurs. And, there's a good rescue sequence
along the River Thames in London as all of them
utilize their individual powers for the common
good. One of the things that I've always liked
was their sense of teamwork and camaraderie. I
like the message that you don't have to be good
at everything. Instead, be good at what you are
good at and join forces with others to accomplish
your goals. However, the message falls on deaf
ears if the messenger doesn't create impact in
its delivery. Like Mr. Fantastic, this sequel is
pretty thin.

Grade: C

S: 1 out of 3
L: 0 out of 3
V: 1 out of 3

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