2020-2029, Film Review

The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025)

Posted on July 26, 2025August 19, 2025 by Martin: Through the Silver Screen

The Fantastic Four: First Steps – Film Review

Cast: Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Joseph Quinn, Julia Garner, Natasha Lyonne, Paul Walter Hauser, Ralph Ineson

Director: Matt Shakman

Synopsis: On a retro-futuristic parallel Earth, the Fantastic Four must defend the world against the sinister planet-eating threat known as Galactus…

Review: In such a golden age for superhero storytelling as the one we’re currently experiencing, we have seen all manner of comic book characters successfully adapted for both the big and small screens, from the massive ensemble team-up films to the most obscure characters, who have since become household names. Yet despite numerous attempts, the Fantastic Four has never achieved such success. We have seen the fun but flawed movies of the noughties to the unmitigated disaster that was Fant4stic. You would have been forgiven for thinking that someone had placed a curse on Marvel’s First Family, that they would never get an adaptation that would do them justice. After having done such wonderful work with the first (and you could make the argument for the best) TV show in WandaVision, enter Matt Shakman to well and truly ~~break~~ clobber that curse.

In a futuristic parallel world separate from the main Marvel timeline (Earth-828 to be exact) filled with advanced technology like flying cars and cool personal robot companions like H.E.R.B.I.E (an adorable scene-stealer), we learn through a series of newsreels it has been four years since our titular heroes blasted off into space on a mission where they were exposed to cosmic rays, which granted each of them superhuman powers. The supersmart Reed Richards (Pascal), who can stretch any part of his body, his brilliant wife Sue (Kirby) who can create force fields and turn invisible, Reed’s loyal best friend Ben Grimm (Moss-Bachrach) whose skin has been transformed into orange rock that grants him superstrength and durability. Last but certainly by no means least, Sue’s hot-headed brother Johnny (Quinn) can control fire and fly.

They are the planet’s sole protectors, and through their heroism, they have become celebrities whose ingenuity has enabled advances in technology and brought stability and peace to the world. With Reed and Sue preparing for the life-changing milestone that is parenthood, the four of them must deal with the arrival of the Herald, the Silver Surfer (Garner) who tells them their planet is “marked for death” with the impending arrival of the planet-eater Galactus (Ineson).

After a Phase Five that had some high points and arguably the lowest of the lows for the franchise (looking at you Quantumania), it makes sense to begin Phase Six with something of a reset and to establish Marvel’s first family in their own universe before their world collides with the main timeline as we know it. The script by Josh Friedman, Jeff Kaplan, Eric Pearson and Ian Springer keeps things focused squarely on the quartet and their dynamic, with no chance of any other superhero crashing into this world. There will be plenty of time for that in future Phase Six films. Having seen the origin story done before in the Fox era films, the decision to quickly bypass this allows the film time to explore Reed and Sue’s loving relationship, the camaraderie/playful banter between Johnny and Ben, and indeed, the togetherness and warm family embrace between the entire team is sincere and genuine.

With such pitch-perfect chemistry between the team, it’s a credit to the casting director that they absolutely nailed each casting choice (hurrah that the Oscars will at long last be giving these people their dues in next year’s ceremony). Pascal, continuing his bid for cinematic domination, expertly balances Reed’s intelligence and scientific nous while preparing for the enhanced responsibility of becoming a father. Moss-Bachrach’s Ben, despite his hard-as-rock exterior, comes off as very kind and gentle, particularly when demonstrating his strength to a group of schoolchildren. Quinn as Johnny exudes charm and charisma in flaming abundance. However, the MVP of the team is unquestionably Kirby’s Sue. A woman balancing impending motherhood, a heroic feat of endurance in itself, but all while leading diplomatic efforts on the international stage. This, combined with the true power she possesses, means she is a force to be reckoned with.

Speaking of forces to be reckoned with, while she doesn’t get a vast amount of screentime, the Silver Surfer remains a mysterious presence that Johnny cannot help himself be drawn to. Perhaps in this alternate universe, flames are attracted to metal, or beings with metallic skin? The Surfer, or Shalla-Bal to give her name, gives the team plenty to worry about. Yet, it is the gargantuan cosmic entity Galactus who poses an even greater threat. 2007’s Rise of the Silver Surfer reduced him to a cosmic cloud that feasts on planets. This iteration very much retains his desire to feast on worlds, but through an effective combination of practical costumes, CGI and Ineson’s imposing voice, the menacing factor is turned to the maximum and does justice to a fan favourite.

Having worked wonders with the MCU’s first (and arguably best) TV show, WandaVision, Shakman brings that quirky vision to this universe through some brilliant worldbuilding. The sets of this alternative 1960s New York feel lived-in, and the technological advancements on display are so wonderfully realised, it is almost enough to make you green with envy that such a world doesn’t actually exist. With another fantastic score by Michael Giacchino (seriously, does this man ever miss?) Marvel’s first family have taken their first steps into the MCU, and at long last, have been given their well-deserved moment in the spotlight. Now, all roads lead to Doomsday. Set your countdown clocks accordingly.

With pitch-perfect chemistry between its leads and the perfect retro-futuristic setting to introduce them in, Marvel’s first family’s foray into the wider MCU is a roaring and flaming success!

2020-2029, Film Review

Inside Out 2 (2024)

Posted on June 14, 2024July 16, 2024 by Martin: Through the Silver Screen

Inside Out 2 – Film Review

Cast: Amy Poehler, Phyllis Smith, Lewis Black, Tony Hale, Liza Lapira, Maya Hawke, Ayo Edebiri, Adèle Exarchopoulos, Paul Walter Hauser, Kensington Tallman, Diane Lane, Kyle MacLachlan

Director: Kelsey Mann

Synopsis: As she celebrates her 13th birthday, the world inside Riley’s mind grows complicated when new emotions enter the fray…

Review: It is fitting for a studio which has a small group of creative leaders that form its Brain Trust, that over the course of its 30+ year history, Pixar has come up with some utterly ingenious and wonderfully creative concepts. Storytelling works masterfully on two levels to entertain younger audiences and massively pull on the heartstrings of older viewers with weighty and emotionally powerful themes. There’s no shortage of films in its collection to choose from which fulfil these criteria, but Inside Out is a strong contender for the studio at its brilliant best. A mixture of fear and apprehension may have risen when it was confirmed a sequel was in development. However, those fears can be put aside for Pixar has made a worthy companion to its predecessor.

One year has passed since the events of the first film, and Riley (now voiced by Kensington Tallman) has celebrated her 13^th birthday and is about to start high school. Her existing emotions, Joy (Poehler), Sadness (Smith), Anger (Black), Fear (Hale) and Disgust (Lapira) have worked collaboratively on a new core component of her mind which establishes memories and feelings which make up Riley’s personality. However, as Riley sets off on an exciting summer venture to win a place on her school’s ice hockey team, she begins to go through puberty. As a result, a range of new emotions arrives at headquarters: Anxiety (Hawke), Envy (Edibiri), Ennui (Exarchopoulos) and Embarrassment (Hauser). The new emotions immediately take over the console upon arrival and run amok, leaving her childhood emotions in a quandary as to how they can prevent the new emotions from causing complete and total chaos inside Riley’s mind.

The word ‘genius’ is thrown around quite a bit in modern discourse, but if ever there was an apt descriptor of the premise of Inside Out, it would be exactly that. An ingenious piece of storytelling to picture what goes on in the endless complexities that make up the human brain, and the emotions we feel as we grow up and experience exciting but also nerve-wracking new life events and experiences. Of all the big new experiences that life throws at us, there is perhaps none bigger than puberty. An exciting but also scary time where our emotions can run amok as our bodies change and returning writer Meg LeFauve and Dave Holstein’s screenplay builds on the wonderfully inventive world created by Pete Docter as how emotions develop and become increasingly complex as we get older and the perils of growing up, making this very much the spiritual sister to Turning Red, minus the red pandas, of course.

The screenplay, from a story by LeFauve and director Mann, cleverly utilises its predecessor’s ingenious train of thought and brilliant imagination to depict and visualise not only the mind and how it develops as we progress from childhood into adolescence. Picking up exactly where that train of thought left off, though instead of hilarious jokes about abstract thought, the film cleverly depicts concepts of the mind, only this time as brainstorms and one of the most effective weapons a teenager has at their disposal to navigate everything life has to throw at them, sarcasm. Because, well as anyone who has been a teenager and gone through puberty will know, it’s a tricky time when emotions are running rampant.

Speaking of those emotions, while all the returning emotions are once again delightful, the majority of them are relegated to bit-part roles. Though as she did in the first film, Poehler shines the brightest as Joy. With such endless positivity and happiness, it is impossible to not love her even in the face of trying circumstances, as the new emotions barge in and take control of Headquarters. Exarchopoulos is perfectly blasé and deadpan as Ennui while Edibiri is delightful as the small but very excitable Envy. However, the star of the show is unquestionably Maya Hawke as Anxiety. Those teenage years are a period in which anxiety can often go into overdrive, particularly in social situations. Hawke manifests this perfectly, as despite the best of intentions, she takes control of HQ and things quickly spiral out of control in Riley’s mind all while filling her with thoughts of apprehension that she may not have what it takes to fulfil her dreams of success when it comes to ice hockey. Anyone who has had self-doubt or anxiety about anything thing in their life can probably relate.

It may lack the emotional gut punch of its predecessor, with no moment that will leave audiences sobbing or put them through a mini existential crisis. Yet, it retains that wonderful inventiveness and humour which made the first film one of the studio’s most revered films in its distinguished filmography. Pixar might have had some wobbles in recent years, but its creative spark remains as strong as ever.

Retaining the ingenuity of its predecessor, Pixar has once again crafted another wonderfully imaginative sequel exploring the heightened emotions and perils of those turbulent teenage years.

2020-2029, Film Review

Da 5 Bloods (2020)

Posted on July 7, 2020July 7, 2020 by Martin: Through the Silver Screen

Da 5 Bloods – Film Review

Cast: Delroy Lindo, Jonathan Majors, Clarke Peters, Norm Lewis, Isiah Whitlock Jr, Mélanie Thierry, Paul Walter Hauser, Jasper Pääkkönen
Jean Reno, Chadwick Boseman

Director: Spike Lee

Synopsis: Four Vietnam War veterans return to the country in search of the remains of their fallen squad leader and seek to obtain the stash of gold that the soldiers hid during the war…

Review: Cast your mind back to 2017, to the events of Charlottesville, USA. The world watched in horror, as it was given a brutal reminder of the sheer ugliness of the deeply entrenched racism still rampant in American society. A year or so after those ugly events, Spike Lee gave the world BlacKkKlansman, a film focusing on a true story about one man’s battle with rampant racism in one small town in America, before putting that into the wider context of Charlottesville and the racism that has been entrenched into American society for generations. Two years later after his last, and extremely thought-provoking joint, Lee is once again channelling his fury into another powerful, and in the wake of the appalling brutality that black communities in the US still face at the hands of law enforcement, extremely timely piece of film-making.

This new joint from the fiercely vocal director, and staunch Trump critic, once again provides a stark reminder of the brutality that Black people have, and continue to face in today’s society, with the war in Vietnam serving as the backdrop. Four African-American Vietnam War veterans: Paul (Lindo), Eddie (Lewis), Melvin (Whitlock Jr) and Otis (Peters) reunite for a deeply personal mission. They’ve returned the country, along with Paul’s son David (Majors), in search of the remains of their fallen squad leader Norm (Boseman) so that he can be brought home and properly commemorated. Simultaneously, they’ve returned to recapture the stash of buried gold that their unit was protecting during the war.

In a similar manner to what he did with BlacKkKlansman, Lee puts the events of the war, the experiences of these four veterans, and its unpopularity back in the USA into a wider context, that of a society that has been crippled with racism for generations. The battle that veterans, such as these four men, experienced in Vietnam may have ended many years ago. Yet for all their years of service, they continue to find themselves in an ongoing battle for equality and an end to a fundamentally racist system that has disproportionately affected the black community, for generations. A fundamental injustice that given rise to the Black Lives Matter movement, a movement whose voice and message, especially in the wake of the appalling murder of black people by police departments across the country, has taken hold not just in America, but across the world.

Each and every one of these actors turn in exceptional performances. The chemistry between the four veterans really shines through, they have certainly have been through hell and back together, which solidified the bonds that they have as brothers-in-arms. However, as the five them set off on their mission, tensions between them begin to mount over various subjects, tensions which threaten to tear their mission, and the bonds built between they have built as soldiers, apart. Lee is certainly a man who isn’t afraid to say what he thinks, and with this film that’s certainly applicable to what these soldiers are experiencing, but this is a joint that is about so much more than just the Vietnam War.

The performance that shines brightest though is by far and away, is Delroy Lindo as Paul. His fierce pro Trump views certainly don’t sit well with the rest of his fellow veterans, and that by consequence, will likely be the case with the audience too. While war does have long lasting consequences, for any soldier, it’s an experience that leaves its mark. This is certainly true for all the Bloods, but it’s especially applicable for Paul. With every word he utters, it’s crystal clear that the effects of the Vietnam War, and the years that have followed, have inflicted deep emotional turmoil upon him. Turmoil that makes you sympathise with him, as it has fundamentally changed him forever, resulting in a very fractured relationship with his son.

Chadwick Boseman might have garnered worldwide fame for his work in bringing Marvel’s Black Panther to life. However, this performance as the leader of this band of brothers, is a subdued, but emphatic display of his abilities as an actor, and the impact of what he brings to the film cannot be overstated. While Lee employs some slick editing, expertly combining present day with flashbacks to the fighting occurring in Vietnam. Though it is for the most part, slickly edited together, it does feel a tad overlong in places, and could have potentially shaved ten to fifteen minutes off its running time. Nevertheless, that does not minimise the film’s impact, as it shows how the battle continues for veterans such as these men, long after they have returned from the war. Their fight against the sheer ugliness of a society entrenched in systemic racism has continued in the decades that followed.

Given the appalling brutality that remains an ugly stain on American society, one can hope that the impact of the Black Lives Matter movement, can bring seismic, and much needed, needed change to end a society that is systemically rigged against veterans like the titular Bloods, and the black community as a whole. Though it is hard to ignore the current President and his deliberate attempts to stoke that racial division, that has enabled voices such as Spike Lee and the Black Lives Matter movement to emerge and use their platforms, to fight those fires of division and to spread these pivotal messages, messages that are crucially resonating with people across the world.