Vanessa Kirby and some guys in The Fantastic Four: First Steps

From its first seconds, when a delightfully retro title card appears on screen, The Fantastic Four: First Steps isn’t like other Marvels movies—it’s cool! But it actually IS cool, every frame of First Steps is packed with eye-popping artistic design, the score is immediately recognizable, from the very beginning First Steps announces its unique artistic identity within the MCU. And that it tells a good story? With compelling characters and thrilling circumstances? It’s just a good time at the movies, superheroes be damned! 

First Steps is very much a superhero movie, though, but the film, from director Matt Shakman, speeds through the origins of the “first family of Marvel”, quickly summarizing a fateful trip to space that ends with four friends and astronauts returning to Earth with superpowers. First Steps takes place in an alternate universe where the Fantastic Four are the only superheroes, and they’re fanatically beloved by the public. Reed Richards (Pedro Pascal), Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby), Johnny Storm (Joseph Quinn), and Ben Grimm (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) aren’t just superheroes, though, they’re also the leaders of the Future Foundation, forging global peace agreements and leading scientific discoveries.

The film drops us into not a fight but a personal moment between Reed and Sue, who are married. After years of trying, Sue is finally pregnant, and the couple are overjoyed but also nervous. Big-brained Reed “doesn’t dream”, he can only catastrophize, his impossible intellect only showing him visions of doom and failure. Sue, meanwhile, seems more grounded and centered, a new purpose outlined after she’s achieved so much in the world. Johnny and Ben are thrilled uncles-to-be, and everything seems copacetic until a shiny sexy lady on a surfboard shows up and announces the coming of “Galactus”, who means to consume Earth.

First Steps blazes by at a brisk two hours—including credits—but the story is not hard to follow at all. In fact, the script (from Josh Friedman, Eric Pearson, Jeff Kaplan & Ian Springer) seems designed to be friendly to newcomers. You REALLY do not need to know anything about Marvel, the Fantastic Four, or the MCU to follow along. It’s a breath of fresh air, frankly, and the confident, breezy storytelling allows the actors to shine in their roles, giving them plenty of material without overloading anyone with exposition.

The Fantastic Four are a really fun group, the actors’ chemistry is great, and they convincingly make up a family unit. Reed still carries guilt over how his space program impacted his family and friends, most especially Ben, who came back as a giant rock monster, and Johnny radiates big little brother energy, his frustration at being set aside by the “grownups” is palpable. Also, the battle sequences and central conflict are structured so that everyone contributes, each hero gets a meaningful moment to shine. 

But no one shines brighter than Sue Storm. Vanessa Kirby is simply outstanding as the Invisible Woman. Far from softly lit visages of motherhood, Sue is steely, pragmatic—ruthless, even—her motherhood transforming her heroism into a ferocious defensive mechanism that becomes genuinely frightening in scope. She’s brave and reassuring when she needs to be, but Sue comes out swinging more than once, literally and physically. Sue is the anchor the film needs, giving depth and gravitas to what could have been a fun little romp, turning First Steps into a treatise on the anxieties of parenthood. Similarly, Julia Garner gets a little dramatic heft as Shalla-Bal, the cursed herald of Galactus known as the Silver Surfer, who also faced a mother’s quandary and had to find a way out that protected her family. Matt Shakman, whose own mother passed away while he was making the film, turned First Steps into a paean to mothers that is sincerely moving.

But it’s still fun! The production design (from Kasra Farahani, with set decoration by Jille Azis) is simply outstanding. It looks like a live-action Jetsons, or like every nostalgic photo of an automat threw up on screen. This version of New York includes iconic mid-century architecture from around the world, bubble cars, and a monorail. The Fantastic Four’s robot companion, Herbie, is charmingly blocky and clunky, like a child’s toy from the 1980s, and there is a pleasing clicky-clacky quality to the retro-futuristic technology and design. Everything is beautiful big buttons and flashing lights, the world of First Steps looks old and new and delightful to touch. The film also sounds incredible, with a score from Michael Giacchino that is instantly iconic. First Steps doesn’t look or sound like any recent Marvel movie, imagine if they’d been giving their films such unique artistic design all along, and not just once a decade!

At heart, though, First Steps really is about a family, in a way that feels genuine and meaningful and not a tag line for a Corona commercial tie-in. No one hero is fighting for him or herself, they’re truly fighting for each other, and the film emphasizes the contributions of “thoughtful individuals” without seeming saccharine or trite. Much like Superman, First Steps leans into its goofy Silver Age roots but finds meaning in community and purpose in effort. With its inclusion of parental anxieties and tribute to mothers, the first family of Marvel finally has a film worthy of their legacy.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps will play exclusively in theaters from July 25, 2025.