Matt Shakman Archives | Deep Focus Review Movie Reviews, Essays, and Analysis Fri, 25 Jul 2025 16:07:36 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.8.2 https://www.deepfocusreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/cropped-DFR-Favicon-5-32x32.png Matt Shakman Archives | Deep Focus Review 32 32 The Fantastic Four: First Steps https://www.deepfocusreview.com/reviews/the-fantastic-four-first-steps/ https://www.deepfocusreview.com/reviews/the-fantastic-four-first-steps/#respond Thu, 24 Jul 2025 18:24:40 +0000 https://www.deepfocusreview.com/?post_type=reviews&p=29224 Listen to the audio version of this review. The Fantastic Four: First Steps comes as close to greatness as MCU movies get. Accented by a dazzling retro-futurist style and strong characters played by a pitch-perfect cast, it adheres to the save-the-world formula found in many superhero movies: Planet Earth faces an impossible threat from outer space, and only the titular heroes can save us. However, instead of the flat digital environments and lack of distinct visual flair found in most movies of this ilk, there’s a wonderful alternate reality for audiences to explore, set in a version of the 1960s replete with spaceships, robots, and flying cars. The movie instills an instant desire to investigate this familiar yet unique world, something most MCU movies cannot claim. Rather than feeling like The Fantastic Four is more of the same, it feels alive and new—an inspired variation on a theme that, admittedly, has already been tackled onscreen but to subpar effect. With a terrific cast who embody their iconic characters and a visual energy that presents a refreshing alternative to the Marvel house style, The Fantastic Four is not only immediately engaging but also one of the MCU’s most satisfying offerings yet. […]

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