A fairly strong beginning is thrown off course by an odd middle-section, and then finally completely derailed by a weak climax. Early on in the film, we‘re introduced to a nuanced Reed Richards. His friendship with Ben Grimm continues to move the plot along, and then unfortunately Ben is suddenly dropped out of the film until they need to shoehorn him back into the plot. There’s some decent interaction between Richards, Sue Storm, Johnny Storm and Von Doom, but there’s also something majorly lacking. Sue and Johnny never come off as siblings, Reed and Sue’s flirting doesn’t really go anywhere and Johnny and Ben have none of the playful banter expected from these two characters. Even Reed and Von Doom’s “frenemy” relationship lacks any intensity. Once the team gets their powers, the film takes an odd turn and skips ahead past what should be the most interesting part of the movie. The climax comes in out of nowhere, and the dynamic of a family coming together as a team is practically non-existent. And although Dr. Doom showed promise early on, the filmmakers once again create a lackluster version of one of Marvel Comics’ greatest villains. The CGI tends to be pretty weak, which is obvious during the final action sequence.
** out of *****