The Fantastic Four (2015) Trailer Review

Here we go, the trailer for Josh Trank and Fox’ Fantastic Four is finally out. Today I’m trying something new, trying to give my thoughts about the trailer – saying what it shows, but also giving my opinion. Remember how I liked the Ant-Man trailer? I’m going to give similar pros/cons for this one. So without further ado….

Now this is a teaser trailer, so keep that in mind. But the first thing that comes to mind when watching it, is how similar the feel of the trailer – the sound – the look – is to Interstellar. Now, trailers tend to copy off of something – and they’ve definitely gone for a Nolan-feel. But a property like the Fantastic Four should be able to stand on its own with a trailer – without going full-Nolan.

Now, let’s take a few screenshots and make notes:

Here at 0:16 it says ‘Grimm Salvage’. This might be an auto-repair shop, but it’s definitely a place connected to Ben Grimm – The Thing. Jamie Bell, of course plays The Thing. Prior to this shot we have some shots that have no meaning, simply shots of NYC and of a mountain. Following the Grimm Salvage-thing you have a couple of shots that could’ve easily been from Interstellar (car on the dirt road) and Super 8 (the shot with the kid w/glasses).

30 Seconds into the trailer we finally get to see something really important. We see the team preparing for some kind of a journey, presumably prior to gaining powers, followed by a group of men discussing some idea – perhaps given by Reed.

Then we get to see our heroes for the first time. Reed Richards, played by Miles Teller, looks starstruck as he looks at work being made at a facility. Sue Storm, played by Kate Mara, looks focused – in a shot that resembles any kind of spy-thriller. Ben Grimm is playing baseball – which is interesting, because I do believe he was talented at sports in the comics before becoming The Thing. Johnny Storm, played by Michael B. Jordan, looks to be fixing a car – though it doesn’t look like being in an auto-repair shop, at least not an old-fashioned one.

Note that there are 6 (five in the shot above, but look closely around the minute mark) people entering the machine/spaceship/thing – the fifth one possibly being Toby Kebbell’s Domashev. Here it is also revealed that the narrator is Reg E. Cathey, who plays Dr. Franklin Storm.

Following these shots, it looks like the machine is destroyed while they’re in it – and we see one character – maybe Kebbell – on the floor. A couple of quick shots reveal The Thing during his transformation.

Here we finally see Domashev as Doom, it seems. A couple of shots directly preceding and following it show Sue crying while holding Johnny – and people showing off their newfound powers.

Here we have our heroes, they look to be fully suited up. Notice the plane in the middle-beam. I wonder if this is them, or Doom, trying to reverse the effects of what-happened-to-them – trying to recreate the power that manipulated them.

What do we get from this trailer? These 4 kids, along with 2 other people, enter a machine – but everything goes terribly wrong. Mistakes happen, and their genetics have been altered. We had a couple of shots that indicated them being terrified, which does not shock anyone.

This is a very realistic take, the world is different – and it isn’t as colourful as the comic book world these characters once inhabited. I am much more excited about this film than I once was – though I strongly dislike the way some shots and musical scores seemed to be nothing more than a rip off of films like Interstellar.

The film premieres in August 2015, and I bet you’ll go see this one.

– I’m Jeffrey Rex.