It’s been hard to get a grip on The Fantastic Four over the last few months. Its been dogged by rumors and hearsay surrounding Josh Trank and its troubled production. Now we’re just a few weeks away from the film actually being released, and it’s a relief that we’ll finally be able to judge it by what we see on screen. By the sound of things, the Fantastic quartet’s battle with Doctor Doom is going to be insane.
Don’t just take my word for it though. This declaration has come from none-other than The Fantastic Four’s director himself, Josh Trank. The 31-year-old filmmaker, who got his shot at the blockbuster after his sterling work on 2012’s low-budget Chronicle, spoke to Entertainment Weekly about what we can expect when Mister Fantastic, Human Torch, Invisible Woman, and The Thing go up against Doctor Doom. Trank explained:
The audience should expect an epic, massive, huge, multipower slugfest. This movie is big. A lot of stakes.
There’s plenty of reasons to believe that The Fantastic Four could be the surprise superhero flick of the summer. Trank’s work on Chronicle was exemplary, while writer/producer Simon Kinberg has proven himself a stalwart of the genre thanks to his work on the X-Men franchise.
Meanwhile, the pair have also assembled themselves a truly world-class cast. Miles Teller is one of the most promising young leading male actors in American cinema because of his performances in Whiplash and The Spectacular Now. In fact, one of the only people who could rival him for that crown is Michael B. Jordan, who also appears in The Fantastic Four.
It doesn’t stop there, though, because both Kate Mara and Jamie Bell have showcased just how eclectic yet magnetic they can be over the better part of the last decade with their various roles. Personally, the real reason why I’m excited for The Fantastic Four is the chance to see Toby Kebbell as Doctor Doom. Kebbell has a raw, complex intensity that should mean that he steals the show as the villain. As long as he’s given the room to shine that is.
Of course, there has also been a wide array of naysayers who have taken umbrage with the fact that The Fantastic Four deviates from its source material. There have also been rumors that Trank didn’t adjust well to directing such a huge film and had to be replaced by Matthew Vaughn for some bigger scenes and reshoots. All of this sounds like it's far off the mark, though, and I’m relived that on August 7 we’ll be able to judge for ourselves whether Trank excelled with The Fantastic Four.
