Bold and earnest, with terrific chemistry: Here's what critics are saying about 'The Fantastic Four: First Steps'

Early reviews for The Fantastic Four: First Steps are in: It’s a reboot worth watching.

Set in a retro-futuristic, midcentury America, The Fantastic Four: First Steps follows Marvel’s First Family — Mister Fantastic (Pedro Pascal), Invisible Woman (Vanessa Kirby), Human Torch (Joseph Quinn) and The Thing (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) — as they work to protect Earth from a planet-consuming space god named Galactus (Ralph Ineson) and his herald, Silver Surfer (Julia Garner).

Following its release on Friday, the film’s commercial success is already apparent. Marvel’s latest superhero flick has earned a whopping $24.4 million in previews, surpassing Superman’s $22.5 million previews high from earlier this month. In addition to nabbing the best preview result of the year so far, First Steps is projected to make between $100 million and $110 million in its opening weekend, according to Variety.

The film has already received better reviews than its 20-year-old predecessor. The Los Angeles Times criticized 2005’s Fantastic Four for its lack of “a strong, dramatic through-line,” while Entertainment Weekly called it a “clumsy, cheesy and chintzy adaptation” with special effects that look “dated the moment you see them.” Roger Ebert gave the original film a single star rating, calling it “in short, underwhelming.”

Here’s a roundup of some of the early reviews for The Fantastic Four: First Steps:

A possible cure for ‘superhero exhaustion’

Variety says that while director Matt Shakman gives “the Fantastic Four sufficient time to establish their personalities,” the film, at times, resembles “a live-action take on ‘The Jetsons.’” Still, First Steps, per the outlet, “feels like a fresh start” and could be “just what it takes to win back audiences suffering from superhero exhaustion.”

‘A smooth-enough ride that can even be periodically thrilling’

The New York Times commends the film for being “Marvel’s most earnest attempt at something daring in years, bumpy as it may be,” while also wishing for a more fleshed-out backstory that doesn’t rely on “the pre-existing groundwork of a previous movie.” First Steps’ “premium cast” and “the polish of this retro universe” take viewers on “a smooth-enough ride that can even be periodically thrilling,” the Times writes, despite being “a family drama disguising itself as a superhero film.”

‘A worthy exercise in creating something that doesn’t feel nostalgic for an era’

The Los Angeles Times praises the film for bypassing character origin stories while still “underlining that these are settled-down grown-ups secure in their abilities to lengthen, disappear, ignite and clobber.”

With “emotionally credible performances” from its stars and a vibrant world for them to play in, the publication says the reboot is “a worthy exercise in creating something that doesn’t feel nostalgic for an era — it feels of an era.”

‘The actors are so terrific and their chemistry so palpable…’

A standout feature of First Steps is the chemistry between the cast, as the Hollywood Reporter writes, “The actors are so terrific and their chemistry so palpable that the hangout scenes in their fabulous Baxter Building penthouse — with a domestic droid that’s like Rosie the Robot from The Jetsons meets Number 5 from John Badham’s Short Circuit — are some of the movie’s most appealing interludes.”

The publication also praises screenwriters Josh Friedman, Eric Pearson, Jeff Kaplan and Ian Springer for crafting a superhero quartet that is “also a family, struggling like most of us to handle the most daunting responsibilities life throws our way.”

The ‘cosmic-level escapism we desperately need right now’

NPR lauds the film’s embrace of the “soaring appeal of superhero cinema,” as well as its commitment to “exactly the kind of cosmic-level escapism we desperately need right now.” First Steps, with its “retina sizzling” and “retro-futurist visuals,” is intentionally — and expertly — ungrounded, leaving “groundedness sulking glumly on the ground where it belongs.”

A ‘solid, intelligent, occasionally inspired comic book movie’

The film’s “dazzling setting,” with its ability to “evoke a jumbled-up amalgamation of things we’ve seen and things we’ve only dreamed of,” is reason enough to watch it, according to RogerEbert.com. On top of its top-tier look, the outlet also commends First Steps for being “a solid, intelligent, occasionally inspired comic book movie” that manages to live up to audience expectations, thanks to its “grounded” performances and thoughtful production design.