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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Friday, July 8, 2005

'Fantastic' hopes

By Scott Bowles
USA Today

The Fantastic Four, clockwise from top left: the Human Touch, the Invisible woman, Mr. Fantastic and the Thing. Marvel's fantastic foursome takes to the big screen today.

20th Century Fox

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Since they formed a dysfunctional superhero family in 1961, the Fantastic Four have grappled with all forms of treachery and villains such as the power-hungry Dr. Doom, the bionic soldier Super-Skrull and the planetdevouring Galactus.

But they never faced the League of Nerds. Or its doomsday weapon: the Internet. Or an Oscar-winning animated film that beat the superheroes to the big screen.

Those foes arise today when "Fantastic Four" arrives in theaters amid weighty expectations. And although the world may not be at stake, Hollywood's comic-book universe will be watching how one of its most beloved titles fares on the big screen.

A lot is riding on the film. Distributor 20th Century Fox has committed to at least one sequel and has hopes for an "X-Men"-style franchise. More than 60 companies have merchandise tie-ins, producing everything from "Fantastic Four" video games to toothbrushes and beanbag chairs.

Many also see the film as a chance to invigorate a genre that has sputtered of late. Though comic-book sequels such as "Spider-Man" and "X-Men" have been hits and "Batman Begins" has done moderately well, new adaptations have struggled. "Catwoman" and "Elektra" were unmitigated flops. The $100 million "Constantine" opened to a strong $34 million but dropped 64 percent its second weekend.

The genre, says Rob Worley of comics2film.com, could use a hero — or four.

"People have been waiting for years for this movie to be done right," Worley says. "The comic book is so loved, I think fans just want something that pays respect to the stories they grew up on."

But will respect be enough? Newer challenges face the superhero family. Internet buzz has been mixed for the film's trailer, and some devotees are incensed at the film's departures from the original story line. Will "Fantastic Four" survive the assessment of the film critics?

And a little cartoon already has stolen some thunder from Mr. Fantastic and company. "The Incredibles," which won an Oscar for best animated film and raked in $259 million, was a thinly veiled parody of the comic book. "Fantastic Four" filmmakers concede they had to alter their movie, even cutting one scene that was too similar to one in "The Incredibles."

"But in the end, I think we're going to have the goods," "Fantastic Four" director Tim Story says. "Fans are going to see it was worth the wait. And I'm hoping we can turn nonfans on to 'Fantastic Four.' "

To hear Stan Lee tell it, there almost was no "Fantastic Four."

The 82-year-old writer for Marvel Comics had been with the company since the 1940s and had grown tired of stories about vampires and mutants.

His wife suggested he do one more comic book, his way. "If I got fired, so what?" Lee says.

Around the same time, rival DC Comics, which was then known as National Periodicals, was seeing huge success with its "Justice League of America," a team of heroes that included Superman, Batman, Flash and Green Lantern.

Martin Goodman, publisher of Marvel (then Atlas/Timely), asked Lee to attempt his own super team. Lee joined artist Jack Kirby and created "Fantastic Four," based on four astronauts who are zapped by cosmic radiation on their way out of the Earth's atmosphere.

Lee created less a team of superheroes than a family of oddballs. Team leader Reed Richards, aka Mr. Fantastic, is a brilliant scientist who has the consistency of Silly Putty and can stretch his body to extreme lengths. Reed's best friend, Ben Grimm, aka The Thing, is a living pile of orange rocks who possesses great strength — and sarcasm. Susan Storm, or the Invisible Woman, can disappear on demand. And her kid brother, Johnny Storm, i.e., the Human Torch, has a penchant for flames, which fly from his body.

It's one thing to draw a man on fire. Getting Johnny to throw fireballs that will impress a film audience already jaded by spectacle is another matter.

And then there's "The Incredibles." The Pixar film has a father with great strength, a mother who can stretch, a daughter who can become invisible and a son with superhuman speed.

"Fantastic Four" filmmakers cut a scene in which The Thing rescues a cat from a tree because it looked too similar to a scene in which Mr. Incredible does the same thing.

"That had been a part of the comic book, but they did the scene first," Arad says. "And they made a great movie. Our challenge is to make just as great a movie."

Anthony Brezican of USA Today contributed to this story.