First Steps features incredibly visually stimulating and nostalgia-inducing retrofuturistic aesthetics, but falls flat plot-wise as it follows a generic superhero movie formula

The best thing about First Steps is the aesthetic. It’s far and away my favorite part of this film, and that’s a problem because as much as I do enjoy a solid retrofuturistic aesthetic, it’s not enough to make a mediocre movie worth watching. This is all style over substance.

Set on a retro-futuristic alternate Earth, “First Steps” allows the story of the Fantastic Four to play out unencumbered by ongoing storylines or characters from other movies and TV shows, making it the most accessible and straightforward MCU movie in years.

Is the new “Fantastic Four” movie fantastic? No, and not everyone will love the amount of downtime in this one. But good is good enough for a Marvel superhero movie these days.

Set in a 1960s-inspired, retro-futuristic world, the film presents a new iteration of Marvel's First Family: Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic (Pedro Pascal), Sue Storm/Invisible Woman (Vanessa Kirby), Johnny Storm/Human Torch (Joseph Quinn), and Ben Grimm/The Thing (Ebon Moss-Bachrach).

On this week's episode of IndieWire's "Screen Talk" podcast, we review Matt Shakman's Marvel needle-reset "The Fantastic Four: First Steps" and parse the latest fall festival announcements.

A lot has to do with the fantastic four at the heart of this Marvel family, who live together and eat together, and are played by actors who play well off each other, particularly the always-splendid Kirby.

Flame on! There’s more than one hot new superhero movie at a theater near you. “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” is a depiction of the super-powered family that have been loved for decades by fans. Other versions of the movie haven'[t been so well received.