Not another bad Fantastic Four movie.
When the film Chronicle hit theaters in 2012, movie-goers and critics alike marveled at then-new director Josh Trank’s decision to shoot the superhero movie with a “found footage” aesthetic.
“Found footage” is a technique used particularly in the horror genre which a film is presented as footage shot by a character within the film, such as the popular Paranormal Activity series, and 1999’s Blair Witch Project. Trank’s decision to create an original superhero movie, as his directorial debut in this matter was a risk that proved successful.
According to an interview between The Hollywood Reporter and Fox’s president of production, Emma Watts, Josh Trank will likely bare a similar aesthetic to his inaugural film:
THR: Will the Fantastic Four reboot have any of the same found-footage feel that Chronicle did?
WATTS: It’s Josh, so it can’t not have that feel. That’s his talent, that’s what he does, and that’s what excites him about it. It is a really interesting young cast, and he is the magnet that’s brought them all together.
This isn’t the first surprising choice Trank has made in for the film as he brought together the — shall we say — interesting cast together for the film which features Miles Teller (21 & Over) as Reed Richards/”Mr. Fantastic”, Kate Mara (House of Cards) as Sue Storm/”The Invisible Woman”, Michael B. Jordan (Fruitvale Station) as her brother, Johnny Storm/”The Human Torch” and Jamie Bell (Jumper) as Benn Grimm/ “The Thing”.
Fantastic Four movie adaptations have a terrible track record, with a 1994 laugh-worthy unreleased film that has since leaked across the internet and the 2005 film and 2007 sequel, both of which boasted a cast featuring Chris Evans and Jessica Alba, but was met with highly unfavorable reviews from the majority of critics. Let’s hope Josh Trank’s “Chronicle formula” fares the Mr. Fantastic and the gang equally well.
Khari Clarke is on Twitter (@KINGCLARKEIII)
