“Stan Lee has passed,” the words echoed. With that announcement the face of Marvel Comics was no longer. The tweets flew, the phones buzzed and we knew: Stan Lee needed an episode. But how can you be put on a sad face for a man who lived his dream, had a constant smile and loved life. You cannot. So Doug, Jeremy and I want you to join us as we celebrate the joy he brought us by picking our favorite Stan Lee appearances. And don’t worry, we didn’t run out, he truly was the King of Cameos!

If you love comic books, have a passion for super hero movies or just liked Stan the man, you will love this episode. Stan gave us the Mighty, the Astonishing, the Incredible and the Amazing and we wanted to give something back. Tune in to one of our favorite episodes for one of our favorite people the Fantastic Stan Lee.

As always we want to hear from you! Let us know your favorite Stan Lee cameos or characters. With your movie reviews, ideas for show topics or just let us know what your watching by calling the voice mail number! 260-573-0015, email us at moviemadnesspodcast@gmail.com or post your thoughts on Twitter, Facebook or the Ultimate Movie Geeks community

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

This is actually the worst comic book movie ever made and I’ll tell you why. First, there’s not a single like-able character in the film. Not one of the principles is engaging, interesting or even once, funny. Second, there’s absolutely no attempt to make the film fun-not a single Yehaa! moment. I’m sorry, at some point there’s got to be some break in a dismal tragedy. And make no mistake, Fantastic Four is a dismal tragedy. Even the most depressing Shakespeare play has a comic break. Third, there are no surprises. The film and the characters are predictable if maybe a little more boring than you’d expect.

The dialogue is stilted, the chemistry between characters uninspired and the casting indefensible. I cannot imagine worse choices. These are some of my favorite comic book characters played with no understanding or empathy . Miles Teller is dull as Reed Richards, Kate Mara, bland as Susan Storm, Michael B. Jordan, sullen and resentful as Johnny Storm and Jamie Bell, an actor I like, is as unlike Ben Grimm, the always-loyal best friend of Reed Richards, as I can imagine. Whether this is acting or direction is debatable, but regardless it makes Fantastic Four painful to watch.

What’s even worse is the villain, Toby Kebbell. He is one of my favorite characters in both The Sorcerer’s Apprentice and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.

In both films he’s not only a great villain but commands the screen. In Fantastic Four he’s hobbled by a really bad script and a terrible story. Of course, the original Dr. Doom, from the comic book, is lost to us after one reference to his home country, Latveria. I couldn’t even detect an accent. I’m sorry, but Dr. Doom, evil super villain and ruler of a tiny European country, is far more interesting than a slob of a computer geek with no personality. Not to be too harsh of course.

If I had set out to make the worst super hero movie ever, hired the most reviled director and a two year old to write the script I would have ended up with a better film. Pardon me, but, with little exception, main stream comic book characters we like, want to emulate and might like to get to know.

There’s not a single instant, till the last few seconds, that I enjoyed anything. There is one scene right at the end that shadows hope for the future. The special effects are cheesy, the dialogue lame and predictable and the plot unlike anything I can remember from the Fantastic Four franchise.

I would not recommend this film unless you were the last person on earth, had just enough power left for one movie, every other DVD had been destroyed and you had two hours to live. It would probably cheer you up about your impending doom. I felt more depressed after this movie than after a Chekhov play, and that’s horrible.

You don’t need to see this movie, but if you do, see it in the theater. You don’t want to be that despondent at home. Stop and grab a comedy on the way home to cheer up. That should help.

Rating: 0 out of 5 (and that’s generous)