About.com Rating


MPAA Rating: PG, for sequences of action violence, some mild language and innuendo
Genre: Action/Comic Book Characters/Sci-Fi
Age range: Ages 12 and up
Runtime: Approx. 91 minutes
Starring: Ioan Gruffudd, Jessica Alba, Chris Evans, Michael Chiklis, Julian McMahon, Kerry Washington, Andre Braugher, Gonzalo Menendez, Laurence Fishburne
Release Date: June 15, 2007

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer - Plot Summary

Reed Richards, a.k.a.

Mister Fantastic, and Sue Storm, The Invisible Woman, are dismayed to have their wedding plans disrupted once again by a need for their superhuman services. This time, they and the rest of the fantastic four - Johnny, The Human Torch and Ben, The Thing - must find the mysterious new force known as the Silver Surfer and figure out why he seems to be destroying the earth.

The Silver Surfer has visited several locations on the planet, leaving behind disturbing results. As for the other worlds he has visited, every planet seems to die eight days after he comes. Working with the American military, the Fantastic Four struggle to understand why the Silver Surfer has come, and how his power works.

Unfortunately, the Four's nemesis, Victor Von Doom, uses his own knowledge of the Surfer and gets the military to force the Fantastic Four into collaborating with him. His experience with the Surfer allows the team to devise a plan to short circuit the Surfer's power, which is apparently coming from his board.

The plan works, sort of, and the military captures the Silver Surfer, but not before Sue figures out that there is something more to the story. Unwilling to let her try talking with the mysterious silver man, the military begins to use unfriendly means to extract information from him themselves. Thanks to her talent for invisibility, Sue is able to reach the Surfer and learns that he is but a herald for a much more dangerous enemy yet to come. The Fantastic Four have the knowledge they need to stop the earth from being destroyed, but Doctor Doom and the U.S. military still stand in their way.

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer - Review for Parents

While the second Fantastic Four movie has been toned down slightly in order to appeal to a wider audience, the movie still contains the type of large and small scale violence that is associated with superhero movies. The Silver Surfer destroys things around the earth, and he is the herald for a galactic entity that is set to consume the earth entirely. Some characters in the movie are wounded and some die. One character is partially disintegrated by a blast (no blood/gore is shown) and another main character appears to die after being impaled by a sharp object.

Some sexual innuendo is present, and one character is seen dancing provocatively with girls in a bar. One female character appears to be naked in front of a crowd of people, but no nudity is shown (although we do briefly see the outline of her body within some flames in the prior scene).

PG profanity is used in the film. Several characters also trade insults and threats using phrases that may be enticing for kids to imitate.

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer - Content Overview

The following contains two or three of the most prominent examples of possibly scary or offensive content in each category:

Violence(Heavy)
- The Silver Surfer causes a helicopter to crash in the middle of a crowd. One person is nearly killed, but the helicopter stops in time.
- In a fight between the military and the Silver Surfer, missiles and other weapons are used and the Silver Surfer is captured and later tortured with some type of electrical device.
- A man is shown with his body half disintegrated (no blood/gore) and a woman is shown having been impaled through the chest by a sharp object (she dies but is later revived).

Sex/Nudity(Moderate)
- A bachelor party is held at a club where women are dancing provocatively. A main character dances with some women.
- A woman is engulfed in flames, the flames do not hurt her, but the silhouette of her body can be seen. When the flames turn off, she is naked, but the movie does not show her body.
- Looking at Ben and his girlfriend, Johnny asks, "How do you guys...?" When Ben gets angry, Johnny comments that he doesn't want to wake up one day and hear that Alicia has been killed in a "rockslide."

Profanity(Moderate)
- The words "ass," "hell," and "damn" are used.
- The phrase "Oh my God" or derivatives of the phrase are used several times.

Alcohol/Drugs(Moderate)
- Some people are shown drinking in a club.
- A scene in a bar shows people drinking beer and other beverages.

Bad/Disrespectful Behavior(Heavy)
- A military general is condescending and rude to the Fantastic Four.
- Victor Von Doom lies and manipulate in order to gain power and control.
- The movie contains several scenes during which characters trade insults and threats.

Scary Scenes(Moderate)
- Scenes listed under "violence" may be scary for kids.
- The earth is in danger of being consumed by a huge galactic entity.
- Various characters are shown in situations of peril.

Sad/Unsettling Scenes(Mild)
- The Silver Surfer is tortured with an electrical machine.