SHAZAM! (2019)

SHAZAM! (2019)

Tagline: Every Hero Has A Secret

(Action, Adventure, Comedy) [PG-13]

They seem nice, but don't buy it. It gets real Game of Thrones around here.

In this one, a kid named Billy Batson (played by Asher Angel) is abandoned by his mom. He ends up in CPS custody and begins searching for his mother. He runs into a cool foster family and befriends a kid named Freddy (played by Jack Dylan Grazer). It soon becomes clear that Billy has been selected by a Wizard named Shazam to be his new champion. That means he basically gets to take the form of an adult superhero (played by Zachary Levi mostly known for the TV series Chuck) just by speaking the wizard’s name. Billy soon finds out he’s got an enemy named Dr. Thaddeus Sivana (played by Mark Strong) who was once too weak to overcome the test to become the wizard’s champion but is instead selected by the Seven Deadly sins to have their powers. Can Billy embrace his new powers and used them to overcome Sivana and embrace his newfound potential family? 

First off, if just “happening around Christmas time” makes a movie a “Christmas” movie in the secular world, then this movie definitely qualifies. 

SHAZAM! Is wildly funny for a DC flick (most of which are kinda dark and edgy). It does what GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY does for the MCU only clearly it didn’t kill it at the box office as much as that movie did. Fortunately for DC, SHAZAM! was one of the least expensive movies in the DCU (DC Cinematic Universe). There is a LOT to love about this movie. One is the masterful incorporation of humor and seriousness and contrast of light and dark. The interaction between the child actors is phenomenally crafted into masterful storytelling. This is one of those movies for me that gets better with each watch. 

One thing I loved about the villain in this is that they give him a strong backstory. I don’t always need a great backstory for villains, but this one is pretty solid. Dr. Sivana’s presence is menacing which is in amazing contradiction to Shazam. Shazam himself is extremely likable in that he is given child-like attitudes which come with price tags, but slowly matures into his purpose as the movie moves along. The acting is also top-notch with all the leads standing out, but even the secondary characters like Darla (played by Faithe Herman known for the TV show “This Is Us”), Mary Bromfield (played by Grace Fulton known for the TV show “Revenge”) and Victor (played by Cooper Andrews from the “Walking Dead”).

Cinematically this thing is solid and aesthetically the movie is a lot more colorful than the average DCU movie and also has a really lighthearted soundtrack making it even more fun. 

Tidbit – In 2011 or so DC renamed their Captain Marvel to be “SHAZAM”. This was to avoid legal conflicts with MARVEL who also had a CAPTAIN MARVEL at the time. In the comic, the “Seven Deadly Sins” in this movie were called the “Seven Enemies Of Man” instead. 

Overall I have to give this movie a solid 6 out of 7. It’s fantastic. I also really loved the ending storywise and the possibilities it opens up for future films. Apparently, as of the writing of this review, the next installment will be called SHAZAM! FURY OF THE GODS, set to come out in 2023. 

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