Shazam! Review: DC Delivers a Genuinely Fun and Lively Experience
Synopsis courtesy of IMDb.com: “We all have a superhero inside us, it just takes a bit of magic to bring it out. In Billy Batson's case, by shouting out one word - SHAZAM. - this streetwise fourteen-year-old foster kid can turn into the grown-up superhero Shazam.”
Directed by: David F. Sandberg (Lights Out)
Starring: Zachary Levi (Chuck), Mark Strong (Kingsman: The Golden Circle) Jack Dylan Grazer (It)
Shazam! is rated PG-13.
Photo courtesy of Warner Bros.
Marvel Comics and DC Comics have been competing with each other for readers since 1939, and the past 80 years has had its fair share of ingenious ideas quickly replicated by the other side. Most recently we have seen DC try to quickly jump on board with a cinematic universe in response to the success of Marvel’s The Avengers. In a nutshell, Warner Brothers’ adaptation of Justice League failed to capture the same energy that made the original Avengers one of the biggest films of all time. Criticisms of Justice League were varied, but a common thread heard over and over again centered around the needlessly grim tone taken by DC and Warner Brothers. After all, Marvel movies were intense, but they were also so much fun.
Well, perhaps for once, DC has learned what audiences these days are looking for. Billy Batson is a 14-year old foster child, who has superhuman abilities bestowed upon him by an ancient wizard, Shazam, who is tasked with protecting the world from monstrous incarnations of the Seven Deadly Sins. Once receiving his powers, Billy can transform at will into a grown man, “the ideal version of himself,” and has a host of powers at his disposal. Batson takes on the name Shazam as his alter-ego, and with the help of his foster brother Freddy Freeman, sets out to use his power for the greater good; and to occasionally purchase alcohol and gain admittance to adult nightclubs.
If this all sounds a little bit childish, you’re exactly right, and this seems to be what Shazam! is going for. The first half of this film is filled not just with typical self-deprecating superhero mockery, but with a hilariously realistic take on what any teenager would look like with superpowers. Zachary Levi (Shazam) and Jack Dylan Grazer (Freddy Freeman) have an infectious chemistry that make the scenes featuring a fully grown Shazam and his teenage friend especially funny. In effect Levi is playing a 14-year old character (at least as far as his maturity level is concerned) and pulls it off exceptionally. His cocky, self-indulgence plays great off of Mark Strong’s stoic antagonist, injecting otherwise stale scenes with a clever twist.
What surprised me most about this film was the heartfelt dynamic between Billy and his new foster family. While their relationships take a fairly typical arc, this side plot brings a tenderness to this otherwise buoyant film, and goes a long way towards making the characters truly likable. Family (biological or otherwise) plays a significant role in crafting a strong message at the center of this film. Marta Milans and Cooper Andrews, who play Billy’s foster parents, are tremendously sweet and funny in their limited roles.
Among this modern pantheon of comic adaptations, Shazam! will certainly not be remembered as one of the greats, but this is just the film that DC Comics needs right now. Shazam! is surprisingly funny and delightful. At its worst it is predictable and perhaps a bit cautious, but that doesn’t make it any less enjoyable. This is the type of film meant to be enjoyed, rather than dissected, and it unapologetically prioritizes entertainment over artistic value. Shazam! might be just what we as an audience need in the buildup to Marvel’s epic (and likely heavy) Avengers: Endgame, and hopefully this is a sign that DC Comics is heading in the right direction with their upcoming slate of films.
Reel Rating: 8/10
Shazam! is now playing in cinemas.
