Worth: $13.50
FilmInk rates movies out of $20 — the score indicates the amount we believe a ticket to the movie to be worth
Cast:
Asher Angel, Zachary Levi, Jack Dylan Grazer, Adam Brody, Helen Mirren, Lucy Liu, Rachel Zegler, Djimon Hounsou
Intro:
… doesn’t recapture the magic of the original, but it has enough tricks up its sleeve to justify its existence.
As the DC Cinematic Universe heads into a quasi-reboot courtesy of James Gunn and upcoming The Flash flick, the final vestiges of the film properties already established are lining up to drop their latest (and in some cases, final) offerings. Aquaman will be coming back, obviously, and hopefully Wonder Woman will too. Black Adam will almost certainly not return. In the case of Shazam, however… it remains to be seen. The latest adventure of the teenage superhero with the power of the Gods is a bit of a mixed bag, although coasts on enough charm to lightly entertain for the most part.
Shazam! Fury of the Gods returns us to the world of Billy Batson/Shazam (Asher Angel/Zachary Levi), the 17-year-old kid who can turn into a superpowered adult by just saying one magic word. He’s joined by his five foster-siblings who, after the climax of the previous movie, are also powered up to the gills.
Teenagers with superpowers is a recipe for disaster, and the team’s faltering, inept attempts at crime solving and civilian saving are pretty funny. Things get a little less delightful, however, when the Daughters of Atlas sashay into town, including Kalypso (Lucy Liu) and Hespera (Helen Mirren). They’re pretty intent on regaining some of their old power and Shazam and the fam seem to be standing in their way.
Shazam! Fury of the Gods has a lot of characters (too many, really) and moving parts, which leads to the film feeling a little light in vital areas. The villains really are very one note, despite a game performance from Mirren, and Lucy Liu’s role in particular feels truncated. Worse still, Zachary Levi – who was so delightful in the first film – seems to have been re-written as a bit of a bellend. Sure, he was something of a jerk in the previous entry, but it always felt grounded in some kind of reality and made sense for the character. Here, Shazam comes off as a 17-year-old who inexplicably constantly acts like a 12-year-old, dropping deeply unfunny one-liners and blathering on like a bit of a prick. The problem is less Levi’s performance and more the undercooked script with which he has to contend, but it’s still less than ideal.
The other kids, however, have much more meaty arcs, with Freddy Freeman (Jack Dylan Grazer/Adam Brody) and Darla Dudley (Faithe Herman/Meagan Goode) both given delightful subplots, not to mention a strong turn from Rachel Zegler as Anthea. In fact, everyone seems to have a better story in Shazam! Fury of the Gods than Shazam himself!
Still and all, those in the mood for amiable superhero entertainment will no doubt be able to power through the more awkward moments and enjoy a yarn that at least gets it together for an engaging enough climax and fun denouement. Ultimately, Shazam! Fury of the Gods doesn’t recapture the magic of the original, but it has enough tricks up its sleeve to justify its existence.
