Shazam Review – A Thrilling Fantasy Experience That DC Nailed!

Shazam is quite frankly one of DC’s funniest and joyful releases to date. It has its flaws but overall, it’s an enjoyable experience.

You know, after I saw that first reveal trailer, I had high expectations for the movie. It felt different from a lot of the other DC movies that have come out in recent memories. I can safely say that it matched the expectations that I had. I wouldn’t necessarily say it blew them out of the waters per se, however, it doesn’t change the fact that Shazam is a really good DC movie about a young boy inheriting some magical powers.

The movie opens up with Thaddeus Sivana as a child in the back of his father’s car. We quickly see that he’s not in a great family as his father and brother see him as a nuisance and weakling. It was here that Thaddeus Sivana was summoned by the Wizard played by Djimon Hounsou. After being offered the power of Shazam, Thaddeus Sivana almost succeeded but was tricked by the seven deadly sins and failed his trial. When he came back, he caused a ruckus that led to a car crash that crippled his father.

He then spent the rest of his life seeking the power that was almost at his grasp. His motives seemed weak to me and to be honest he doesn’t’ strike me as a villain that will be remembered. In fact, I don’t recall ever remembering his name throughout watching this movie. I mean, once he took his petty revenge against his family, he didn’t have his own motive. If it wasn’t for the demons, he’d just exist. Still, seeing the demons gruesomely kill off his family and everyone at that board room was pretty cool. Speaking of the demons, they looked terrifying. I thought that was dope.

The main highlight and enjoyment of this movie was just watching Billie and Freddy learning about Shazam and trying to come up with a cool superhero name. Of course, let’s not forget Billie’s goal in finding her mother. When he did find her, it turns out that her mom abandoned him the first chance that she got and it was here that Billie learned the value of family his driving force for the final arc of the movie.

In a sense, Billy and Thad are similar. They have bad relationships with their parents – Billy with the mother who abandoned him, and Thad with the father who wishes he did. Both had a quest that they had to fully, however, once accomplishing said goal, one was left empty while the other finally felt complete.

Also, Darla was adorable in this movie. She brimmed with enthusiasm. I’m sure she’ll be captivating everyone’s heart. Shazam joyful, thrilling and inspiring all around. The performance from Zachary Levi, Asher Angel, Jack Dylan Grazer, Faithe Herman, and the rest of the cast were really good.

If there’s one other thing I’ll criticize about the movie, it’s the final battle against Dr. Thaddeus Sivana. Don’t get me wrong, seeing the whole family fight together was cool, but the one on one fights felt weak in my opinion. I know that the movie wanted to remind us at every turn that this was a 14-year-old kid in a grown man’s body, but I’m sure that they could have at least spared 30 seconds to really show off what Shazam can do! Still, I did like the part where Thaddeus was giving his evil speech and they played that into a joke.

Overall, this is a very good heartfelt movie to go see at the cinema. I’m impressed!