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Star Cast: Zachary Levi, Mark Strong, Asher Angel, Jack Dylan Grazer, Djimon Hounsou, Grace Fulton, Ian Chen, Jovan Armand, Faithe Herman, Cooper Andrews, Marta Milans
Director: David F. Sandberg
What’s Good: Though he looks like your regular superhero with a weird costume, but trust me Shazam has a lot of charm hidden under his cape!
What’s Bad: The story is divided into two parts – one that fools around and is funny, another in which it takes itself too seriously than required – the latter one is the dragging part!
Loo Break: Neah! Seriously? Loosen yourself up and just get lost in DC’s universe!
Watch or Not?: You’ll not even ask this if you know anything about Shazam; even if you don’t, just go and get to know about him because he’s all set to be a big thing in the coming years!
User Rating:
The story starts with a nerd in Thad aka Thaddeus Sivana (Mark Strong) playing with his ask-ball, in a car with his mean dad & brother, as he gets transported to another realm. The ancient Wizard, known as Shazam, is last of the council of Wizards controlling the Rock Of Eternity. This old guy is looking for a successor to transfer his superpowers. The successor must be pure at heart & Thad is not that. Thad gets humiliated (tumse na ho paayega!) and sent back by the ancient wiz. Years later Thad becomes Dr. Thaddeus Sivana finding a way to get back to that Wizard.
He finally gets there and in the meanwhile, Wiz finds his successor in Billy Batson (Asher Angel) who’s a troubled fourteen-year-old orphan. Billy, in the quest of finding his lost mom, jumps from one foster family to another, until he finds people with whom he could really stick to. He’s made the Shazam & by saying this one word, he could shift from being a kid to be a kid-superhero. Of course, the bad guy, Thad, follows him and what happens next is what the story is all about.
Shazam! Movie Review: Script Analysis
The movie is hilarious when it doesn’t take itself seriously and that’s a major chunk of a tad-bit stretched duration. With some chuckling references of Game Of Thrones, Harry Potter and Star Wars, DC declares – they are escaping from their dark & tedious barriers. After Wonder Woman & Aquaman, DC’s yet another attempt at lightening up (literally!) the genre is all set to be another successful one.
There are two post-credits scenes in the film & both are worth your wait. The first one clarifies the sequel possibility & in the second one, DC takes a dig at his own superhero Aquaman (which was a delight to see). According to comics, Spiderman wasn’t the first kid turning into a superhero, it was Shazam. That’s where the script excels, because of how well Billy’s innocence plays its part in Shazam being the superhero. Does it get monotonous? Yes, at times, is it boring? NO!
Shazam! Movie Review: Star Performance
Zachary Levi is a charmer! He needed to be a superhero but along with keeping the kid in him alive. Let’s give him as the most animated superhero as far as the expressions are concerned (Eh, Deadpool?). Zachary, somewhere, maintains the hold of looking handsome and acting like a teenager.
Asher Angel makes sure to match the charisma as the younger version of Shazam. As Zachary, Asher too acts with his countless expressions and they work every time. Mark Strong’s character is not ‘strong’ enough to be a villain. He looks his part but unfortunately never freaks out as the bad guys too. Writing of his role needed a bit more detailing; in positives, he manages to act well.
Jack Dylan Grazer as Billy’s best friend Freddy delivers a wonderful performance. He gets a meaty screen presence and the kid makes sure to justify his screentime. Djimon Hounsou, the mutual kid of Marvel (Guardians Of The Galaxy, Captain Marvel) and DC (Aquaman, Shazam!), is solid with his presence. Though he doesn’t get much to do (as most of his superhero films), he’s an important link to the narration. From the kids (apart from Freddy), Faithe Herman gets a cute character and shes portrays it with confidence. 13 Reasons Why fans – Ross Butler (Zach from the show) also has a special appearance in the film.
Shazam! Movie Review: Direction, Music
This is just the third film of David F. Sandberg, after a mind-blowing Lights Out and a shitty Annabelle: Creation. He has stepped a level up with Shazam! Although, it’s not as VFX-heavy as other superhero flicks and definitely has its fair share of jaw-dropping sequences. Sandberg amazingly manages the grand scale with his raw experience.
Music by Benjamin Wallfisch is an orgasm to the ears! There’s no registering theme song vis-a-vis Marvel films but the rest of the score just blends in perfectly well with the narration. Smart choice by the makers to pull in Eminem’s My Name Is as the theme song – it’s just perfect.
Shazam! Movie Review: The Last Word
All said and done, Shazam! is a satisfying package of entertainment with a superhero touch. DC is pulling their socks up as a new universe is up for grabs because an existing one is about to end (try not to cry but cry a lot – GIVE ME F***ING ENDGAME ALREADY).
Three and a half stars!
Shazam! Trailer
Shazam! releases on 5th April, 2019.
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