Shazam! Movie Review

Hello, and welcome to my very first movie review. Today I’ll be discussing Shazam! I got to see the movie during a Fandango early screening in my area two weeks prior to its US opening, in addition to seeing it during its US opening weekend. Shazam is on track, according to Deadline to bring in about $57 million in its opening weekend plus preview advance screenings two weeks ago. WB’s estimates were in the $45-50 million range.

My reviews will be spoiler free for the most part.

Shazam! at its core is basically a superhero take on the movie BIG. It involves young foster child Billy Batson (Asher Angel) as he goes from problematic and selfish runaway searching for his mother to a superhero fighting to defend those he cares about. Billy’s journey is entertaining to watch, and his search for his mother does have its emotional moments. Watching Billy and Freddy try to discover what superpowers Billy has in his Shazam form (Zachary Levi) is a highlight of the movie. Which one of us wouldn’t be as excited and awkward if we were trying to test out extraordinary powers?

Supporting Billy in his journey, and acting as his conscience and the voice of a responsible superhero, is Freddy Freeman (Jack Dylan Grazer). Freddy is another foster kid Billy meets at his new group home. Freddy is a huge superhero fan, following closely the adventures of Batman and Superman. Freddy operates as Billy’s erstwhile guide to the world of superheroes. And, Freddy lives vicariously through watching Billy take on the Shazam mantle. A running joke through the movie is the various names Freddy thinks up for Billy’s superhero alter ego. Among the best of them are Captain Sparkle Fingers and Thundercrack. Billy’s constant failures to think of a pithy superhero catchphrase for himself, and the pained expressions on Freddy’s face each time, is another running joke in the movie.

Rounding out the trio of main characters in Shazam! is Thaddeus Sivana (Mark Strong). Sivana brings a heavy dose of the realness to Shazam!’s otherwise lighthearted tone. His grimness, and the way he openly pursues his dark powers stand in contrast to most other villains, who believe themselves to ultimately be doing good. Sivana is openly out for power, he doesn’t care about any self-delusion of being good.

Asher Angel and Zachary Levi are great in the title role. I’ve been a fan of Levi since his days on Chuck. Shazam! is the perfect superhero role for him, with his mix of nerdy charm and genuine enthusiasm for the character. Levi also manages to bring seriousness to the scenes fighting Sivana. All-in-all Levi is great in the role. Asher Angel is very believable as a troubled runaway and foster kid. His focus on self-survival and deep need to find his mother both come from his feelings of abandonment. 

Jack Dylan Grazer is very strong in his role as Freddy Freeman. Not only in his natural comedic ability, but also for playing the superhero conscience for Shazam before Billy fully matures into his role. In my view, Freddy had the heart of a superhero, even if he didn’t have the abilities. I can’t go into that more than this without giving away spoilers, but Grazer is a definite strong point in the movie.

Mark Strong is both threatening and understandable as Thaddeus Sivana. Looking at his origin story, and the path it put him on, shows how easily it is for someone to end up in a very dark place in their lives. Strong manages to communicate a lot of menace with minimal dialogue. He lets his power speak for itself. 

Shazam! is a very enjoyable, fun movie. Seeing Billy and Sivana, and how their lives have been affected by a lack of a loving family, reinforces the central theme of the movie; the importance of family. The dialogue, writing, direction, and action are all very well-done. There’s comedy and drama. And a very heartfelt earnestness from many of the roles. 

In addition the movie itself, there were a number of interesting aspects of it that made me think of issues beyond the movie. First is the possible role Dwayne Johnson may be playing in the Shazam! franchise. He’s an executive producer for Shazam!, and there’s been a lot of talk of Johnson playing Black Adam, Shazam’s main antagonist. It will be interesting to see Zachary Levi and Dwayne Johnson

Second was a more philosophical item I noticed, which I might expand on more fully in another article if there’s interest. And that is the interplay between classical Greek and Christian ideas. Sivana and the Seven Deadly Sins, juxtaposed with the sources of Shazam’s powers, among them Solomon and ancient Greek gods. Anyone who’s done reading on the early history of Christianity will find it interesting considering the considerable impact classical Greek thought had on the development of Christianity in the Roman Empire.

This connection with Greek Olympians also denotes another interesting dynamic to explore in future Shazam! installments; Wonder Woman. Diana’s Amazon roots on Themiscyra are tied to the same culture and background as the origins of Shazam. Perhaps Diana knows of the wizards and magic used to create Shazam?

One final note, stick around and watch the credits after the movie. Not just for the mid- and post-credits scenes, but for the hand-drawn style animation that plays during the credits. It’s a perfect accompaniment to the movie, and captures the childlike fun of the Shazam! story. 

So all in all, I found Shazam! To be a wonderful movie. I would definitely recommend this movie to comic book fans, and to anyone wanting an entertaining, heartfelt story to enjoy at the cinema. Definitely a solid A.