D.C took many fans of all ages by storm with the introduction movie of the newest superhero in the D.C. universe, Shazam. The movie had a well produced balance of hilarious and serious moments that gave the movie just the right amount of suspense while also making the audience cry with laughter. This movie was enjoyable for long time fans of D.C. comics as well as those that have only just discovered the universe.
Shazam begins in a dark setting creating an ominous mood set in the mid 20th century introducing a young boy, his father and his brother. As the movie progresses, there is a time jump to the early 21st century and the audience is introduced to a young boy and his mother playing at a carnival. The young boy revealed to be named Billy Batson drops his prize his mother won for him at the carnival game and strays away from his mother to go after it. After finally grabbing hold of the small prize the boy cannot find his mother and is later brought to foster care after his mother does not come back.
There again is another time jump to present time where Billy Batson is now 14 years old and has developed a tendency of running away from his foster homes to search for his mom that never came to find him.
Meanwhile the little boy from the first scene has grown up and become Doctor Sivana with an intent to get revenge on his father and brother for his poor treatment all throughout Sivana’s life. Sivana plans to release the seven deadly sins from imprisonment and use them to rule over humanity in response to people around him constantly telling him he will never be worthy or good enough.
Back in Billy Batson’s new foster home he meets his new brother Freddy Freeman who Batson learns early on has an infatuation with superheroes such as Superman and Batman. At school the next day with his five new brothers and sisters, Freeman runs into two older guys who pick on him for his crippled leg and start beating him with his crutch. Batson, who was going to just walk away, decides abruptly to stand up for Freeman getting him out of the fight. Batson then runs off to the subway station in attempt to run away from another foster home but he is taken to this cave and is met with an elder man telling him that he is his only hope in stopping the seven deadly sins. Batson responds with shock and confusion but goes along with the man proposition.
Batson does what the man says and puts his hands on the mans staff and says his name, “Shazam!” The man disappears and Batson transforms into an adult version of himself containing all of Shazam’s powers including super speed, strength, electricity and flight. Batson runs out of the cave in shock and runs to find Freeman, the only person he knows that may have the answers to why this has happened to him. Batson and Freeman from then on continue to explore the origin of Batson’s new found powers and what those powers are eventually establishing Batson as a new superhero. Batson and Sivanas paths soon cross resulting in a fight against the seven deadly sins now controlled by Sivana, leaving the fate of humanity in Batson’s hands.
The main actors for Shazam do not disappoint the audience in portraying the kid like feel this movie intends to demonstrate. The actors Zachary Levi and Asher Angel while portraying the same character do a brilliant job at bringing a certain liveliness to the movie, creating hilarious as well as bittersweet moments. The side characters such as the actors that portrayed Batson’s family were all brilliantly portrayed and gave the movie a sense of family regarding the love a family provides.
The films overall theme revolves around the idea that there is a hero and a kid inside everyone. While there are moments in the movie where a dark mood overtakes the screen there isn’t so much to where it distracts from the the light hearted positive overall feel of the plot. There is an overall good balance between the dark and the light moments that complements and goes along with the theme of the movie. This exact balance is something that makes the movie interesting and pushes the plot forward while leaving the audience satisfied in the end. The music used just as well complements the movie through setting the scene’s tone whether that be suspenseful or playful. It also helps to create the feeling the director intends for you to feel while watching the film.
The director, David Sandberg tells the story of Shazam in a profound way that a D.C. movie director hasn’t accomplished in years. The directing complements the theme heavily getting the theme across to the audience clearly resulting in them coming out of the movie satisfied. Sandberg did a brilliant job when directing this movie in telling the story he wanted to tell from the original D.C. comics. The director made the movie improve by combining magic and myth with the real world and also evenly balanced comedy with action.
Overall this new D.C. superhero movie is worth the movie date late on a Friday night. While containing a few plot holes in the beginning few scene’s that may make the film seem a bit confusing, the few errors do not distract from the overall tone and message of the movie. Whether you are a D.C. fan or not this film is worth a second glance when searching for a new movie to go see in theaters.
