Shazam! Fury of the Gods movie review

MOVIE TITLE: Shazam! Fury of the Gods

This fun action sequel is now playing in theaters.

RATING: PG-13

LENGTH: 2 hours 10 minutes

MOVIE REVIEW MOM GRADE: B

IN A NUTSHELL:

If you enjoyed the first Shazam, you might be a little disappointed with this one, but you’ll probably still get a kick out of it. This sequel continues the story of teenage Billy Batson who learned in the first film that when he shouts “Shazam!”, he gets transformed into his adult Super Hero alter ego.

The film was directed by David F. Sandberg, and written by Henry Gayden and Chris Morgan. It’s the 12^th movie in the DC Extended Universe. Me? I’m a true MCU fan, but I do love Zachary Levi in anything.

haz

THINGS I LIKED:

I’ve been a huge fan of Zachary Levi ever since I first noticed him in the fun TV series “Chuck.” If you love him too, check out that spy comedy series! I’m thrilled that he got a gig as a superhero in the Justice League!
Helen Mirren is a national treasure and always delivers outstanding performances. What can I say? She classes up the joint!
Lucy Liu looks fantastic. I just finished binge-watching her in Season 1 of “Why Women Kill” where she killed it…so to speak.
The team of superheroes in this action flick features Asher Angel, Rachel Zegler, Jack Dylan Grazer, Grace Caroline Currey, Ian Chen, Faithe Herman, Meagan Good, and Jovan Armand. In case you’re confused, Grace Caroline Currey replaced Michelle Borth from the 2019 Shazam movie.
Michael Bay from the 1974 Shazam makes a cameo performance! Look for him in the final battle scene. He’s wearing a red and yellow sweater as a bystander in a crowd. Another fun treat is when we get to see the director play a victim of Kalypso.
Keep watching during the rolling credits at the end for some cute images, as well as another funny scene.
The scene where the magic pen answers questions reminded me of how we’re all using ChatGPT nowadays!
The movie kicks off with an exciting World War Z kind of action sequence.
There is humor of all kinds: visual, physical, and spoken.
Fun fact: All of the Furies are children of Atlas from Greek mythology.
Fun fact #2: You can see the creepy Annabelle doll in a chair in the scene at the pediatrician’s office. David F. Sandberg directed that movie, as well as this one.
Cool dragons.

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE:

All of the forgettable teens are pretty generic with an appropriate mixture of ethnicities. None of them have any sparkling personality. If anything, one of them is the annoying one. There are way too many characters and side stories.
Lots of cliches.
So much CGI.
Skittles gets a huge product placement. Taste the rainbow!
Hardcore fans of the source material might be annoyed by the changes in the story.
Some scenes just last way too long.
The story assumes you saw the first movie. If you haven’t, you’re definitely going to be lost.
Shazam is emotionally damaged during a large part of the film. Still funny, though…thankfully.
The villains don’t feel as menacing and dangerous as they should be for a superhero movie. What’s funny is Shazam actually says, “You are very menacing.”
Black unicorns? Scary! Are there white ones in this universe?
Oh, DC…we can never trust your endings. Don’t mess with us like that.

TIPS FOR PARENTS:

Some crude language
Some disgusting, gory images
A teen announces he’s gay.
Lots of destruction.
People and creatures in perilous situations.

THEMES:

Imposter Syndrome
Family
Foster Care
Home
Legacy
Power
Belonging

FUNNY LINES:

“No way! I’m going to save you while you’re listening to THIS song?!” – Shazam (Zachary Levi, listening to the song “Holding Out For a Hero!” by Bonnie Tyler)
“Organic chem is my meditation.” – Mary (Grace Caroline Currey) “Says no one ever who has any friends.” – Shazam (Zachary Levi)
“How is it you two are sisters? The age difference is noticeable and slightly disturbing.” – Shazam (Zachary Levi)