Shazam!

Shazam!

Starring Zachary Levi, Mark Strong, Asher Angel, Jack Dylan Grazer

Directed by David F. Sandberg

The Story:
The last of the Council of Seven Wizards, Shazam (Djimon Hounsou) is seeking someone to be his champion - a person who is pure of heart to take his power as he keeps getting older and isn't able to hold back the Seven Deadly Sins, and one of those deemed unworthy is a young Dr. Sivana (Mark Strong), who grows up and returns to the Rock of Eternity to take the Eye of Sin, and the Sins inhabit his body.

Meanwhile, young Billy Batson (Asher Angel) continually moves from foster home to foster home as he searches for his real mother, until he's found by the police and taken in by another foster family, where he meets Freddy Freeman (Jack Dylan Grazer), who is obsessed with superheroes.  While defending Freddy against some bullies, Billy runs to the subway and is transported to the Rock of Eternity, where the Wizard deems him worthy, giving him the powers of Shazam (Zachary Levi).  As Billy learns his superhero powers (thanks to Freddy), Dr. Sivana seeks revenge against his family who did him wrong, and learns that the Wizard gave his powers away, and sets out to get those powers for himself.

The Synopsis:
The concept of a meta film has existed for decades, and most notably anyone who's seen the "Deadpool" movies know what that is - a film that's seemingly totally self-aware that it's a film, often breaking the fourth wall and providing insight that someone sitting in the audience would realize.  While not as over-the-top meta as you'd expect, "Shazam!" does tackle some of the themes of a meta film, but unlike "Deadpool," it feels forced and disjointed, like it wants to be in on the joke, but really isn't.

That being said, I did find "Shazam!" to be a very entertaining, humorous differentiation from the typically dark DC Universe (although there are some very dark moments in this film as well).  The film touches on some different topics that make it easy to talk about long after it ends, but several times in the film I felt like it was just being lazy in its storytelling, providing obvious cues to the eventual ending like audience members would expect to happen - because ultimately it does follow the traditional superhero tropes that it points out easily (such as the bad guy going after the ones you love, having a troubled upbringing, and so on).

The story is something that brings a hopeful glint to the eye of every young person (and young at heart), because I'm sure you won't find many people who don't wish they were a superhero.  "Shazam!" is essentially that wish brought to life, as teenager Billy Batson is imbued with the powers of Shazam, and becomes an adult superhero with superpowers.  This is where the film really shines, in having Billy slowly learning who he is and what he can do, and provides some very humorous moments (such as when he learns he's bulletproof).  Zachary Levi plays the older Billy perfectly, as he exudes youthful joy and really relishes the role on screen, as he balances self-assurance with doubt, and he does what any teenager who suddenly receives powers would do (such as posing for selfies, putting on a show for cash, and partaking in certain adult things that kids shouldn't do). 

On the opposite end of the spectrum - much like the major theme in the film itself - is Dr. Sivana, a man who's spent his whole life under the thumb of someone else, and constantly being told he's not good enough.  He was once approached by the Wizard, but after almost giving into the Seven Deadly Sins, he's deemed unworthy of having the power, and as he grew up he received vitriol from his father and brother, and so he grew a hard heart and set out to avenge his life.  When he finds his way back to the Rock of Eternity, he allows the Sins to enter him and get revenge on those who wronged him.  Whereas Billy is having fun with his powers and (somewhat) trying to help others, Sivana uses his powers for evil, and doesn't really seem to be enjoying himself.

Much like they're two sides of the same coin, an interesting debate was started by Freddy before Billy gets his powers - he asks if Billy could have either flight or invisibility, which would he choose?  At first glance it's a very bland comparison, but Freddy makes it philosophical, which plays out in the film itself - those who choose flight want to be a hero, want to be noticed, and want to be seen as a hero; those who chose invisibility want to be a villain, who lurks around when no one sees him, and doesn't want to be seen.  While Billy chose flight, Dr. Sivana seemingly chooses invisibility (which kinda makes sense in the fact that he flies around everywhere and there's seemingly no cops in Philadelphia who even try to stop him), and it also goes into the debate of who is really worthy of wielding the power of Shazam - as the Wizard spent decades trying to find someone to no avail.  It points to the human condition that, when prodded, humans will naturally go to the dark side for the most part, and we see that play out in differing ways in the film itself, especially between Billy and Freddy.

Yet the scene stealer of the film is Freddy, played by "It" star Jack Dylan Grazer, who you really both root for and feel bad for at the same time.  He should've been the one picked to possess the power, as his whole life he wanted to be a superhero, while Billy didn't even know Superman's name.  He gets picked on by bullies and is often forgotten (heck, he goes out with Shazam at night and his foster parents don't seem to notice, and they don't seem to notice either that he's seen on the news with Shazam, or the fact that a handicapped kid could make his way through Philadelphia's streets with ease in the first place), and really becomes the character we can all relate to - and Grazer pulls it off with ease.

Likewise Asher Angel, who plays Billy Batson, does a respectable job at being a teenager who has some adult issues to deal with.  After getting separated from his mother as a young child, he's spent his years running away from foster homes in search of his mother, and while he's not seemingly the most innocent, he does exhibit the purity in heart that the Wizard desires.  Unlike Grazer, Angel doesn't remain on screen long, as he shares duties with Zachary Levi in playing the same character, so we don't get as much connection with him like we do with Freddy, but the moments he is on screen, Asher Angel nails it.  Both characters really develop during the beginning part of the film, and we see them clash and bond like actual siblings do.

Then the film throws the whole theological debate aside for the final typical third superhero act when the hero and villain clash multiple times, go flying through buildings, and pretty much lay waste to everything around them.  That's not saying it's bad, but it's rather generic and - if you're going back to the wishes of teenage children  - feels like the moment when you're playing with your superhero action figures and keep hitting them together.  Then there's the Seven Deadly Sins, who look about as frightening as some SyFy Original creatures (and whose effects are only slightly better), and the overall arching theme of the importance of family that plays out in a slightly different way in the end - but there's still a lot of goodwill throughout the film so it's forgivable, but not forgettable.

The Summary:
While providing a more light-hearted tone to the DC Universe, "Shazam!" does manage to find the kid in all of us, even though it only culminates in your typical good-guy-versus-bad-guy finale.

The Score: A