Shazam! Fury of the Gods

I mean the best thing I can give this film is that if you loved the first film, then you will love the second film. If you hated the first film, then don't bother with this one. This film literally captures EVERYTHING from the first and somewhat does it again. But for some reason, I think it did it better. The bad guys despite the horrible trailer, are actually not to bad. There perfectly fine one time villains. The action is about the same, visuals mediocre but compared to the MCU great and the comedy hits better. The film is less cringey and actually more funny than the first. Overall, I personally found this film the better version of the first film.

I did not know much about the daughters of Atlas before the film and I know only a little bit more now. Most of the movie was spent on the emotional state of the protagonist and his sidekick and tried to focus on comedy, rather than the story. Worse than the original and not as fun.

I do not know if Billy Batson is going to continue to play a part in the DCEU, but judging from this film, he will not be missed.

Sadly, the best part of the whole experience is the spoiled, uncredited appearance of a certain character.

Stick around for the credits scene, if you decide to watch it, but there is not much need for the one after credits.

This was a very disappointing sequel to say the least. There wasn't anything captivating about it. This was more of a cheesy Disney T. V. movie. The first movie was better in all aspects, do not watch with high hopes.

The characters of Billy and Freddy are not as interesting as they were in the first movie. Freddy's romantic plot is very typical and lame. The whole story is very predictable as is everything about all the villains. The writing of this film is at fault. None of the villains feel like an actual threat even with their destruction and their motives. We just know them to be bad because we are told they are but they do not feel menacing on screen.

What made the ending of the first Shazam exciting was seeing that Billy's brothers and sisters were given powers. This movie completely takes away that excitement by not showcasing any of the other characters or their individual powers. The humor in this movie is a complete let down as it tries so hard to make every line of dialogue a comedy sketch.

There are some mediocre CGI scenes throughout the film mainly during some of the destruction that takes place. There are scenes of poor acting from those who play some of the civilians. The creatures that show up are kind of pointless as no one really fights any of them.

Djimon Hounsou was good as usual although he played a limited role with limited amounts of dialogue. The design of the dragon was pretty cool but otherwise this movie is a poorly made sequel.

This film does not do any one thing great, but it was still a pretty decent watch. The plot is average-nothing we have not seen on the big screen before. Our villains have no development; their motivations are sound, but there is nothing further that develops them into something greater.

This movie starts off incredibly strong, with a fantastic first act that had me laughing hysterically. The comedy hits more often than not, which was a surprise for me. There is a bridge rescue scene that is electric. The combination of "I Need a Hero" mixed with all of the heroes showcasing their abilities was amazing. I think superhero films have dropped the ball by not showing heroes rescuing everyday people. The stakes have gotten so high outside of the everyday troubles that this art is lost. I really enjoyed that aspect of the film, but unfortunately, after the first act, this story becomes inflated to a point where it is indistinguishable from many other superhero blockbusters.

The final act is overly long and bloated with a plethora of CGI monsters for our heroes to defeat. I think the CGI actually looked pretty good, but it just was not an engaging conclusion for me. The stakes were high, but not built up properly for me to be genuinely interested. The action is pretty decent, but I couldn't care less. The finale did have emotional beats in terms of the family connection, which worked surprisingly well. That is when this franchise works best. When the focus is on family and not on god's attempts to destroy Earth,

The performances overall were pretty good. Zachary Levi is fantastic as Shazam; he has mastered the art of playing a child in a man's body. Jack Dylan Grazer is hilarious; his comedic timing is brilliant. Grace Caroline Currey is a queen. Rachel Zegler is a standout, and her chemistry with Grazer is top notch. The rest of the Shazamly do a great job as well. I think Helen Mirren and Lucy Liu are fine as antagonists but were wasted with a lack of screen time and development.

Overall, this might not be good, but it is entertaining. That is a lot more than can be said for some of the recently released superhero films (Black Adam and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania).

Score: 65% Verdict: Decent.

Shazam! Fury of the Gods is a painful example of all the problems in current filmmaking in a single movie. I felt overall less intelligent for having seen it.

I love movies. Up until recently, a month didn't go by without me going to the movies at least 3 or 4 times. I'll watch anything and enjoy myself, feeling refreshed and at peace when I leave the theater. Then came the dark times.

There are so many problems with the Shazam! Fury of the Gods, I don't know where to start. So, I'll start with the writing. It's bad. The most glaring and annoying creative debacle is the writer's inability to write teenagers. The main character is minutes away from turning 18 and acts and speaks like an 8 year old. And, not just an 8 year old but an 8 year old from the 1950's, think Dennis the Menace for those of you old enough to remember the tv show. Both as themselves and their superhero alter egos, every time these actors open their mouths idiocy of the highest caliber spills forth! I was truly embarrassed for the actors and constantly annoyed by the dialogue.

The plot was hugely contrived. Events transpired not as a part of the natural ebb and flow of a story but because they needed to happen for the film makers. Sometimes, this even broke rules the filmmakers created themselves.

The actors had nothing to work with and sunk to the challenge. I like the cast, I think Helen Mirren is a treasure and Zachary Levi is awesome but... wow. The best performances came from side characters, the actors playing the foster parents. The rest of the cast had me wishing everyone else would loose and the movie would just end. The wisdom of Solomon was smart enough to skip this movie.

I don't know what part of this broken carnival ride to lay at the director's feet, unless disjointed and nonsensical were his goal. I felt less intelligent for having seen Shazam! Fury of the Audience.

All the bad movies these days are lowering my movie bar. So, I'd give up this movie a 4.5/10. A lot of people worked hard to make Shazam! Fury of the Gods. It's a shame all there hard work resulted in this puddle of melted ice cream. I want my money back.