Shazam! Fury of the Gods

Shazam 2 was a little too complicated at times and didn't have a tight as a plot as the first one, but it still had the charm, awkwardness, and the "edge" of the first one. If you liked the first one, you'll probably like this one.

Wanted to post a week long Shazam poll since everyone like the one day Shazam poll I did. Sorry if it's hard to just pick one character. I know we all love the entire Shazamily.

Ian Chen

Shazam: Fury of the Gods

shazam: fury of the gods (2022)

SHAZAM! FURY OF THE GODS (2023) Grade: C-

Drop off from the first movie. Went away from the main character. Bad guys were weak, uncreative and boring. Not many kids think it's funny that it's Helen Mirren and Lucy Liu on the screen.

Shazam! Fury of the Gods (dir. David F. Sandberg).

It’s actually Jack Dylan Grazer (and Adam Brody as his “Captain Everypower” version) who gets a lot of increased screen time as Billy’s wisecracking best friend and foster brother Freddy Freeman, the heart and emotional core of the film's goofy and lighthearted heroic fun. Sadly, [Asher] Angel rarely appears with [Zachary] Levi mostly dominating Batson’s on-screen appearance in adult form.

The Mosley Review: Shazam! Fury of the Gods

There is a sense of balance that has been missing in the big blockbuster films these days. The balance between telling a story that has a theme that resonates with throughout the story and then the big CGI spectacle of the opening, mid and finale that acts as a button to the story more often. More films focus on the spectacle and even though it may be visually pleasing, it often just pads out the film without any of the visuals telling a story or even affecting it. This film didn't waste any of its time doing that, but the spectacle was informed by the plot and did affect the characters within it. What I truly loved about this film is that it kept that same since of wonder and darkness the first film started and it stayed in its lane. It connects to the soon to be rebooted DCEU, but it stands strong enough on it own to be a soft disconnect. The themes of growing up, responsibilities, acceptance and family were refreshing to see handled in such a skilled way. This film reminded me of the late 80's and mid 90's kid and teen films where they weren't afraid to address the humanity of the heroes. Growing up can be scary because you don't want to let go of the fun times where the world seemed so open and free before stepping into adulthood. This film tackles that subject through the eyes of the leads while still giving us a surprisingly fun family action film that has a horror edge to it.

Asher Angel and Zachary Levi return as Billy Batson / Shazam and they're still magnetic and fun. Billy now has to balance being a leader and teenager growing into an adult and that was great to see handled. Asher does this wonderfully and actual gets to shine  in the more emotional segments. Zachary Levi takes on the majority of the weight this time as the adult version of Billy and through him, you see Billy's naivtey really become his weakness in so many ways. Zachary's comedic timing and joyful take on the character was spot on and he nails what its like to be a teen in an adult's body. Billy's journey from child to adult was hilarious and also heartfelt. Jack Dylan Grazer and Adam Brody couldn't be more of a perfect pair as the teen and adult version of Freddy Freeman. Jack truly steals the film with his amazing wit, charm and hilarious sarcasm. His energy is so infectious and I loved that he is the center of the story this time around. He truly delivers a show stopping performance and Adam Brody amplifies that as his adult persona. Adam shows the more cocky nature of Freddy when he's "super" which was so much fun. Grace Caroline Currey was wonderful and wise as Mary Bromfield. She is the oldest in the family and I loved seeing her embrace the real world while still having fun as a superhero. She is that reminder that we all have to grow up at some point and contribute to a household and the world in some way. Ross Butler and Ian Chen were fun yet again as the young version and the adult version of Eugene Choi. They both show off his intelligent and exploratory nature within their lair. D. J. Cotrona and Jovan Armand were fantastic yet again as Pedro Peña. The way he handles his coming out to the family was handled very well and builds to a moment of true acceptance and I loved that it was natural and not forced. Meagan Good and Faithe Herman were the heart of the film as the adult and child version of Darla Dudley. The innocence of the character was so much fun and beautifully showcased by both actresses. I couldn't get enough them together or even separately. Marta Milans and Cooper Andrews return as their foster parents Rosa and Victor Vásquez and they both get so many great moments to shine and really bring the family together in a touching scene.

The score by Christophe Beck was awesome and epic in all the right ways as the action in the film really ramps up. When the screen isn't filled with action, he nails the more emotional moments. Visually the film was stunning to look at and I loved that the colors popped. The creatures in the film were yet again another standout and ranged from terrifying to badass. Its been a long time since anyone has brought to life any of the iconic monsters of the Greek mythos and I loved every bit of their strong and sometimes violent nature. Where the film has problems is the last half of the film. It tends to feel bloated in the last 30 minutes as the same amount of destruction keeps happening that makes the film drag on. There are moments that could've trimmed or cut to tighten up the finale. Director David S. Sandberg directed the first film that was a fun Christmas themed family film that tackled some heavy themes and wasn't afraid to touch on the darkness of the villains. He continues that here and has made another fun family film that adults can enjoy as well. Even with the bloated third act, this was an action packed and hefty 2 hour epic that should not be missed. Do stick around for the 2 great credit scenes. I don't know where this franchise will go once the DCEU is rebooted, but I hope we see a payoff to the story crumbs leftover from these 2 scenes. Let me know what you thought of the film or my review in the comments below. Thanks for reading!

📺 Fresh Off The Boat - S2 Episode 17

Shazam! Fury of the Gods Trailer 2

The daughters of Atlas have come for their father’s powers.

Shazam! Fury of the Gods stars Zachary Levi (Shazam), Asher Angel (Billy Batson), Jack Dylan Grazer (Freddy Freeman), Adam Brody (Super Hero Freddy), Ian Chen (Eugene Choi), Ross Butler (Super Hero Eugene), Faithe Herman (Darla Dudley), Meagan Good (Super Hero Darla), Jovan Armand (Pedro Pena), D.J. Cotrona (Super Hero Pedro), Grace Caroline Currey (Mary Bromfield / Super Hero Mary), Marta Milans (Rosa Vasquez), Cooper Andrews (Victor Vasquez), Djimon Hounsou (Wizard), Rachel Zegler, Lucy Liu (Kalypso), and Helen Mirren (Hespera). David F. Sandberg directs from a screenplay by Henry Gayden and Chris Morgan.

Shazam! Fury of the Gods hits theaters on March 17, 2023.

Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023, dir. David F. Sandberg) - review by Rookie-Critic

The first Shazam! was a very funny, if not a little messy and tonally inconsistent, take on a superhero film. It wanted to be a goofy comedy, but still felt like it needed to adhere to a trappings of the genre and being a part of a larger connected universe. Fury of the Gods is basically just a lesser version of the original, with everything about the first film dialed up, which has its pros and cons. The pros are that everything that was funny in the first film is still funny here and the theme of found family still rings very true. On the former, Zachary Levi brings a ton of charm to the screen, and the whole "child in a super powered adult's body" shtick is mostly endearing. We're also getting a ton of that style from the other family members this go around, as the end of the last film (spoilers for the first Shazam! here, but if you've seen any promotional material for this one this shouldn't come as a surprise) saw all the children in the foster family receiving Shazam powers. Adam Brody, Meagan Good, Ross Butler, and D. J. Cotrona are all very funny as the aged-up versions of their respective characters, and Grace Caroline Currey, who plays Mary, the eldest of the foster kids, gets the unique privilege of playing both her regular self as well as the Shazam-ified version of her character, and does a pretty great job at both. However, the real superstar of both this and the original film is easily Jack Dylan Grazer, who is a bonafide scene stealer in everything I've seen him in. For all of this film's faults, and there are a decent number of them, I really didn't care as long as Grazer was on screen being hilarious.

Now, the film's biggest pro is also its greatest fault, and that humor that made the first film stand out has a large tendency to feel quite forced in this one. Some of the lines feel thrown in out of left field, existing for no other purpose than to attempt at a laugh, and it makes those moments feel more awkward than anything else. Also, I feel as though the filmmakers were very aware that people liked the duo and chemistry between Grazer and Levi in the first film, and sought to capitalize on that, regardless of how much time it sacrificed for both actors' counterparts. Asher Angel, who plays the un-Shazam'd Billy Batson, gets what amounts to maybe 5 minutes of screen time, and the same can be said, albeit less so, for Adam Brody, who plays Grazer's character Freddy Freeman's Shazam-form. There are times in the film where you absolutely would not be blamed for forgetting that Zachary Levi/Billy Batson even is actually a child, because he seems to hardly ever switch back, which hurts the aspect of the film that makes the comedy work: watching Levi act like a child in the body of an adult superhero.

The film also has the same problem as the first in that, for what is by all accounts a comedy, Fury of the Gods takes itself very seriously in bursts, I would say even more so than the first. There are a few moments that are outright dark, and while I'm not one to generally turn my nose up at clashing tones in movies, it is so stark of a difference between the comedic and the dramatic that it was hard not to just be confused. I found myself asking who they thought their target audience was multiple times. A lot of the drama surrounds the film's antagonists, played by Helen Mirren and Lucy Liu, and while they are both amazing actresses who are clearly outclassing everyone else in the room with them, they sometimes feel like they're from a different movie, much like Mark Strong's villain from the first Shazam!, albeit less so. Taking the good with the bad, though, I didn't hate it. The Shazam! films ask you to check your brain at the door, and I did, and because I did, I found Fury of the Gods to be a harmlessly good time. I can see this one being divisive, but if you enjoyed the first one, I think there is enough similarity between the two to keep you interested.

Score: 6/10

Currently only in theaters.

HEAR ME OUT—

American Idiot by Green Day sounds like a sitcom intro

Ykno how some show titles have a theme song of the same name n stuff

i can already imagine the title sequence with those freeze-frame poses of a random-ass cast (of whom i CANNOT find sitcom-like gifs for the life of me)

YOU ARE NOT READY FOR THIS. forgive me, but smth like uhhh:

. . .

Timothee Chalamet as ✨MR. WILSON✨

wants his kids to play COD: Modern Warfare 52 with him

Hoyeon Jung as ✨MRS. WILSON✨

gentle parenting, Asian edition

Ian Chen as ✨MCKÆIGHLANN✨

attention span of a fruit fly

[RandomAss Baby, idk baby actors sry] as ✨BABY GHOST RILEY✨

hmm i wonder who fkin named her

[This Random Yorkie] as ✨Cinnamon✨

has the most decent name of all the children

Then cue the whole family posing chaotically, then title card:

I just saw it in theaters tonight. It was so good. More serious than the first Shazam, but just as funny. My favorite DCEU movie series rn other than Wonder Woman.

Ps. Anything added in parentheses in answers 2, 4 and 5 are just a joke lol.

The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan

Fresh Off the Boat: "Where are the Giggles?"

Darla is one of the most precious children in fiction and must be protected at all costs! We’re taking no arguments at this time. Are you good at keeping secrets? Have you seen the new SHAZAM?! Let us know in the comments!