Thomas Hoffmann
If anything distinguishes Shazam! Fury of the Godsdirected by David F. Sandberg, is that it knows well where it came from and where the success of its predecessor lay. In fact, within its first few minutes, the film makes it clear that it is a story with a huge heart. The adoptive family of Billy (Asher Angel) is now the center of his life, his intentions and the actions of his super-powered alter ego.
The script, by Henry Gayden, Chris Morgan and Bill Parker, is nimble enough to immediately summarize what needs to be remembered about the plot. The young man, who is transformed into an athletic character by virtue of the invocation. ShazamHe is no longer alone. His brothers are a powerful, well-knit and better cohesive team. A point to which the film will return again and again. After all, and beyond its intentions to add information to the DC world, it is a plot that pays tribute to love, friendship and loyalty.
Perhaps that’s its biggest problem, though. Despite the fact that its young characters have grown up enough, the film still thinks of them as children. Throughout Shazam! The Fury of the Gods the focus is on jokes about being in awe of their abilities and the possibilities of their power. The film is coy in showing Billy’s maturity and making it evident that time passes quickly for these accidental superheroes who are still learning a bit about their new abilities.
Shazam! The Fury of the Gods
David F. Sandberg’s Shazam! The Rage of the Gods retains the good humor, wit and sense of entertainment of its predecessor. But it dares not innovate on its superhero family formula. Instead, it makes it broader and concentrates, again, on the chemistry shared by Billy and his brothers. Which makes the plot become predictable and shallow. Despite this, Zachary Levy’s Shazam has all the radiant enthusiasm of the child he harbors inside him and the early signs of maturity of a budding hero. Will we see him again in DC’s future? The film’s open ending suggests so.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Score : 3.5 out of 5.
If anything is missed in Shazam! The Fury of the Gods is a bit of experimentation, risk and contradiction of his friendly formula. The director, who succeeded in posing a figure of super abilities with a childlike heart, tries another with less success. It is evident that the plot needs new spaces that allow him to tell his story, but the film returns to his pleasant jokes, to the idea of Philadelphia turned into a big playground for metahumans. Billyloved by his relatives, has little to fear from the future.
So the Shazam an adult, played by Zachary Levy, is a mocking reverse of Superman. The initial section of Shazam! The Fury of the Gods moves along amidst a handful of jokes and references to the DC world. It’s clear that the film was shot before the big changes to the franchise and there’s a certain lag in how the context they inhabit is perceived.
In the same way as in Black Adammentions and references to the great heroes waiting somewhere, but who remain invisible, are constant. With the exception of a notorious cameo, which provides data on when the plot takes place.
A story that doesn’t need another story to sustain itself
But the nonchalant premise of Shazam! The Fury of the Gods doesn’t fit into a particular timeline. The major interest of the superheroes is the welfare of their curiously insular city. Despite the fact that Freddy (Jack Dylan Grazer) is still obsessed with the great masked figures he dreams of meeting. In essence, the feature film needs no more information than what its first part provided to narrate the adventures of its protagonists.
Nevertheless, within its small confines there is a great deal of activity. Shazam! The Fury of the Gods takes pains to carefully detail the lives of its protagonists and what awaits for them. Especially of BillyCan he aspire to a normal life as the leader of a super-powered team?
The question arises in the face of a decision about a promising future that is not very clear. The character, free of the problems that plagued him in the previous film, ponders what will happen in the coming years. What can he expect from college, dating and the life of any kid his age if he carries the responsibility of lightning on his shoulders?
Billy, from Shazam! The fury of the gods, is in trouble again
Shazam! the fury of the gods would have been much more consistent had it answered its own questions. But, instead, it lets them pass and hurries to show the conflict at hand. This time it is not villains, but gods come to confront Shazam with all the fullness of their portentous nature. The plot moves forward almost in a rushed manner to the appearance of Hespera (Helen Mirren), Kalypso (Lucy Liu) and Anthea (Rachel Zegler), who have a duty to perform. One that will turn them into nemeses of the central hero.
However, the script is not very clear about their motives. Hespera is portentous and has every reason to hate the world of man and to challenge the Shazam. But the film does not show them. Once again, the premise is again more interested in making people laugh than in delving into its essential elements. In its second section, Shazam! The Fury of the Gods becomes confusing. Amid puns, scenes with digital effects of questionable quality and an uneven plot, the film declines rapidly.
Lucy Liu as Kalypso in Shazam! The Fury of the Gods
All this despite the director’s attempts to give all the situations he hints at a space of considerable interest. But the possible battle between the goddesses and Shazamthe dilemmas of Freddy and what encompasses the mere existence of the group become loose ends. There is an obvious disinterest in narrating a concrete plot, beyond demonstrating that it is still a tale for laughs at the expense of superheroes.
A battle that remains in the inkwell
In spite of everything, David F. Sandberg knows what the strengths of his plot are and explores them in a wide and irregular scenario. The director devotes the best sequences to the affectionate relationship of the superhero brothers. Also to exciting moments that are linked with great action sequences.
Shazam is not only the visible head of a team of superheroes. He also cares about each of them. These loving family members demonstrate the power of caring, loyalty and moral integrity. In particular, the chemistry of Billy y Freddy provides to Shazam! The Fury of the Gods several of his finest moments.
Helen Mirren as Hespera in Shazam! The Fury of the Gods
One and the other, both being ordinary-looking boys and the extraordinary figures in colorful costumes they become, are complicit in mischief. Whether laughing as they play pranks on each other in their living room or throwing cars at each other. The film makes it clear that what is truly important in all the conflicts it presents is family.
More irreverent -there are at least a dozen jokes about Marvel fans will recognize-but not as ambitious as it could be, Shazam! The Fury of the Gods falls halfway short of the promise its early sequels offer. However, it is still original enough to be a breath of fresh air in an often cluttered and bleak franchise. Perhaps, its greatest quality.