Following Justice League, DC's new approach officially got started last December with James Wan's Aquaman, an entertaining improvement that I've nevertheless forgotten about since. But the more drastic change in course comes in the form of this April's Shazam!, based on one of their earliest superheroes, originally named Captain Marvel (subsequently, they've stopped calling him that). And with a more lighthearted, comical tone, this stands as a solid representation for where the DCEU can go from here. Shazam!, by default I'll admit, stands as the universe's second best entry following Wonder Woman.
Billy Batson (Asher Angel) has spent most of his adolescent life running from foster homes in search of his long lost mother, soon taking new residence in the Vasquez family home, growing particularly close to disabled superhero enthusiast Freddie (Jack Dylan Grazer). After avoiding some school bullies, he's encountered by the ancient wizard Shazam (Djimon Hounsou), and blessed with his incredible powers, transforming into a superhero in an adult body (Zachary Levi) every time he says the word. Discovering his newfound potential, and with the help of Freddie, he soon stands in conflict with ultra-powerful industrialist Thaddeus Sivana (Mark Strong), who's intent on absorbing Billy's powers, pushing Billy to find his courage as a true hero.
There's one very good reason why audiences love the idea of superheroes; the excitement of possessing incredible powers, battling powerful villains, and the thrill of saving the day is classic wish fulfillment. That, coupled with the obvious parallels of maturing into adulthood, is why it manages to strike such a chord with its viewers. Knowing this, Shazam! feels like the superhero answer to Big with Tom Hanks, something playfully alluded to through a tongue-in-cheek nod to the iconic piano dance. But more directly, the movie reminded me a lot of Marvel's own Spider-Man: Homecoming, built on a very similar trajectory. Be that as it may, I think this succeeds at the game better than Homecoming did.
To its admitted detriment, Shazam! is firmly planted in the origin story angle, and so its early stretches start out slow, but they do serve a purpose both in familiarizing us with the ancient character, and to give us great insight into Billy's motivations. Having been lost by his mother at a very young age, Billy is so caught up with the past that he refuses to look to the future. He's single-minded in his goals of finding sense in the old life he lost, leading him to be reclusive and defensive as a result. Through Asher Angel's strong performance as his child self, we see a rough, but convincing portrait of a broken boy struggling to make sense of his new life, denying himself a sense of welcoming happiness he needs, and deserves.
But his life is thrown for a new loop after encountering the ancient wizard Shazam, gaining an incredible new array of magical powers. This is where the film is really firing on all cylinders, because Zachary Levi utterly dominates this movie. He is a tidal wave of charisma, playing the superhero model relatively straight for full comedic effect, but still shining through with that unmistakable childlike enthusiasm, leading to some gut-busting laughs all the way through. But even so, he never diminishes or lets go of the tragedy of young Billy's inner-conflict, with the alter-ego becoming a literal and figurative shield from facing his issues, blessed with the body of a hero, but still bearing the cowardice of a boy. Levi almost single-handedly carries this movie on his shoulders at some points, throwing himself into the unabashed silliness with gleeful gusto, becoming a huge beating heart through the movie.
But great as he is, scene-stealer status has to go to his foster brother Freddie, played by Jack Dylan Grazer. As the most prominent face Billy meets in the new foster house, he's the most vital in breaking down his morose attitude. In spite of his disablement, he's an unabashed beacon of enthusiasm that lights up the room anytime he appears. Being a superhero fanboy, he becomes Billy's closest ally in realizing his full potential, and some of the most endearing and funniest sections of the film come from their interactions, as Freddie lays witness to the incredible feats of his new foster brother, even if inevitably growing distant from him at his eventual misuse of those abilities. It's also to his and the movie's eternal credit he shares such effortless chemistry with both Angel AND Levi, filling the screen with delightful comic details, as well as some riotous double acts.
The rest of Billy's new foster family is also the compelling bunch, each sharing their own unique interactions and interplay opposite their new arrival, contributing greatly to the movie's huge heart, with the seemingly disparate group finding great common ground and camaraderie, finding the good that can come of such eclectic personalities banding together (even hailing from various ethnic backgrounds, which the film is surprisingly progressive in handling), and some of the best surprises in the film come from their later stretches in stellar culmination.
Alas, Shazam! is still not perfect, and does fall victim to some other unfortunate trappings of the genre. Chief among them is the weak villain, this being Sivana, an industrialist given his power by manifestations of the seven deadly sins. This isn't the fault of Mark Strong, who gives it his absolute all in the performance, and casts a genuinely intimidating shadow that is effective when it's called upon. It's just the way the character is written. They at least try to give him some unique motivation in the plot, in that he's a dark mirror of Billy, hailing from an abusive childhood, but even so, nothing truly stands out about this character. He's still so nondescript and generic as a main foil, running through the familiar antagonist motions and tropes, and even spends such a hefty amount of time off screen, I almost forgot he was in it until he reappears. He succeeds at what he needs to do, but essentially only exists to give the protagonist something to fight.
Going hand in hand with the villain issues is the film's climax, and the final showdown with him. Generally, the movie is a lot more intimate than the usual DC movie, a virtue that serves in favor of director David Sandberg of Lights Out, with the action generally being smaller scale and self-contained, before eventually building to a big finale. But said big finale is unfortunately undercut by some sloppy visual realization, consisting of bright colors fighting against CGI blobs, and honestly starts to wear out its welcome a bit as the battle goes on for such a lengthy amount of time. Despite an otherwise breezy 132 minutes, the finale gets progressively tiresome as it keeps building and building.
But in spite of that, this is still a thoroughly enjoyable time at the movies. In a pleasant 180 from the grim beginnings of this shared universe, there is such an irrepressible joy flowing through this movie. There's not a single cynical bone in it, bursting with infectious fun and side-splitting comedy (some eagle eyed viewers will even be amused by characters attempting to give Billy's alter ego a name, while never bringing themselves to outright say "Captain Marvel"). If not perfect, it's still such a fun romp outshining most of the DCEU's output, and honestly a better superhero outing than the actual Captain Marvel.
DC still has a way to go, but they've already made huge strides in improvement, and I can only hope that their Wonder Woman sequel will be able to keep their streak running. Despite my feelings that the MCU is more consistent, both universes are perfectly capable of co-existing, and can take us on equally entertaining rides. Just say the word...
***1/2 / *****
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