Shazam! Review

Shazam!


Release Date: 4th April 2019 - Australia 


Production Companies
Warner Bros. Pictures

New Line Cinema
DC Comics
DC Entertainment 
Seven Bucks Productions
The Safran Company

Distribution
Roadshow Distribution 


Genre: Action

Rating: M

Runtime: 132 minutes


Budget: $100,000,000

Box Office Gross: $365,971,656 (Worldwide)


Plot Summary
We all have a superhero
inside of us -- it just takes a
bit of magic to bring it out. In
14-year-old Billy Batson's
case, all he needs to do is
shout out one word to
transform into the adult
superhero Shazam. Still a kid
at heart, Shazam revels in
the new version of himself by
doing what any other teen 
would do -- have fun while 
testing out his newfound 
powers. But he'll need to 

master them quickly before 

the evil Dr. Thaddeus Sivana 

can get his hands on 
Shazam's magical abilities. (Source - Google)


Cast
Asher Angel - Billy Batson
Zachary Levi - Shazam
Mark Strong - Dr. Thaddeus Sivana
Jack Dylan Grazer - Freddy Freeman
Grace Fulton - Mary Bromfeld
Faithe Herman - Darla Dudley
Ian Chen - Eugene Choi
Jovan Armand - Pedro Pena
Cooper Andrews - Victor 

Vasquez
Marta Milans - Rosa Vasquez
Djimon Hounsou - Wizard
Adam Brody - Super Hero Freddy
Ross Butler - Super Hero Eugene
Michelle Borth - Super Hero Mary
D.J. Cotrona - Super Hero Pedro
Meagan Good - Super Hero Darla
John Glover - Mr. Sivana
Wayne Ward - Sid Sivana
David Kohlsmith - Young Billy
Ethan Pugiotto - Thaddeus Sivana (1974)
Landon Doak - Sid Sivana (1974)
Caroline Palmer - Billy's Mom
Keisha T. Fraser - Rachel Batson
Andi Osho - Ms. E.B. Glover
Lotta Losten - Dr. Lynn Crosby
Lisa Truong - Ms. Kwan
Carson MacCormac - Brett Breyer
Evan Marsh - Burke Breyer
Steve Blum - Sin (Voice)
Darin De Paul - Sin (Voice)
Fred Tatasciore - Sin (Voice)

Crew
Director - David F. Sandberg
Shazam Creators - Bill Parker and C.C. Beck
Superman Creators - Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster
Story/Screenplay - Henry Gayden
Story - Darren Lemke
Executive Producer/Unit Production Manager -
Jeffrey Chernov
Executive Producers - Richard Brener,
Christopher Godsick, Walter Hamada,
Dave Neustadter, Dany & Hiram Garcia,
Geoff Johns, Adam Schlagman and
Dwayne Johnson
Producer - Peter Safran
Co-Producer - David Witz
Production Designer - Jessica Spence
Set Decorator - Shane Vieau
Costume Designer - Leah Butler
Director of Photography - Maxime Alexandre
Second Unit Director - John Mahaffie
Stunt Coordinators - Kyle Gardiner and
Larry Lam
Fight Coordinator - Chan Griffin
Special Effects Supervisors - Mark Lawton and
Cameron Waldbauer
Special Effects Coordinator - Rocco Larizza
Visual Effects Supervisors - Kelvin McIlwain
and Mike Wassel
Visual Effects Producer - Cari Thomas
Additional Visual Effects - John Dykstra
Animation Supervisor - Peter Dydo
Film Editor - Michel Aller
Music Supervisor - Season Kent
Music - Benjamin Wallfisch


Review
The DC Extended Universe (DCEU) hasn’t had a great film since 'Wonder Woman', although the release of 'Aquaman' changed all of the fans’ perception of DCEU for the most part in 2018. However, after years of unsuccessfully copycatting the Marvel Cinematic Universe. 'SHAZAM!' marks a definite shift away from this mimicry and is among the latest movies to come from DCEU along with the forthcoming release of 'The Joker'. I remember the title character when I first watched the episode of 'Justice League' which was called Captain Marvel. However, this name has nothing to do with Marvel’s titular super heroine. Although the 'SHAZAM!' comic is hardly obscure for DC, it predates the film by about 80 years.

This cheerful, exciting romp reminds me of Richard Donner’s 'Superman' where you get this lighthearted feel to the movie and be highly entertained. In 'SHAZAM!', there’s even a heartwarming subplot about the foster home and the occasional bits of drama where the main character is desperately searching for his long-lost mother from whom he was separated when he was younger. The way the film portrays 'SHAZAM!' it is as if it was more like a comedy rather than any average superhero feature. Not many films from the genre, like 'Iron Man' or 'Guardians of the Galaxy', had the ability to convey this infectious hilarity, nor had the sense of cheesiness which isn't a bad thing.

I must say Zachary Levi was a perfect casting choice for the role of Shazam. This is because he usually does comedies, so he was playing to his strengths. Young Jack Dylan Grazer does well as Billy's foster brother and best friend Freddy Freeman. Even Mark Strong gets his chance to shine in a DC movie as Shazam's arch-nemesis. He seems to be doing better in this role in a DC movie than what he did as Sinestro in 'Green Lantern'.

'SHAZAM!' is an outstanding film for both DC fans or anyone who has never read the comics. It is a fast-paced, lighthearted popcorn blockbuster that is bound to keep audiences excited and enthralled. Remember, to say the magic word!

Star rating: (9/10) Excellent Movie

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