Shazam! Fury Of The Gods (12A)

Teenager Billy Batson and his fellow foster kids wrestle with growing pains and the responsibility that comes with transforming into Shazam and their heroic alter egos. The Daughters of Atlas aka Hespera, Kalypso and Anthea arrive on Earth in search of stolen magic. The vengeful ancient gods threaten humanity and the only brave souls standing in their destructive path are Shazam and his brightly costumed compatriots.

LondonNet Film Review

Shazam! Fury Of The Gods (12A) Film Review from LondonNet

Wise-cracking teenager Billy Batson (Asher Angel) and fellow foster kids Freddy (Jack Dylan Grazer), Mary (Grace Caroline Currey), Pedro (Jovan Armand), Eugene (Ian Chen) and Darla (Faithe Herman) wrestle with growing pains as they live under the roof of their guardians, Victor and Rosa Vasquez (Cooper Andrews, Marta Milans). But, growing up looks pretty different when you possess god-like superpowers. Especially when the Daughters of Atlas aka Hespera (Helen Mirren), Kalypso (Lucy Liu) and Anthea (Rachel Zegler) arrive on Earth in search of the stolen magic. With the sisters threatening their family and humanity, the kids must channel super-human bravery and fight for what they love…

This is Deadpool for kids, a cheesy, comedic superhero movie with every trope of the genre chucked into the mix. While soundtracked brilliantly by Christophe Beck with a similar vibe to Marvel’s Guardians of The Galaxy, the plot and writing sadly fall below the mark, with every relationship, parental, fraternal and romantic in the movie feeling stilted, and many plot points shoehorned in.

Making her DC debut, Rachel Zegler plays the love interest and mysterious woman Ann well, and delivers comic lines with Bambi-like innocence. “What’s Comic-Con?” she asks when being hit on by loveable nerd Freddie. And sure, they are cute, but it all feels a bit too mushy and a bit much for a film that feels more familial. Unfortunately, the writing of ‘bad guys’ Hespera and Kalypso is surface-level, with so much opportunity missed to make the most of two brilliant actors, whose performances are enjoyable, but not ground-breaking.

More could have been made of all of the actors in this film, and no one, except perhaps the engaging and geeky Jack Dylan Grazer, seem to really meet the mark. DC combined with Greek mythology could have kids more interested in heading to museums, but I’m not sure anyone of any age will be idolising the band of kid superheroes with seemingly unlimited powers.

With so many key heroes, it is a struggle to remember half of their names and so much of this film relies on the flimsy foundations of the first one, instead of being a brilliant watch in its own right. This is – in both plot and viewership – a family film, with a loving family focus at its heart. But with a script pumped full of flat one-liners, and constant references to Gatorade and Skittles that leave a sickly taste in the mouth, this flick feels more cringe than classic.

– Jo Planter