SHAZAM! FURY OF THE GODS is entertaining and light-hearted with a good humour quotient.

Shazam! Fury of the Gods (English) Review {3.0/5} & Review Rating

SHAZAM! FURY OF THE GODS is a story of a group of superheroes who are challenged by powerful Gods. 2 years have passed since the events of the first film. Billy Batson (Asher Angel) continues to live as Shazam (Zachary Levi) while Freddy (Jack Dylan Grazer), Eugene Choi (Ian Chen), Darla (Faithe Herman), Mary (Grace Fulton) and Pedro (Jovan Armand) also adjust to survive with their superhero alter-egos. They try doing ‘superhero duties’ and in the process, get slammed by the media. Freddy meets Anne (Rachel Zegler) in his school and falls for her. She, too, develops feelings for him. However, Freddy is miffed that while he’s trying to woo her, Billy interferes in his life and doesn’t give him space. One day, while trying to impress Anne, Freddy gets a shock as he realizes that she’s actually Anthea, the daughter of Atlas. Anthea, and her two sisters, Hespera (Helen Mirren) and Kalypso (Lucy Liu), kidnap Freddy and strip him of his superpowers. Shazam and the other superheroes reach out to help but they are unable to do so. The superheroes are told to hand over their powers to the sisters, failing which they’ll eliminate Freddy. Freddy is thrown in a prison in Greece where his cellmate is none other than the Wizard (Djimon Hounsou), who handed over the powers to Billy. What happens next forms the rest of the film.

Henry Gayden and Chris Morgan’s story is entertaining. Henry Gayden and Chris Morgan’s screenplay is light-hearted for most of the run time and goes well with the zone of SHAZAM. The writing falters in a few places but overall, the script is well-fleshed out. The dialogues are one of the strengths of the film and take the humour level many notches higher.

David F Sandberg’s direction is first-rate. He keeps the mood light and peppers the narrative with some outrageously funny scenes. At the same time, he also works on the emotional scenes and it adds to the impact. Moreover, the references to HARRY POTTER, GAME OF THRONES, FAST & FURIOUS and even Marvel will be loved by the audiences.

On the flipside, the climax fight is clichéd. It also gets too heavy and underwhelming. The plot point about the unicorns is cool but also seems forced and unconvincing. Lastly, the buzz for the film is limited in India and this can affect its box-office prospects.

SHAZAM! FURY OF THE GODS begins with a rocking sequence in the museum. It makes it evident that the daughters of Atlas will give a tough fight to the superheroes. The scene of the bridge collapse is okay while Freddy falling for Anne is cute. The fun begins once Anne shows her true face and when Freddy gets kidnapped. Freddy and the Wizard’s conversation is hilarious. But two scenes which bring the house down are Shazam’s dreaming about the date with a superhero and Hespera reading the letter sent by the superheroes. Post-interval, the main focus is on the finale fight. The emotional moment between Billy and the foster mother is touching. The climax fight could have been better but the scene thereafter saves the day.

Speaking of performances, Zachary Levi rocks the show yet again. Asher Angel gets limited scope but Jack Dylan Grazer has a lengthy screen time and adds to the madness. Ian Chen, Faithe Herman, Grace Fulton and Jovan Armand are decent while the actors playing the adult superheroes – Adam Brody, Ross Butler, Meagan Good and D J Cotrona – also do well. Rachel Zegler leaves a huge mark. Helen Mirren and Lucy Liu are damn good as the antagonists. Djimon Hounsou has a much better role this time and is entertaining. Marta Milans (Rosa) and Cooper Andrews (Victor) are lovely. Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman) is superb in a cameo role, as expected.

Christophe Beck’s music is in sync with the film’s mood. Gyula Pados’s cinematography is breath taking. Paul Kirby’s production design is appealing. Louise Mingenbach’s costumes are realistic. The action is family-friendly. VFX is top-class. Michel Aller’s editing is fair.

On the whole, SHAZAM! FURY OF THE GODS is an entertaining and light-hearted superhero film that works due to the humour quotient, strong storyline and performances. At the box office, however, it will need strong word of mouth to excel.