If something distinguishes Shazam! The fury of the gods, directed by David F. Sandberg, is that it knows well where it comes from and where the success of its predecessor lay. In fact, during its first few minutes, the film makes it clear that it is a story with enormous 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 you need to remember about the plot. The young man, who transforms into an athletic character by virtue of the summoning Shazam!, he is no longer alone. His brothers are a powerful, well-matched and more cohesive team. A question 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.
Although perhaps that is his biggest problem. 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 amazed at his abilities and the possibilities of his power. The film is shy of showing Billy’s maturity and making it clear that time is moving quickly for these accidental superheroes who are still learning a little about their new abilities.
Shazam! The fury of the gods
The movie Shazam! David F. Sandberg’s The Fury of the Gods retains the humor, wit, and sense of entertainment of its predecessor. But he doesn’t dare to innovate on his superhero family formula. Instead, he broadens it and focuses, again, on the chemistry Billy and his siblings share. What makes the argument become predictable and superficial. Despite this, Zachary Levy’s Shazam has all the radiant enthusiasm of the child within him and the first signs of maturity of a hero in the making. Will we see him again in the future of DC? The film’s open ending suggests as much.
If something is missing in Shazam! The fury of the gods it is a bit of experimentation, risk and contradiction of his friendly formula. The director, who succeeded in casting a super-skilled figure with a childish heart, tries another with less success. It is evident that the plot needs new spaces that allow it to tell its story, but the film returns to its pleasant jokes, to the idea of Philadelphia turned into a great playground for metahumans. billyloved by his relatives, does not have much to fear in the future.
so the Shazam adult, played by Zachary Levy, is a mocking reverse of Superman. The initial stretch of Shazam! The fury of the gods moves through a handful of jokes and references to the world of DC. It is evident that the film was filmed before the big changes in the franchise and there is a certain gap in how the context they inhabit is perceived.
In the same way as in Black Adam, the mentions and references to the great heroes who wait somewhere, but who remain invisible, are constant. With the exception of a notorious cameo, which provides data on when the plot occurs.
A story that does not need another to sustain itself
But the carefree premise of Shazam! The fury of the gods It doesn’t fit into a specific timeline. The superheroes’ greatest interest is the welfare of their curiously insular city. Despite Freddy (Jack Dylan Grazer) remains obsessed with the great masked figures he dreams of meeting. In essence, the feature film does not need more information than that provided by its first part to narrate the adventures of its protagonists.
However, within its small limits there is great activity. Shazam! The fury of the gods he strives to carefully detail the lives of his protagonists and what he hopes for them. especially of billy, which is in the middle of difficult terrain. Can you hope for a normal life as the leader of a super-powered team?
The question arises before the decision on a promising future that is not very clear. The character, free of the problems that affected him in the previous film, considers what will happen in the coming years. What can he expect in college, dating, and the life of any guy his age if he’s taking the blame for lightning on his back?
Billy, from Shazam! The fury of the gods, he’s in trouble again
Shazam! The fury of the gods he would have been much more consistent had he answered his own questions. But instead, she lets them pass and rushes to show the conflict on duty. This time it’s not about villains, but about gods come to face Shazam with all the fullness of his mighty nature. The plot advances almost hastily to the appearance of Hewaits (Helen Mirren) Kalypso (Lucy Liu) and Anthea (Rachel Zegler), you have a duty to perform. One that will make them the nemesis of the central hero.
However, the script is not very clear about its motives. Hewaits is portentous and has well-founded reasons to hate the world of man and defy Shazam. But the tape doesn’t show them. Once again, the premise is once again more interested in making people laugh than in delving into its essential elements. In his second installment, Shazam! The fury of the gods it gets confusing. Amid puns, scenes with digital effects of questionable quality, and an uneven plot, the film quickly falls apart.
All of this despite the director’s attempts to provide all the situations that he insinuates with 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 specific plot, beyond demonstrating that it is still a story to laugh at the expense of superheroes.
A battle that remains in the inkwell
Despite everything, David F. Sandberg knows what the strengths of his argument are and explores them in a wide and irregular setting. The director dedicates the best sequences to the affectionate relationship between the superhero brothers. He also to exciting moments that are linked with great action sequences.
Shazam He is not only the visible head of a superhero team. Also, he cares about each one of them. These loving family members demonstrate the power of caring, loyalty, and moral integrity. Specifically, the chemistry of billy and Freddy gives to Shazam! The fury of the gods some of his best moments.
Both as ordinary-looking boys and as the extraordinary figures in colorful suits they become, they are accomplices in mischief. Whether it’s laughing when playing pranks in your 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 the family.
More irreverent — there are at least a dozen jokes about Marvel that fans will recognize—but not as ambitious as it could be, Shazam! The fury of the gods it falls short of the promises that its first sequences offer. However, it’s still original enough to be a breath of fresh air in an often messy and bleak franchise. Perhaps his greatest quality.