- I suppose I would describe Shazam! at the best non-Batman non-animated superhero movie set in the DC universe. (I'm reminded of Ken Marino's character from Party Down, who proudly describes his dream of buying into "the fastest growing non-poultry non-coffee franchise in all of Southern California.") The fact is, there are three or four Batman films -- and at least that many DC animated features -- that are better than Shazam!. And then there's that other comic book company that has made about a dozen movies better than this, one of which was even titled Captain Marvel. But if we're restricting our comparisons to live-action versions of Superman, Wonder Woman, and...uh, Green Lantern...then I guess Shazam! comes out looking pretty good!
- The film begins, as many superhero films do, by making an orphan out of its future hero. In the case of Billy Batson (Asher Angel), that means getting stranded at an amusement park and bouncing around foster care before eventually settling into the loving home of Victor and Rosa Vasquez (Cooper Andrews and Marta Milans). The adopted Vasquez clan is both extensive and diverse, consisting of the motormouthed Freddy (Jack Dylan Grazer), the academically accomplished elder Mary (Grace Fulton), the taciturn Pedro (Jovan Armand), the computer-adept Eugene (Ian Chen), and the precocious Darla (Faithe Herman). Normally I'd try to highlight which of the family members were most notable, but the film handles its young ensemble cast so well that it is difficult to pick favorites. In fact, the scenes set at the Vasquez dinner table are so endearing that they completely overshadow the superhero parts of the film.
- Forming a stark contrast to the Vasquez household is the loveless Sivana family, consisting of a domineering patriarch (John Glover), a bullying brother (Wayne Ward), and the much put-upon Thad (Mark Strong), who naturally grows up to be a supervillain. Incidentally, John Glover also played Lex Luther's father in Smallville, so he's got experience with this sort of thing. Anyway, Thad obsessively remembers the day that he was plucked out of the family car by the wizard Shazam (Djimon Hounsou), who has been searching for a champion ever since the last one -- whoopsie! -- released the Seven Deadly Sins upon the world. Although young Thad badly failed the ethics portion of the wizard's test, he has made it his life's work to track down Shazam and claim the power of the Sins as his own. As you can imagine, it sticks in his craw when Billy passes the test, becomes a superhero with the body of Zachary Levi, and thwarts Sivana's plans with the help of his loving family.
- It may seem like I glossed over most of the movie in that previous sentence, but honestly Shazam! glossed over most of the movie, too. The action scenes are perfunctory and unmemorable, and The Seven Deadly Sins in particular represent a lot of CGI effort with relatively little payoff. Sivana, too, is a forgettable villain who hews much more closely to Black Adam than to what I know of the stereotypical mad scientist Dr. Sivana from the comics. While the movie has quite a bit of silly fun with Billy discovering his powers, the real highlights are certainly the interactions between Billy and his family, which never fail to entertain. One hopes that the film's pleasantly unmuddied cinematography, its realistic locations (shot in Philadelphia), and director David F. Sandberg's efforts to introduce warmth and levity into a superhero movie will one day lead to a great DC superhero movie without all of the qualifiers.
- And that great movie will star Mr. Mind, who gets in a few cameos in this film. Or maybe Crocodile Men?
