Review: Shazam!

Directed by David F. Sandberg

Starring: Zachary Levi, Asher Angel, Mark Strong.

The plot follows a teenage boy who can transform into an adult superhero.

What's the best thing to do on your birthday? Watching films? That's absolutely correct. For my birthday this year, I decided to watch DC's newest entry in their cinematic universe (if that still exists at this point), Shazam! I found it to be quite decent.

I want to point out, that I prefer the dark undertones within the DC universe. I thought that Zack Snyder had a great idea with the universe, but just poorly executed it. With Shazam! It kind of throws all that out of the window and instead goes for the comedic, and more child-friendly route. I do not dislike this, but I personally thought Shazam! was a bit too childish for my liking.

The plot was pretty straight forward and follows the same formula that we are all pretty much adjusted to right now. I thought Zachary Levi was good and played the 'kid stuck inside an adults body', role right. I personally thought Mark Strong as the antagonist was meh The supporting cast was pretty good, and the chemistry was definitely displayed there. The presentation and tone of the film for the most part was cheesy/goofy, and the actual dialogue/jokes were hit or miss and I can say for the most part it was kind of miss (at least for me it was). Oh yeah for those seeing the film, only stay for the mid-credits scene, and don't bother wasting your time waiting for the after-credits scene, as it is completely pointless (I wasted my time to save yours, please don't do it, you'll thank me later).

The visual effects were pretty generic, nothing really too special. The cinematography was pretty average. For almost being 2 and a half hours long, the pacing was pretty inconsistent, and felt really slow at times. Music was the same usual generic superhero stuff, and nothing special either. Really cannot say much about the film, as I have specified like 14023 times now, this film is really nothing that special. You've seen it all before, and you will continue to see it again, as the entertainment value is surely there too.

In conclusion, a pretty safe, generic, superhero film, but a pretty entertaining one with some great performances too. Now to see what DC will do on the back of this, with what's left of their 'cinematic universe. Not that I care or anything.

My rating: 7.0/10

#2019 #FilmReview