New take on what’s good and evil
SHAZAM!
DIRECTOR: David F Sandberg CAST: Zachary Levi, Mark Strong, Asher Angel, Jack Dylan Grazer and Djimon Hounsou
CLASSIFICATION: 10-12 PG LVH RUNNING TIME: 132 Minutes RATING: ★★★✬✬
SHAZAM! transports viewers into a world where magic is real and revenge is more so.
It’s the 1970s and toxic masculinity is rife. A boy called Thad is driving with his dad and elder brother to see his grandfather. Along the way, his dad belittles him for being soft and tells him he needs to learn how to be a man.
While playing with a Magic 8 Ball, Thad suddenly finds himself in a mystical world, the Rock of Eternity. There, he meets a wizard named Shazam, the last of the seven wizards protecting the world from the evils of the seven deadly sins.
Thad is unable to continue the lineage of Shazam but that doesn’t stop the wizard from looking for a successor. It also doesn’t stop Thad from seeking revenge on his father and everyone who made him feel like he just wasn’t good enough.
Fast forward to the naughties and Shazam finally finds a successor in Billy Batson, a street-smart orphan who is sent to live in a home of other adopted kids. Your heart strings will be tugged at as each kid’s story is partially revealed.
Tween Billy has super powers that allow him to turn into an adult superhero and back into a kid at will. But Thad doesn’t care about that, he’s on a mission to destroy.
Shazam! is an interesting look at the idea of good and evil. It’s also a funny movie. There’s a little swearing so while kids can watch the movie, it would help to have parental supervision.