Movie Review: Shazam! Fury of the Gods

Despite the fun and comradery present in 2019’s Shazam!, that film’s sequel – Shazam! Fury of the Gods – unfortunately takes the property down the too often travelled road of over-dramatized and overblown entries that populate the DC Extended Cinematic Universe (DCECU).

This new entry continues the story of Billy Batson (Asher Angel) – a teenager who can transform himself into a superhero almost as powerful as Superman by speaking the word “Shazam!” – and his extended foster-family of fellow superheroes as they do battle with the now resurrected Greek gods Hespera (Helen Mirren), Kalypso (Lucy Liu), and Anthea (Rachel Zegler) who are determined to reclaim the powers of the gods for themselves.

Returning director David F. Sandberg and screenwriter Henry Gayden are joined by Chris Morgan who serves as an additional screenwriter apparently added to ensure that the film gets the DCECU treatment and becomes an unwieldy and overwrought narrative that loses the very thing that proved successful in the first place, the film’s characters. From the onset, there is very little that proves enjoyable in this film. It begins with more explosions and destruction than were present in the first film (and ultimately ends that way too) and rarely pauses to allow the family dynamic that worked so well in the first film to take control of the reigns.

It also doesn’t help that the film appears to want to take place almost immediately after the first installment despite it being rather obvious that all the principles have aged quite noticeably since then. Add to that a story arc that plays out exactly like the last few Superman films and Shazam! Fury of the Gods sadly becomes another failed entry to the DCECU.

Helen Mirren and Zachary Levi in “Shazam! Fury of the Gods.” Photo by Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures – © 2023 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

Even though the odds are stacked against them, the players all seem determined to give their all to the overall production. Zachary Levi is again quite effective as the titular hero despite being saddled with such an overwhelmingly tedious film. Of the three main villains in the story only Rachel Zegler’s Anthea is allowed to develop any sort of character other than a one-note destroy everything because I’m angry mentality. Similarly, Jack Dylan Grazer’s Freddy Freeman is the sole member of the super gang that is afforded any character growth in this entry and that lack of recognizing the worth of the ensemble cast hurts the film overall.

With all the talk of the reinvigorated approach being taken with the DCECU moving forward, it is discouraging to find that Shazam! Fury of the Gods, one of the first offerings of this new regime is equally, if not more, disappointing than previous entries of the DCECU given the success of its namesake.

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Mike Tyrkus

Editor in Chief at CinemaNerdz.com

An independent filmmaker, co-writer and director of over a dozen short films, the Editor in Chief of CinemaNerdz.com has spent much of the last three decades as a writer and editor specializing in biographical and critical reference sources in literature and the cinema, beginning in February 1991 reviewing films for his college newspaper. He was a member of the Detroit Film Critics Society, as well as the group's webmaster and one-time President for over a decade until the group ceased to exist. His contributions to film criticism can be found in Magill's Cinema Annual, VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever (of which he was the editor for nearly a decade until it too ceased to exist), the International Dictionary of Films and Filmmakers, and the St. James Film Directors Encyclopedia (on which he collaborated with editor Andrew Sarris). He has also appeared on the television program Critic LEE Speaking alongside Lee Thomas of FOX2 and Adam Graham, of The Detroit News. He currently lives in the Detroit area with his wife and their dogs.

@miketyrkus

Mike Tyrkus

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