Billy Batson is a 14-year-old boy who is in the foster system. Previously Billy has moved from home to home and soon gets relocated to another new family. When he’s not attending school, Billy spends his time seeking the whereabouts of his birth mother who he got separated from while visiting a theme park as a small child.

Billy is not enjoying life presently (and thinks his new foster family is a little odd), but things are about to become more attractive in Billy’s life. While escaping from a pair of bullies, Billy is chosen by a wizard who gives him the ultimate power to bring good and evil into balance. Billy can now take on an adult form (played by actor Zachery Levi) and soon finds out what it truly means to be a superhero and the importance of family…

For those who are not aware, Shazam is part of the DC Universe. If you pay attention while watching Shazam, you will find many references to previous DC instalments (including Batman, Superman blah blah).

I enjoyed the performance of the actor Zachary Levi. Here, he is so full of energy and is genuinely likeable as a character. Naturally, it is his performance which is a real highlight of the film. It’s only a shame it takes approx 40 – 45mins for him actually to appear, but this is expected given the film’s premise and the setup required as it is the 1st film for a new character in the DC universe.

The film’s audio and visual on 4K is fantastic, and I have to give full credit to the work of costumes designers, especially in the colours.

The runtime of Shazam is generally positive until the last act. It’s during this act that film begins to feel a little too long and there is a slight struggle during the film’s finale.

The film’s villain was also different to what I expected. Without giving too much away, I found myself enjoying some of the critical moments of our evil villain and then at other times, not so much. Needless to say, whenever our villain interacts with our leading hero, I found their interactions rather fun and the film manages to bring some new jokes to the screen.

Overall, Shazam is a harmless superhero movie. Actor Zachary Levi is easily the best part of this film, bringing plenty of energy as he makes the main character very likeable. This is a definite movie for the world of DC, and fans will find enjoyment here even if it’s not 100% perfect. 

7.0/10

Thank you for visiting! Walkden Entertainment is also available on:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/walkdenentertainment/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/walkdenentertainment/

Letterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/Peter_Walkden/

Review Written by Peter Walkden