Zachary Levi returns once again to reprise his unlikely superhero role as Billy Batson, the boy who can turn into Shazam. In the midst of the DCEU facing a potential overhaul, the franchise is continuing in the Zack Snyder-created universe for now, while Warner Bros work on the next era of superhero films.

The big bad of this new film is a shared endeavour this time around, and it brings Hollywood icons Helen Mirren and Lucy Liu into the mix as dominating figures, the Daughters of Atlas, whose fury fuels their endeavour to reap havoc upon Earth as revenge for the death of their Father and the collapse of their own civilisation. Their involvement only sets to deepen the on-screen history of the Wizard who bestowed the powers of Shazam onto Billy and unravel a few more unanswered questions left from the first film.

One of the film’s strengths has carried over from the first film with the cast of teenagers that have bonded under the loving care of their foster parents still being intact for the most part.

The younger Billy Batson, played by Asher Angel, unfortunately, doesn’t get much of a chance to shine in this iteration as the majority of his shared character role is carried out while in the adult version of himself. His resolve from the first film, finally realising that he had a family to turn to, is being tested as he is now months away from turning 18, which will be the end of his foster care.

The more relaxed and childlike wonder effect is shown early on when Billy and his siblings all transform into their powerful alter egos to save a city from imminent disaster. A visual spectacle of a wildly unlikely situation was handled with relative ease by the group as their excitement at saving the world shone at its brightest.

There are moments that don’t exactly match the upbeat personas, however, as a woman screams for her life while Shazam cracks a joke that he saved her, all while “holding out for a hero” plays in the background, and then turns around in the same scene to tell his best friend, Freddy, to take things seriously, seemed like a mismatch of ideals.

Speaking of Freddy, the young Jack Dylan Grazer was a fan favourite from the first film and his story arc was a more prominent role in this entry. As a teenager who has difficulty walking, being able to transform into a superhero at will has invigorated his drive to branch out, and his confidence was seemingly tied to his hidden abilities.

Having a complicated love story with Anthea, played by Rachel Zegler, challenges his newfound confidence to find out if it was truly himself that he believed in or his superhero alter-ego, Captain Every Power, which he graciously named himself as.

The duality of most of the team was explored more than in the previous film, with Pedro coming out of his shell in his child version and not letting his superhero form change his mannerisms. Freddy’s alter-ego was a reactive version of himself, and Darla maintaining her child-like innocence was refreshing to see. This was again where I found the most difficult portion of the character of Billy was shown as his alter ego behaviour just felt to be such a disconnect to his humble, stern, and withdrawn behaviours when Asher was on screen.

Balancing all six characters is a task on its own, but then also trying to balance the three main villains was also an issue to deal with. Two main protagonists had one being the stern leader and the other a vengeful and bloodlust fuelled force that didn’t get to develop much outside of being the main damage dealer.

When the pinnacle of the movie began to flourish and the impressively crafted assault on the city had begun, all minor concerns were momentarily shelved as the immense battle scenes showcased stunning CGI work as a ground-shattering battle ensued. It’s hard to fault the look and feel of the fight, the comedy quips, and the unexpected revelations added to the experience in a balanced way.

Shazam! Fury of the Gods is at its most electric when the stakes are at their highest, and the comedy quips and jabs are fitting for the group, and ultimately, it was an enjoyable ride. This self-contained story, while being open to the greater universe it resides in, gives enough reason to jump back, even if it didn’t move the franchise forward in a huge manner.

Written by: Shane Fletcher