Film Review: Shazam!

My foster brother, the hero. Zachary Levi packs lycra as the kidult Billy Batson with Jack Dylan Grazer as Freddy in 'Shazam!' a surprisingly good DC comic adaptation like they used to make. Still courtesy of Warner Bros / New Line

The majority of DC superheroes are so silly that the decision to take them seriously - to make them distinct from the Marvel Cinematic Universe - seemed like a colossal mistake. You can do it with Batman because he doesn't have superpowers. As for the rest, there is no coherent universe in which they can co-exist, which partly explains why the Green Lantern was absent from the Justice League.

To anybody who doesn't watch superhero movies - I would imagine there are a few - the first paragraph won't make sense. I might just as well be babbling. Batman, Superman and perhaps Wonder Woman (with her lasso of truth) have entered into popular culture. As for the rest, you would struggle to name their alter egos. If you asked me for Wonder Woman's, I would probably say Lynda Carter (the actress who played her on TV) rather than Diana Prince.

At any rate, DC movies with the exception of the 1978 'Superman The Movie' and four out of seven Batman movies (1989 to 2012) are nothing to go to the multiplex about, though Bryan Singer's 'Superman Returns' (2006) had its moments. 'Shazam!' is a pleasant surprise, a film that acknowledges its own silliness but has heart. 

At its core, it is about a troubled teenager, Billy Batson (Asher Angel) who is taken to a group foster home and makes friends with Freddy (Jack Dylan Grazer) a superhero-obsessed kid who injured himself trying to jump out of the window. Billy desperately wants to find his mother, whom he lost at the fair as a young boy, and will even trick a couple of cops into being locked in a pawn shop to get access to the police database. Billy has no intention of being accepted into a foster family, but after saving Freddy from some bullies, who mention Freddy's lack of a mom, he ends up being summoned by an elderly Wizard (Djimon Hounsou) who transfers his powers to him. When Billy says the word 'Shazam!' he turns into a bulked up guy in a super-suit (played by Zachary Levi) with a lightning flash on his chest and a white table cloth for a cape. (Seriously - put it back.) He doesn't know what his powers are, so Freddy puts him to the test - and tries to find the right superhero name for him in the process. (One of the tests is right at the end of the credits, though you may choose to miss it.)

The Wizard was previously visited by Sivana (Mark Strong) who failed the 'pure of heart' test. As a child, Sivana was tempted by the Seven Deadly Sins in stone gargoyle form. (If you encase their bodies in stone, don't their voices follow suit?) Sivana absorbed the power of the Seven Deadly Sins, having found his way through a magic door to the Wizard's cave. Having killed his brother and sent one of the sins to dispatch his father, Sivana is told that he has a new enemy that he must overcome, i.e. Billy. If he doesn't do so, Billy will discover the true power he possesses, not just of the Wizard but of the Wizard's ancestors.

But what powers does Billy possess? The ability to be in a convenience store when two robbers turn up. Freddy asks the robbers to shoot Billy in the head to test his invulnerability before Billy discovers he has more gifts than shooting lightning from his fingers and travelling distances at super-speed.

The scene in which the kids attempt to buy alcohol has a nice payoff - you might say obvious, but I approve. Lacking a lair, Billy has no choice but to return to the foster home, where his secret is discovered by his kid foster sister, Darla (Faithe Herman).

Billy's ability to transform himself from teenager to adult gives him the opportunity to bunk off school and become an object of wonder - and also to destroy things. Being able to recharge phones with his fingers only works on newer models. At his most careless, he causes a city bus to crash and dangle precariously from the side of a bridge. Having offered the passengers an inadequate rescue option, his strength comes into play.

'Shazam!' showcases - and trashes - Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love (reflecting Billy and Freddy's relationship). 'I totally get why Rocky likes this view,' Billy says at one point. Later, the 'Love' sign gets crushed. Billy's growing social media presence and general showing off bring him to Sivana's attention. Sivana wants nothing more than Billy's power and will threaten children to get it.

The finale has a touch of a recent movie reboot about it (I won't say which one) but nicely validates Billy's new family. There is no hint of a love interest, only a clumsy scene in which superhero Billy saves foster-sister Mary (Grace Felton) who has just got into Cal Tech (not to be confused with Cal Arts, from which 'Batman' director Tim Burton graduated). 

The script by Henry Gayden has a strong blend of boy's humour and surprise. Director David F. Sandberg ('Lights Out', 'Annabelle: Creation') keeps the action zippy. What 'Shazam' lacks in wow moments it makes up with wit, knowingness and charm. It also offers a franchise with a limited shelf-life. At some point, Billy/Shazam will lose his adolescence, possibly before that call from the Justice League.

'Shazam!' opened in the UK cinemas on April 5th