Shazam! A new hope for DC?

Even though superhero movies are in an all time high in pretty much any possible aspect, there is one thing that has been almost a constant these years, and that is that except for a very few exceptions, DC has always been living in the shadow of the giant Marvel.

Justice League was a huge let down, failing in all possible ways. Wonder Woman did its best, but was still not as bi as it was expected, and Aquaman tried to stay afloat, but it just wasn’t up to the challenge. In this aspect Shazam! May just be what DC needs right now, but let’s talk about that a little more.

Just what DC needed?

There is one thing the DC cinematographic universe needed is more color, and we are ot just talking about the visual colors, even though they needed e huge help with these too. A change of tonality and a step out of the Zack Snyder visual style, a different colored script, with more likeable, interesting or just easier to relate characters.

It seems as if Shazam! is aimed directly to a much younger audience than the rest of the current DC extended universe, and while it may be true, it certainly can be classified as a family movie, with things everyone can enjoy. This being said, since it is aimed at younger audiences the plot goes a little bit too soft sometimes, and you can see how they were really careful as to jeep it self-contained, in order not to interfere or have a lot to do with the rest of the DC extended universe.

Shazam! is funny without much effort and will most likely get at least a gag or two out of you, even if you’re an adult, and it will have an entertaining enough pace and story to leave a nice after taste.

The movie is more fantastic and colorful than most of the DCEU, and has some great cinematography too. Shazam! is an incredibly likeable character, no complicated feelings on this character, no love interest, just a kid that ends up being an amazing Super Man-like superhero by magic (quite literally).

Synopsis

(Official synopsis) – We all have a superhero inside us, it just takes a bit of magic to bring it out. In Billy Batson’s (Angel) case, by shouting out one word—SHAZAM!—this streetwise 14-year-old foster kid can turn into the adult Super Hero Shazam (Levi), courtesy of an ancient wizard. Still a kid at heart—inside a ripped, godlike body—Shazam revels in this adult version of himself by doing what any teen would do with superpowers: have fun with them! Can he fly? Does he have X-ray vision? Can he shoot lightning out of his hands? Can he skip his social studies test? Shazam sets out to test the limits of his abilities with the joyful recklessness of a child. But he’ll need to master these powers quickly in order to fight the deadly forces of evil controlled by Dr. Thaddeus Sivana (Strong). –