Shazam! Fury of the Gods (Movie Download & Review)

American superhero movie Shazam! Fury of the Gods, released in 2023, is based on the DC Comics character Shazam. It is the follow-up to Shazam! (2019) and the 12th entry in the DC Extended Universe, produced by New Line Cinema, DC Studios, and the Safran Company, and released by Warner Bros. Pictures. (DCEU). Zachary Levi, Asher Angel, Jack Dylan Grazer, Rachel Zegler, Adam Brody, Ross Butler, Meagan Good, Lucy Liu, Djimon Hounsou, and Helen Mirren appear in the David F. Sandberg-directed, Peter Safran-produced, Henry Gayden and Chris Morgan-written movie. In the movie, Billy Batson/Shazam battles the Daughters of Atlas alongside his foster brothers.

Following the release of Shazam! in April 2019, a sequel was immediately in production. Morgan joined shortly after to revise Gayden's screenplay. By December of that year, Sandberg and Levi (Shazam) were also expected back. Zegler, Mirren, and Liu were cast as the daughters of Atlas in early 2021 after the title and the rest of the returning ensemble were confirmed in August 2020. Atlanta, Georgia hosted the filming, which started that May and ran through August.

Shazam! On March 14, 2023, the Fox Village Theater in Los Angeles' Westwood district hosted the film's world debut. On March 17, 2023, it was theatrically released in this country. The movie earned $68 million worldwide and got mixed reviews from critics.

The 2019 film Shazam! provided a charming introduction to the DC Comics character Billy Batson, a young man who encounters a wizard and gains the power to transform into an adult superhero by saying a special word. In the upcoming Shazam! sequel, Billy is returning along with his foster siblings, who share similar superhuman alter egos. The Gods' fury. However, this sequel loses a lot of the charm of the first, much like some kids who lose their cuteness as they get older. Despite having the elaborate action sequences, vivid villains, and world-saving plot devices typical of comic book movies, some of the magic is lacking.

The Daughters of Atlas, three ancient deities who have come to Earth to reclaim the magical abilities that the wizard Shazam (Djimon Hounsou) stole from them, serve as the plot's antagonists. (Why they need them, since they seem to still have plenty of magical powers left over, is another question.) Naturally, Billy alias Shazam (Asher Angel/Zachary Levi) and his extended family/co-superheroes Freddy (Jack Dylan Grazer/Adam Brody), Eugene (Ian Chen/Ross Butler), Darla (Faithe Herman/Meagan Good), Pedro (Jovan Armand/D.J. Cotrona), and Mary are in charge of taking down the villains. (Grace Caroline Currey, playing both the regular and superhero versions of her character with a change of hairstyle).

The goddesses Hespera, Kalypso, and Anthea, respectively portrayed by Helen Mirren, Lucy Liu, and Rachel Zegler in her first film since her breakout role in Steven Spielberg's West Side Story, are a formidable group. They have access to a variety of mythological creatures, including a huge wooden dragon that appears to have been taken from a 1960s Japanese monster movie. They're a cunning group, too, with Anthea, the youngest at just 6,000 years old, pretending to be a new student at the school and showing interest in the helpless Freddy, whose voice quivers whenever he talks to her.

The movie opens with a lavish, expertly performed scene in which Shazam and his fellow superheroes save a large number of people from a bridge that is about to collapse. Unfortunately, they also fail to save the bridge, leading to the mocking moniker "Philadelphia Fiascoes" being attached to them. In his conversations with his doctor, Shazam appears to be struggling with his superhero persona. (P.J. Byrne). In another nightmare, he meets Wonder Woman for supper, but she turns out to be wearing the wizard's head on her body.

These are the kinds of jokes that screenwriters Henry Gayden and Chris Morgan offer, most of which are unfunny. (There's also a shameless in-joke reference to the Fast & Furious movies, several of which Morgan wrote and Mirren starred in). There are still some hilarious moments, to be sure, and Grazer's entertaining but slightly over-the-top geekiness and Levi's quick timing and enjoyable mugging provide many of them. Additionally, the scenes showing the young Freddy and Anthea's developing romance are endearing. Despite the significance of her mission, Anthea can't help but feel for this insecure man.

But as is so frequently the case with these movies, Shazam! Fury of the Gods loses interest due to its over-the-top spectacle, which in this case relies on unimpressive CGI effects and makes you yearn for some stop-motion animation in the manner of Ray Harryhausen. You're prepared to give up by the time juvenile Darla uses a fistful of Skittles to gather an army of unicorns. (The product placement for Reese's Pieces in E.T. was cute; not so much here.) Although the Shazam movies are aimed at a younger comic book movie audience, the subject matter here seems more appropriate for a Saturday morning animation.

It may or may not be to their credit, but Mirren and Liu play their parts as evil goddesses perfectly straight. (You can only imagine how often they dissolved into giggles during takes.) They don't have a single wittily snide wisecrack between them, which makes their characters uninteresting aside from their ability to wave their arms around and cause all kinds of mayhem. As a result, Levi is compelled to pick up the comic slack, and you can tell that his efforts are starting to wear thin.