Shazam 2 Review
Early in Shazam! Fury of the Gods, the film thoroughly embraces the obvious needle-drop of “I Need a Hero” and openly comments on it. What starts as a meta-wink to the audience quickly shifts into an embrace of the beat, playing a potentially life-or-death situation for character establishment and laughs. It’s a fun sequence of pretty heroes saving the day in a goofy way, which might be the core strength of Shazam! Fury of the Gods. While it likely won’t convert non-superhero fans, the film is confident in its embrace of a broad, goofy, and sometimes dangerous adventure that feels perfect for younger audiences.
Picking up after the events of Shazam!, Billy Batson (Asher Angel/Zachary Levi) has adjusted to his adopted family — but isn’t so sure about his superhero alter ego. His family, also empowered, seem to be drifting apart from one another — Freddy (Jack Dylan Grazer/Adam Brody) wants the spotlight, Mary (Grace Fulton) wants to go to college, and Eugene (Ian Chen/Ross Butler), Darla (Faithe Herman/Meagan Good), and Pedro (Jovan Armand/D.J. Cotrona) all have their own passions and paths. On the verge of aging out of the foster family system and anxious about his place in the world, Billy is increasingly desperate to keep things on track.
Amidst all this internal strife, the family finds themselves facing off with the Daughters of Atlas — Hespera (Helen Mirren), Kalypso (Lucy Liu), and Anthea (Rachel Zegler) — who’ve been released from their supernatural prison outside of the…
