Shazam!

Orphaned 14-year-old Billy Batson (Asher Angel) is always searching for the single mother from whom he was separated at a Philadelphia winter carnival. Billy has a pure-ish heart, which seemingly qualifies him to inherit the powers of the Wizard Shazam (Djimon Hounsou), who protects the world from the Seven Deadly Sins. Utilizing the iconic archetype of a childhood dream—saying a magic word and suddenly transforming into a superhero—Billy becomes a costumed and caped muscle-bound man (Zachary Levi). Billy’s newfound power arouses the envy of evil Dr. Thaddeus Sivana (Mark Strong), who was always disparaged by his dad (John Glover) and subsequently rejected by the Wizard. Meanwhile, lonely Billy is remanded to the home of compassionate foster parents (Marta Milans, Cooper Andrews), where he’s befriended by disabled Freddy (Jack Dylan Grazer), who is eager to help Billy test his extraordinary abilities, keeping them secret from his other foster siblings. Unfortunately, director David F. Sandberg never bothers to coordinate movements and gestures that young Billy might share with his older counterpart, so the two actors don’t seem to be playing the same character. An uneven but often fun superhero flick, this is a strong optional purchase. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include deleted and alternate scenes (38 min.), the behind-the-scenes featurettes “The Magical World of Shazam!” (27 min.), “Carnival Scene Study” (11 min.), “Who is Shazam?” (6 min.), and “Shazamily Values” (6 min.), a “Superhero Hooky” motion comic (4 min.), a “Super Fun Zac” segment with star Zachary Levi (3 min.), and a gag reel (3 min.). Exclusive to the Blu-ray release are bonus DVD and digital copies of the film. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a reasonably entertaining superhero flick.] (S. Granger)