In the wake of countless superhero movies being released, most notably Marvel with Captain Marvel and Avengers: Endgame, DC comics came out with Shazam! a character very similar to the Flash. Going into the movie, I didn’t have any high expectations and honestly thought for sure that the movie was going to suck but to my surprise, it was actually really good.

The movie was filled with laughs and good action and reminded me a lot of Deadpool, just for a younger audience. Shazam has a very different backstory when compared to almost any other superhero. He is a 14-year-old boy who can transform into a mid 20’s dude who has several different superpowers all by saying the word “shazam”.

I can’t lie, the movie first started off slow and actually pretty dark. It really isn’t until the main character, Billy, gets his superpowers when the humor starts to kick in. The movie is clearly aimed for a younger audience but also has some quality jokes to keep everyone else laughing and interested in the story.

Shazam! is a lot different from many superhero movies as the actual hero is only 14 years old, something that isn’t seen much in other movies. The primary antagonist in the film is also something that is quite unusual and different from pretty much any other superhero movie. The villain really doesn’t have superpowers and is instead possessed by the seven deadly sins, which come out and take physical form.

Shazam! shocked a lot of people on how good it actually turned out being. I personally am more of a Marvel fan so going into a DC movie — which hasn’t had a good track record outside of The Dark Knight — I didn’t have high hopes and was pleasantly surprised as to how well the movie and story was put together.

If there is a second installment for the movie, there is no doubt in my mind that I will be in attendance for it. This movie brought good laughs and enough action and storytelling to make it one of the better superhero movies of the last few years. I would give Shazam! a 9/10 and recommend it to anyone who is a fan of superhero movies or just needs a good movie to watch, because Shazam! won’t let you down.