Film

Shazam!

Name: Shazam!
Genre: Action, Comedy, Fantasy
Released: 2019
Cast: Zachary Levi, Mark Strong, Asher Angel, Jack Dylan Grazer, Adam Brody

Shazam! is a superhero movie that remembers it's supposed to be fun. A foster kid says one magic word and becomes a grinning, invincible man-child played by Zachary Levi, and the film runs on delight instead of dread — more Big than Batman, more slapstick than saga. Great for a family movie night; less great if you're craving grim and brooding.

TMDb rating

7.0

If you liked this

Big1988

Tom Hanks turns 'what if I were a grown-up' into a masterpiece of physical comedy and real sweetness — it's basically the movie Shazam! is quietly cosplaying as, done first and done best.

But No capes, no villains, no fantasy beyond one wish — a much smaller, quieter story than a superhero movie might have you expecting.

Spider-Man: Homecoming2017

Another teenager thrilled and terrified by sudden power, juggling homework and heroics with the same giddy, overwhelmed energy Billy brings to his transformation. Tom Holland nails the 'I can't believe this is happening' grin.

But It's tied tightly into the Marvel machine, so you'll feel the weight of a dozen other movies leaning on it.

The Incredibles2004

Pixar's family-of-superheroes movie has the same big heart under the spandex, plus a sharper script about what saving the day actually costs. Perfect if the found-family stuff in Shazam! got to you.

But It's animated and squarely for kids, so adults hoping for edge or grit will find none here.

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T.1953no page yet

Both are about a kid conjuring an adult-sized answer to a frightening authority figure — Dr. Sivana's menace has a stranger, stranger-still ancestor in Dr. Terwilliker's piano-prison nightmare.

A boy dreams himself into a surreal fantasy where a tyrannical piano teacher rules a nightmare kingdom — Technicolor, musical, and genuinely strange, a child's power fantasy against a menacing adult authority figure decades before comic books got there.

But It's a weird, dated musical oddity with songs that haven't aged gracefully; patience for old-fashioned fantasy required.

Kick-Ass2010

The flip side of the wish-fulfillment coin — an ordinary teen decides to become a superhero with no wizard, no magic word, just a costume and a death wish. Same rush, much bloodier landing.

But It's genuinely violent and mean in places, swinging from goofy to brutal without much warning.

Thor: Ragnarok2017

Proof a big studio superhero movie can be a full-blown comedy without losing its stakes, exactly the trick Shazam! is pulling. Chris Hemsworth having the time of his life doesn't hurt.

But It's a sequel deep into a franchise, so some jokes and stakes land better if you've seen the earlier films.

Big Hero 62014

A grieving kid, a makeshift hero team, and a marshmallow robot that's basically a hug you can drive — the same sincerity under the action that makes Shazam!'s foster-family plot land.

But It's aimed younger and leans hard into cute rather than comedic, so the humor is gentler than Shazam!'s.

Chronicle2012

Teenagers get powers and immediately test the limits like actual teenagers would — flying for fun, showing off, pushing each other too far. The found-footage answer to 'what would you really do with this?'

But It gets considerably darker than Shazam! ever does, and the ending doesn't pull its punches.

Freaky Friday2003no page yet

Another magic-adjacent body swap, mother and daughter this time, mining the same rich comedy of someone stuck in the wrong body and faking their way through a day.

But It's a Disney Channel-era comedy, gentler and less spectacle-driven than a superhero blockbuster.

Aquaman2018

Same DC universe, same willingness to just go for it — garish colors, big dumb fun, a hero stumbling into his own power almost by accident. More of that specific brand of silly grandeur.

But It takes itself slightly more seriously despite the trident-riding sharks, and runs a good half hour too long.

Shoplifters2018

Both are ultimately about people who build a family out of strangers because the world gave them nothing else — Shazam! turns that idea into spectacle, Shoplifters turns it into grief.

A quiet, devastating drama about a family held together by nothing but choice and need rather than blood — the emotional engine under Shazam!'s foster-home plot, stripped of every joke and cape to show what that ache actually feels like.

But It's slow, subtitled and heartbreaking rather than fun; nobody flies and nothing explodes.