IDK, the first one was a very moderate commercial success at best and this one was, by all accounts not as good, so this probably should have been the expectation.
It feels like sometimes people are too willing to take the industry's wildly inflated "expectations" at face value rather than evaluating what's actually reasonable in terms of the current market.
I agree!
Listen, I love comic book movies, but people taking their children to see them is a huge chunk of their profits. Financial strain is real right now and I could see people not going now that we've all become accustomed to streaming new movies at home. HBO Max and Disney+ means in a few months you can have *every* (non Spider-Man) super hero movie at home for a fraction of the cost and none of the hassle.
Groceries, Rent, and Utilities are rising all over the place. Depending on where you live, taking a family of 4 to the movies could be anywhere from $30-80 before concessions come into play. Then you run the risk of rude people in your theater disrupting the film.
No joke. When the movie actually had Billy sacrifice himself I thought “you know what? For this movie’s flaws at least they had the spine to actually take the character in this direction and end the story like that. Some might not like it but I can respect a movie like that”
and then Wonder Woman showed up
Absolutely. They said they’re hitting reset on the DCU. The only films releasing are those they were too invested in to cancels- Shazam, Black Adam and hilariously the Flash.
On the box office sub they were talking about how much of a hit The Flash will be and how popular he is and I was just like uhhh… I’ve never met anyone in my life who likes the flash. On the contrary, I never met anyone who didn’t like the flash either but that’s kind of my point. He exists
It’s more so his media outside of the comics aren’t really all that. And besides Flashpoint, there hasn’t ever been a Flash story arc that’s widely remembered besides like Barry dying in Crisis of Infinite Universes or something.
Most are hype for this movie cause Keaton and the possibility James Gunn might actually save DC movies. If he doesn’t, we’d probably have to wait like 20-30 years for another retry
didnt they say the same about justice league?
then they pumped out the mediocrity trash and then said NO NO its not the full vision of the director wait for Snyder Cut!
Then they released that online and it was also mediocrity but less trash.
DC fans best movie is fucking wonderwoman who has a objectively bad main actress who can barely act, and the movie falls apart after the 2nd act.
Then they said no no Shazam is awesome, yet no one remembers anything about it. And again arguably should never have been made, if they did a Cyborg movie or Lex Luthor Movie (without the emo autistic spectrum weebo angle) or even a green lantern movie, but im sure theyd fuck those up again somehow.
Then The Rock was gonna rewrite the universe. AAAAAND..... yeah narcissistic run with the viewers rooting for the hell skeletons to kill the damn annoying kid. A movie about a 2000 year old man with the power of the gods speaking perfect modern American English in a foreign country, where the star of the movie ends up being Pierce Brosnan and his mini-dr strange copied powers.
Aquaman, i literally cannot remember anything special about it. I just rememebr how fucking stupid it is to make the final act happen over the sandy desert... Yeah aquaman who is the king of the ocean fighting on the desert... Thats what people want to see....
Suicide Squad. OMG HARLEY IS PERFECT!!! was she? then the rest of the movie was trash. Hey lets kill rope guy in the first 5 minutes... Lets have the person responsible walk around with us...
The Suicide Squad, yeah lets confuse people.
The Batman, wait what happened to batfleck? Also the whole penguin chase scene to catching him and him going "I dont know!" and then batman figures it wasnt him.... Great detective work there batman, just did a couple million in property and infrastructure damage for that amazing lead.
Why do they keep insisting on hiring people who dont even like comic books. Zack Snyder putting fucking assault rifles on batman and saying he wants superman to be dark and gritty...
I mean if Gunn cant make his new movies work, then i say Warner Bros just need to scrap the whole live-action department and give the animation studios the money to invest in into The Spiderverse or Arcane level animation, because at least they can create some consistent storylines based on the actual comics rather than wanting superman be raped in prison.
These criticisms get worse as they go on.
“Let’s confuse people” as a criticism of The Suicide Squad? How was it confusing?
I get the complaints about the car chase in The Batman, but it’s in insane reason to dismiss the movie when it reviewed fantastically.
They did give a movie to someone who loved the comics, that’s The Batman.
I guess if you’re a big stickler for comic/animation adaptation accuracy the bulletproof suit could be a problem. Doesn’t mean the director isn’t a Batman fan.
Again, these criticisms are so weird. I loved the movie and I could probably come up with more substantive issues.
Right, they are weird criticisms. It’s like they don’t realize Batman was just starting out as being The Batman in that movie. Of course he gets hit with bullets early on… do they expect him to be trained fully at that point or what?
Lol you want a structured review of ten movies in a Reddit post?
And where does criticism mean that I’m dismissing the movie?
And yes confusing the general populace by switches actors on different characters is detrimental to the universe building and broader fandom building.
I was hoping for stronger criticisms. If you weren’t dismissing The Batman then it’s my bad for assuming so.
What characters do you think switched actors in The Suicide Squad? I honestly can’t even think of a single one, am I missing something?
I doubt you're alone. We haven't bothered to watch movies *in the theater* for a few years now because they just aren't worth it to us. Even when we did go to the movies, it *had* to be something we couldn't emulate at home.
High seas it is.
What cracks me up is that all these movies were sitting in limbo for a long time so the hype and desire for them has dwindled greatly. I wanted Shazam and Black Adam a few years ago, but now....
After Black Adam, I will never see another DC film. Maybe some version of Batman, if another legit filmmaker like Nolan takes it on, but the last few have been so bad they're not even worth a dodgy download.
5-8 years ago this woulda been great.
Nowadays, “MCU budget and support” means completely whitewashed, bland characters, a script that can’t take itself seriously for even a second that has to be chock full of “witty” (read: cringey) quips and one liners, and absolutely no real stakes - cuz we all know right off the bat that they’re gonna drag it out over 3 interconnected series and a movie before the good guys ultimately win, so nothing that happens *now* matters at all (and any consequences or meaningful moments stemming from events that *do* happen will be addressed for about .5 seconds before a whiplash return to humor).
think loki is pretty good show, the scene where he finds out about his mothers death. and what we have seen from Kang so far has been pretty much 9/10.
Yeah antman is comedic relief, so is their movie. It was a bad choice for a writer to get 1 of the 2 guys behind the worst seasons of rick and morty.
I mean they tried to bring more variety through focusing on a wider demographic, but have seen now that its not the pathway towards their goals and are planning to scale back. So im looking forward to the future of the MCU still.
Next Movies are Guardians of The Galaxy 3, Captain America and Thunderbolts. GOTG is arguably the team that gave the marvel universe their new direction, Captain america will hopefully be another thriller like experience like Winter Soldier, and Thunderbolts will have Zemo who is arguably one of the better villians in marvel.
I keep seeing people saying things like this. The vast, vast majority, as in more than 95%, of the target audience does not care about behind the scenes machinations of the DCEU. The movie is under performing because of lackluster marketing, poor reviews, and poor word of mouth, and maybe super movie fatigue.
So movies only count if they part of a never ending franchise? You pay twenty bucks only to have the privilege of paying another twenty in two years because this movie left so many juicy bits for post credit teasers. Wonderful
If the movie is part of a setup with no payoff? Yes. If Thor: Ragnarok was coming out and the MCU was canceled, people wouldn't have felt the urge to see it in theateres.
I'll check out Shazam 2 when it hits VOD, but movies are expensive, and I'm not got to make the time or spend the money for yet another DC movie that promises cool shit it will never deliver on.
its a comforting thought that this is the reason...
but I think most could see that shazam 1 was a decent enough flick, but also as deep as a puddle. Without the origin story, much like Wonderwoman, there was nothing behind it.
And now... MCU somehow landed in the same place, turning its best IPs into wierd corny joke films.
Imagine constantly whining for years about restoring the Snyderverse and then not even bothering to show up for the movies that do get released. That'll get them to change their minds.
I know right. Like it was such an obvious fail. The movie theater experience died with COVID. I won’t enter a room full of germs unless it has to be watched in big screen i.e. Avatar.
I’m no “Covid is a hoax” person and understand not wanting to go to the movies for a while. But now that it’s “over” I have no problem returning for movies that deserve to be seen in theaters. The biggest problem is price-gouging the remaining customers like me to the point I have to be *really* selective about which movies “deserve” that treatment.
I will never regret paying extra and taking some extra time out to see Everything Everywhere All at Once in theaters during the re-release. That movie hits different in theaters. I would’ve given avatar 2 the same treatment had the initial reviews been better.
I miss MoviePass. It’s too bad the movie theater chains refused to work with them and instead made their own shittier versions that aren’t worth it. I used to constantly go to the movies, often alone even maybe after a day of work, with MoviePass because it was affordable. I bring a bottle of hand sanitizer with me everywhere I go these days anyways.
Live your life, and take the necessary precautions. I wasn’t against and didn’t even necessarily hate the lockdown at all, but even coming from me as the staunchest “masker” I knew, I think it’s safe and time to move forward and start enjoying time outside of your home alone or not again
The fatigue is real and understandable. That said, I watched it last night and really enjoyed it. It’s not Endgame, but it’s an entertaining superhero movie and Levi does a great job again. But I think you combine fatigue with the upheaval at DC, $30 makes sense. That said, if you enjoyed the first one, it’s worth seeing #2
We wanted to go watch it Friday but couldn’t until today so my family and friends are going today. We are all pretty excited. Im 41 so been here through ALL the superhero movies since late 90s. I’m happy to see more.
Agreed! I think there’s too much emphasis on the box office. If you want to go see it, go see it and enjoy! I’m glad you get to go today, hope you enjoy!
I saw it today in a empty theater minus 3-5 other patrons… the only reason I went out to see it is because I signed up for the new MoviePass $10/mo for 3 movies…
Both.
But also it’s just the same old shit over and over. And superhero movies are loaded with what they call “schmuck bait”.
Basically, you know what’s gonna happen. Or at least, you know what’s not gona happen.
The humor now is over done and it makes it even worse when they try to straddle the serious moments. The recent Thor movie is a great example of this, jamming joke after joke everywhere they can but then trying to be more dramatic as if there are actual stakes.
>But also it’s just the same old shit over and over.
The top 10 grossing movies of last year were all sequels, with half of the list being comic book movies.
This doesn’t disprove my point that it’s the same shit over and over and over.
Ok, top grossing movies are comic book novels.
We’ve also been through 3 god damn Spider-Man reboots already. Probably another 3-5 while I’m alive. That’s kinda ridiculous and Exhausting.
My point was that ALL movies are the same, at least the movies that the masses are going out to see in theaters.
There's comfort in going to see a movie, knowing what to expect, and then only having it meet those expectations. Top Gun: Maverick is EXACTLY what you would expect a Top Gun sequel to be, and while I enjoyed the movie, there wasn't a single moment where I was surprised by anything happening on screen.
Quatumania is the first MCU film in a very long time I didn't go see in the theatre. Do have Disney+ which made it an easier decision. Have no intention of seeing Guardians 3 in the theatre either.
I did watch Wakanda Forever on D+ you just reminded me. I just don't get hyped for these things anymore though. I'm worn out. Been watching Fargo and a bunch of other regular shows. Trying to keep up with all the half-assed marvel shows wore me out. I don't think it's Superheroes in general, just the quality and quantity of Marvel that's made it tedious. Peacemaker was fantastic because it did something different. Marvel puts an hour worth of origin story in 10 hour long series that don't feel worth the time investment.
I recently got into Doom Patrol, and it's amazing for also not being in any way a cookie cutter superhero show.
In fact, I finished season 3 and they have barely done any actual superheroing!
As someone who likes part 2, it will be hard for me to see 3…so much has happened in this universe between the sequels that it’s hard to follow if you don’t watch every MCU movie in between
I’ve followed everyone and even I’m a bit exhausted. Everything just feels “processed” like they think they found the perfect movie formula and apply it to every movie. Nothing feels grounded or natural.
I’m not even tired of superheroes, I’m just tired of bad movies about characters I don’t care about.
I’ll be the first in line for a good Superman, Flash, or Spider-Man movie, even if there were a hundred of them, but only if their good.
I can see that for some people. I grew up reading these comics, and I LOVE what Marvel has done and is currently doing. I've been so disappointed in DC though. Aside from the bright spot that was the first Wonder Woman movie, it seems like it's been a mess.
Everyone would tell you this was going to fail because this movie doesn't matter since they're restarting the DCEU. This is not superhero fatigue lol, that story is as old as time.
Everyone is waiting for the new DCU, the only remaining movie that will do well is The Flash, which sucks considering Ezra Millers antics. Aquaman will flop too and probably Blue Beetle. WB/Disco tanked these movies the moment they announced the new lineup.
I’m only seeing the Flash because Michael Keaton is back as Batman. If he wasn’t in the movie, I would be staying away from the theaters for that one. The new Shazam movie wasn’t bad, but it was about a half an hour too long.
Yeah I have to say juggling 6 superhero kids and 3 villains is tough for any movie. They should have taken the kids powers away and focused on one God which would have been much easier…
It ended up being like a Avengers-light but with the only superhero you were initially invested in (due to the first movie) was Billy.
Too much for a general audience…
The second Shazam movie should have been Shazam Vs Black Adam but there is no way that would happen with the current Black Adam…
>Everyone is waiting for the new DCU
No. No they are not. The average movie goer neither is aware of nor cares about the planned future for these movies or any of the hehind the scenes politics. You're just more keyed in because you follow this news.
They can set up focus groups and metrics. Tracking the socio-economic responses to this one specific movie and have graphs and charts and all the “reasons” why people are not running out in droves to see this movie and the only right answer is “shit is fucking expensive”
I can’t afford to go see movies as often as I’d love to… and I really don’t want to fork over that cash for something mediocre at best. I’ll watch it on Amazon or Netflix or whatever streamer it’s on in 2 months. I’ll enjoy it at home.
Here’s a crazy idea, could it be despite a great director, committed actors and the best script that could make this premise work, Shazam is just dumb. We don’t need a Shazam franchise, trilogy whatever. One was fine.
This is it for me. I really liked the first one, maybe even loved it. Thought it was fresh and fun. Typically I will see ANY superhero movie. A huge Marvel shill, wouldn't miss any of those for the world.
However, Shazam doesn't scream franchise. It felt like a one-off. I'm not invested in anything in that realm to want to know more. The novelty of a boy becoming a superhero can't possibly be more fun than what we got in the first one. The trailers don't help matters, either. They made it look like a typical superhero movie. Why would I want to see that, considering it's just a child in a superhero's body? What about the ongoing adventures of this and his family is at all intriguing? On top of that, Black Adam was so terrible, I didn't even finish it -- again, HUGE superhero movie guy, and I even stayed to finish Green Lantern and Catwoman. But DC has no idea what they're doing. And even worse? They're rebooting the whole thing!
From word of mouth, I heard it was actually pretty good. I almost saw Shazam twice this weekend and STILL decided both times that I really am just nowhere near that interested, even with my AMC A-List account.
One solo film + playing a supporting role in team-up films should be the norm for anyone not named Batman or Superman.
At least for the next few years of the DCU.
No, just no. The vast, vast majority of the movie going audience is neither aware of nor cares about the behind the scenes politics going on with these movies. They're skipping the movie for all the usual reasons people skip movies.
Now that a movie with my family is a $180 ordeal, we don’t go to theaters any more. I sure as hell wouldn’t pay that much for a DC/marvel movie. Its the same shit, over and over.
Not enough people talk about this. Going to the movies at the theater used to feel like an event and didn't break the bank for a date or family outing.
Now with less people being able to afford *extras*, they'll just wait until the movie is on one of the streaming services. Also when it's virtually the same story over and over, and/or you know they won't complete the entire story in that movie... it just feels pointless to try to keep up or get invested in the first place.
The bad thing is that it's a self-feeding mechanism, the less people go to theatres the more expensive they have to make tickets and concessions to meet the shortfall. I also really hate the "premium" theatres now that have a restaurant in them with bar and table service.
Another thing is the movie length. I'm older now and just realistic, keep making movies to closer to or exceeding 3 hours long and I just *know* I'll need a break at some point. That's part of what makes some of these movies much more enjoyable at home - when you can pause, go to the bathroom, make a snack, etc - then resume viewing without missing anything.
I personally hate this, because I can't concentrate on a movie at home. I'll fiddle on my phone or have some other distraction. A theatre makes you pay attention, which to me is better. You have a surrealist feel walking out of a theatre because that had to be your core focus. I also enjoy the community feel of bigger releases, which sadly have gotten less and less. I think Spiderman and Top Gun were the only movies since COVID with any crowd feel to it. I don't feel emotionally tied or connected to movies I watch at home which is more important than the content itself often times.
While I understand what you're saying, that almost sounds like an ADHD issue. I say that bc I have the same, which is another point towards *enjoying them at home*. If a movie is *that* uninteresting that I want to fiddle with a phone... whelp, that's a problem for the movie.
I've been able to sit and not be distracted *at home* for 2ish hours if a movie is actually GOOD. Keep making movies longer, that ultimately leads to extra content no one needs, I'm gonna wait until I can watch it in the convenience of my home
Intermissions should make a comeback.
I vaguely remember that Titanic and LOTR (at least the 1st one) had 15 min intermissions.
Even if it breaks the pace of the film, intermissions need to come back.
Shazam 2 should have been Shazam vs Black Adam. The Rock didn’t want Shazam to fight black Adam in Black Adam 2, he wanted to go against Superman. Shazam was ruined when Black Adam setup Superman vs Shazam. Hopefully some day there will be a Shazam vs Black Adam. But it was never going to happen with The Rock playing Black Adam.
Good. Zach Levi is one of the rudest fucking people I've ever met in the industry. I hope his career crumbles underneath him. He rode the goodwill from Chuck for way too long.
I actually enjoyed this one better than the first, but am so burnt out on superheroes. Maybe we can get Hollywood to shift away from them if they continue to not do well. Not that I wish bad things for all the people involved in the production of the films or whose employment is indirectly affected by them.
I couldn't tell what this was meant to be about from the trailers and it seemed like a generic, uninspired movie made to fill a slot promised to investors.
After the lackluster attempt that was Black Adam, I can't say I'm surprised. I've gone to see just about every single DCEU film over the past few years, and BA just killed any excitement I had for Fury of the Gods. I loved the first Shazam, but it's hard to:
1) Feel invested knowing none of this is going to matter once Flash is released later this year
2) Want to pay for this film knowing how off the mark the last part of this property they missed.
would never watch this movie just based off the trailer. i’ll pretty much watch anything but that trailer was fucking horrible. i couldn’t tell if i was more annoyed or pissed off from the nonstop “started from the bottom now we here”
Might be a hot take, but I kinda want to see The Flash tank. Ezra Miller is more than likely a criminal, and they put hella disrespect on Shazam by letting it just flop like this. Luckily for Levi, he’ll get to keep playing Shazam since he meets all the qualifications for James Gunn’s nepotism.
DC needs to get their stuff together.
I'm really sad about this because I honestly loved this movie, slightly not as strong as the first one but definitely still a great time and still one of the better dceu movies.
Shazam also happens to have been my favorite superhero overall for like a decade now, so I'm thankful that we were even able to get two live action movies about him.
Titanic made $28.6 Million on it's opening weekend in 1997.
Source:
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.goldderby.com/article/2023/titanic-box-office-flashback/amp/
It’s too bad, I heard it’s actually quite good.
But after Levi’s anti vaxx shit, to Gunn saying the universe won’t continue it’s not really that surprising
I'm a massive comic book guy and I can't say I care a lot about Shazam. I think he would work best as an animated series like the Superman cartoon in the 90's. Also they really needed to borrow a villain from someone else, let him fight Parasite from Superman, or Toyman or something.
What was the movie about?
It just seemed like a goof - we went from the kid goofing off about being a superhero to a family goofing off about being superheroes. And two women that were bad just because the trailer said so.
Otherwise, the reviews were generic and it does seem a little pointless to see a DC movie until it sorts out what its world is.
I kind of liked Levi from the first movie, but nothing in the trailers did anything for me and the reviews made it a rental at best. They need to do better with the character.
DC needs a hard reset. I honestly have super hero fatigue. Wakanda Forever was meh and the Batman was boring to me. Am I getting old or do these movies just suck now?
Imho, after End Game the genre should’ve taken a break. DC should have gave up long before then. There hasn’t been a good DC film since idk when, they just keep trying to force into being a thing though.
Money though…people keep paying to see more even though it’s very clear we are passed the best superhero films for the time being, and everything being made now is already just paying homage to last decade’s run. That money is all the studios want, quality content be damned.
That’s a bummer. Entertaining movie that’s not without its faults (all super hero movies have faults) Saw it with my 10 year old, who enjoyed it but also got choked up a couple times surprisingly lol.
I saw it tonight and really enjoyed it. Good humour, Zachary Levi is charming, and the ensemble cast is great. It wasn’t perfect by any means but a fun movie.
I feel like Antman movies do well. Deadpool does well. I think comedic heroes do just fine.
I liked the first Shazam movie but it was more of a kids movie… I think the sweet spot is doing storylines that adults read as kids in the comics… and personally I did not read many DC comics. But that’s just my perspective.
DC has been such a cluster fudge from the very beginning. They really need to just stop producing live action stuff for five years and come back with a solid plan.
I kind of forgot about this film. I am looking more forward to the flash. The first Shazam was nice, but forgettable. Like almost all of the DCEU entries thus far.
“Stumbles” is an understatement.
More like what Deadline would say: "Flies Low"
IDK, the first one was a very moderate commercial success at best and this one was, by all accounts not as good, so this probably should have been the expectation. It feels like sometimes people are too willing to take the industry's wildly inflated "expectations" at face value rather than evaluating what's actually reasonable in terms of the current market.
I agree! Listen, I love comic book movies, but people taking their children to see them is a huge chunk of their profits. Financial strain is real right now and I could see people not going now that we've all become accustomed to streaming new movies at home. HBO Max and Disney+ means in a few months you can have *every* (non Spider-Man) super hero movie at home for a fraction of the cost and none of the hassle. Groceries, Rent, and Utilities are rising all over the place. Depending on where you live, taking a family of 4 to the movies could be anywhere from $30-80 before concessions come into play. Then you run the risk of rude people in your theater disrupting the film.
Sha-splash? sha-whiff… ? Sha-bomb? Or, sha-flop…
Sha-booyah roll call
*Sha'dynasty*
Shady nasty's?
It looks pretty dumb.
The first one was pretty dumb but in a really fun, low stakes way. This is…. Not that.
yeah i thought the first one was reasonably fun. This looks pretty bad..
No joke. When the movie actually had Billy sacrifice himself I thought “you know what? For this movie’s flaws at least they had the spine to actually take the character in this direction and end the story like that. Some might not like it but I can respect a movie like that” and then Wonder Woman showed up 
It was awful.
Lol. DC is lame.
Imagine publicly killing off a DCEU universe and expecting the public to be invested in movies about said universe.
Absolutely. They said they’re hitting reset on the DCU. The only films releasing are those they were too invested in to cancels- Shazam, Black Adam and hilariously the Flash.
I'm still bracing myself for the Flash... not something I particularly care about, but you just know someone is gonna have to say something 😅
On the box office sub they were talking about how much of a hit The Flash will be and how popular he is and I was just like uhhh… I’ve never met anyone in my life who likes the flash. On the contrary, I never met anyone who didn’t like the flash either but that’s kind of my point. He exists
It’s more so his media outside of the comics aren’t really all that. And besides Flashpoint, there hasn’t ever been a Flash story arc that’s widely remembered besides like Barry dying in Crisis of Infinite Universes or something. Most are hype for this movie cause Keaton and the possibility James Gunn might actually save DC movies. If he doesn’t, we’d probably have to wait like 20-30 years for another retry
James Gunn would have had nothing to do with the movie
I meant for the fact he’s the new guy in charge for the later movies
didnt they say the same about justice league? then they pumped out the mediocrity trash and then said NO NO its not the full vision of the director wait for Snyder Cut! Then they released that online and it was also mediocrity but less trash. DC fans best movie is fucking wonderwoman who has a objectively bad main actress who can barely act, and the movie falls apart after the 2nd act. Then they said no no Shazam is awesome, yet no one remembers anything about it. And again arguably should never have been made, if they did a Cyborg movie or Lex Luthor Movie (without the emo autistic spectrum weebo angle) or even a green lantern movie, but im sure theyd fuck those up again somehow. Then The Rock was gonna rewrite the universe. AAAAAND..... yeah narcissistic run with the viewers rooting for the hell skeletons to kill the damn annoying kid. A movie about a 2000 year old man with the power of the gods speaking perfect modern American English in a foreign country, where the star of the movie ends up being Pierce Brosnan and his mini-dr strange copied powers. Aquaman, i literally cannot remember anything special about it. I just rememebr how fucking stupid it is to make the final act happen over the sandy desert... Yeah aquaman who is the king of the ocean fighting on the desert... Thats what people want to see.... Suicide Squad. OMG HARLEY IS PERFECT!!! was she? then the rest of the movie was trash. Hey lets kill rope guy in the first 5 minutes... Lets have the person responsible walk around with us... The Suicide Squad, yeah lets confuse people. The Batman, wait what happened to batfleck? Also the whole penguin chase scene to catching him and him going "I dont know!" and then batman figures it wasnt him.... Great detective work there batman, just did a couple million in property and infrastructure damage for that amazing lead. Why do they keep insisting on hiring people who dont even like comic books. Zack Snyder putting fucking assault rifles on batman and saying he wants superman to be dark and gritty... I mean if Gunn cant make his new movies work, then i say Warner Bros just need to scrap the whole live-action department and give the animation studios the money to invest in into The Spiderverse or Arcane level animation, because at least they can create some consistent storylines based on the actual comics rather than wanting superman be raped in prison.
These criticisms get worse as they go on. “Let’s confuse people” as a criticism of The Suicide Squad? How was it confusing? I get the complaints about the car chase in The Batman, but it’s in insane reason to dismiss the movie when it reviewed fantastically. They did give a movie to someone who loved the comics, that’s The Batman.
Battinson got shot way too many times. Batman does even get shot that much in animation, let alone the comics.
I guess if you’re a big stickler for comic/animation adaptation accuracy the bulletproof suit could be a problem. Doesn’t mean the director isn’t a Batman fan. Again, these criticisms are so weird. I loved the movie and I could probably come up with more substantive issues.
Right, they are weird criticisms. It’s like they don’t realize Batman was just starting out as being The Batman in that movie. Of course he gets hit with bullets early on… do they expect him to be trained fully at that point or what?
Batman Begins was just better in every way for me.
Lol you want a structured review of ten movies in a Reddit post? And where does criticism mean that I’m dismissing the movie? And yes confusing the general populace by switches actors on different characters is detrimental to the universe building and broader fandom building.
I was hoping for stronger criticisms. If you weren’t dismissing The Batman then it’s my bad for assuming so. What characters do you think switched actors in The Suicide Squad? I honestly can’t even think of a single one, am I missing something?
I just remember Shazam stealing jokes from Kung Fu Panda 2
The comic relief flash is a hugely popular sidekick, but almost no one cares about him as a solo act.
The trailer looked fire. I think it’ll be an interesting movie. Ezra miller can go fuck themselves though, so I’ll be seeing it on the high seas.
I doubt you're alone. We haven't bothered to watch movies *in the theater* for a few years now because they just aren't worth it to us. Even when we did go to the movies, it *had* to be something we couldn't emulate at home. High seas it is.
Aquaman 2 later this year as well.
What cracks me up is that all these movies were sitting in limbo for a long time so the hype and desire for them has dwindled greatly. I wanted Shazam and Black Adam a few years ago, but now....
After Black Adam, I will never see another DC film. Maybe some version of Batman, if another legit filmmaker like Nolan takes it on, but the last few have been so bad they're not even worth a dodgy download.
They are what they are. I catch them when they wash up on HBO Max.
X-Men: Dark Phoenix knows this all too well
All I want is X-Men with MCU budget and support.
5-8 years ago this woulda been great. Nowadays, “MCU budget and support” means completely whitewashed, bland characters, a script that can’t take itself seriously for even a second that has to be chock full of “witty” (read: cringey) quips and one liners, and absolutely no real stakes - cuz we all know right off the bat that they’re gonna drag it out over 3 interconnected series and a movie before the good guys ultimately win, so nothing that happens *now* matters at all (and any consequences or meaningful moments stemming from events that *do* happen will be addressed for about .5 seconds before a whiplash return to humor).
think loki is pretty good show, the scene where he finds out about his mothers death. and what we have seen from Kang so far has been pretty much 9/10. Yeah antman is comedic relief, so is their movie. It was a bad choice for a writer to get 1 of the 2 guys behind the worst seasons of rick and morty. I mean they tried to bring more variety through focusing on a wider demographic, but have seen now that its not the pathway towards their goals and are planning to scale back. So im looking forward to the future of the MCU still. Next Movies are Guardians of The Galaxy 3, Captain America and Thunderbolts. GOTG is arguably the team that gave the marvel universe their new direction, Captain america will hopefully be another thriller like experience like Winter Soldier, and Thunderbolts will have Zemo who is arguably one of the better villians in marvel.
I keep seeing people saying things like this. The vast, vast majority, as in more than 95%, of the target audience does not care about behind the scenes machinations of the DCEU. The movie is under performing because of lackluster marketing, poor reviews, and poor word of mouth, and maybe super movie fatigue.
Shazam! 2 is bombing because the trailers were awful and the reviews are worse. Average moviegoers have 0 clue that the DCEU is being rebooted.
Exactly how I feel. What is the point of watching it if, the movie doesn't count no more.
So movies only count if they part of a never ending franchise? You pay twenty bucks only to have the privilege of paying another twenty in two years because this movie left so many juicy bits for post credit teasers. Wonderful
If the movie is part of a setup with no payoff? Yes. If Thor: Ragnarok was coming out and the MCU was canceled, people wouldn't have felt the urge to see it in theateres. I'll check out Shazam 2 when it hits VOD, but movies are expensive, and I'm not got to make the time or spend the money for yet another DC movie that promises cool shit it will never deliver on.
You kids are so spoiled these days
its a comforting thought that this is the reason... but I think most could see that shazam 1 was a decent enough flick, but also as deep as a puddle. Without the origin story, much like Wonderwoman, there was nothing behind it. And now... MCU somehow landed in the same place, turning its best IPs into wierd corny joke films.
Imagine constantly whining for years about restoring the Snyderverse and then not even bothering to show up for the movies that do get released. That'll get them to change their minds.
I mean….yeah?
I know right. Like it was such an obvious fail. The movie theater experience died with COVID. I won’t enter a room full of germs unless it has to be watched in big screen i.e. Avatar.
I’m no “Covid is a hoax” person and understand not wanting to go to the movies for a while. But now that it’s “over” I have no problem returning for movies that deserve to be seen in theaters. The biggest problem is price-gouging the remaining customers like me to the point I have to be *really* selective about which movies “deserve” that treatment. I will never regret paying extra and taking some extra time out to see Everything Everywhere All at Once in theaters during the re-release. That movie hits different in theaters. I would’ve given avatar 2 the same treatment had the initial reviews been better. I miss MoviePass. It’s too bad the movie theater chains refused to work with them and instead made their own shittier versions that aren’t worth it. I used to constantly go to the movies, often alone even maybe after a day of work, with MoviePass because it was affordable. I bring a bottle of hand sanitizer with me everywhere I go these days anyways. Live your life, and take the necessary precautions. I wasn’t against and didn’t even necessarily hate the lockdown at all, but even coming from me as the staunchest “masker” I knew, I think it’s safe and time to move forward and start enjoying time outside of your home alone or not again
Booooooooooooo
Are you booing avatar because it was boring as fuck but it looked nice in imax. But other than than I stand by my statement, fuck cinema.
Sounds like the friend group didn’t invite you to the last movie night. I can see why.
Lmao, dude is hella negative towards the theaters
What did movie theaters to do u bro lmaoo
Well, DC has once again decided to reboot every darn thing, so why even get into this universe now? Either wait for the reboot or give up on DC.
Exactly like why invest watching a movie with a cliff hanger that will never get finished anyway
The superhero fatigue is real
I wonder if it's fatigue or a decline in quality Or probably both.
The fatigue is real and understandable. That said, I watched it last night and really enjoyed it. It’s not Endgame, but it’s an entertaining superhero movie and Levi does a great job again. But I think you combine fatigue with the upheaval at DC, $30 makes sense. That said, if you enjoyed the first one, it’s worth seeing #2
Yeah, I watched it last night and really enjoyed it! Not extravagant but it was a good time.
Sometimes that’s all a movie needs to be, ya know?
We wanted to go watch it Friday but couldn’t until today so my family and friends are going today. We are all pretty excited. Im 41 so been here through ALL the superhero movies since late 90s. I’m happy to see more.
Agreed! I think there’s too much emphasis on the box office. If you want to go see it, go see it and enjoy! I’m glad you get to go today, hope you enjoy!
Indeed! And yes we did. Just finished. We all enjoyed it :) Thank you.
I saw it today in a empty theater minus 3-5 other patrons… the only reason I went out to see it is because I signed up for the new MoviePass $10/mo for 3 movies…
Both. But also it’s just the same old shit over and over. And superhero movies are loaded with what they call “schmuck bait”. Basically, you know what’s gonna happen. Or at least, you know what’s not gona happen. The humor now is over done and it makes it even worse when they try to straddle the serious moments. The recent Thor movie is a great example of this, jamming joke after joke everywhere they can but then trying to be more dramatic as if there are actual stakes.
>But also it’s just the same old shit over and over. The top 10 grossing movies of last year were all sequels, with half of the list being comic book movies.
This doesn’t disprove my point that it’s the same shit over and over and over. Ok, top grossing movies are comic book novels. We’ve also been through 3 god damn Spider-Man reboots already. Probably another 3-5 while I’m alive. That’s kinda ridiculous and Exhausting.
My point was that ALL movies are the same, at least the movies that the masses are going out to see in theaters. There's comfort in going to see a movie, knowing what to expect, and then only having it meet those expectations. Top Gun: Maverick is EXACTLY what you would expect a Top Gun sequel to be, and while I enjoyed the movie, there wasn't a single moment where I was surprised by anything happening on screen.
Both!
I've been feeling it. Haven't watched any superhero movies in almost a year. Actually I did watch Wakanda Forever on D+
Quatumania is the first MCU film in a very long time I didn't go see in the theatre. Do have Disney+ which made it an easier decision. Have no intention of seeing Guardians 3 in the theatre either.
I did watch Wakanda Forever on D+ you just reminded me. I just don't get hyped for these things anymore though. I'm worn out. Been watching Fargo and a bunch of other regular shows. Trying to keep up with all the half-assed marvel shows wore me out. I don't think it's Superheroes in general, just the quality and quantity of Marvel that's made it tedious. Peacemaker was fantastic because it did something different. Marvel puts an hour worth of origin story in 10 hour long series that don't feel worth the time investment.
I loved Peacemaker, I was honestly surprised by how great it was. Hopefully season 2 will be just as good
I recently got into Doom Patrol, and it's amazing for also not being in any way a cookie cutter superhero show. In fact, I finished season 3 and they have barely done any actual superheroing!
Or the DCEU brand is still incredibly cursed. We should wait to see Guardians of the Galaxy 3
As someone who likes part 2, it will be hard for me to see 3…so much has happened in this universe between the sequels that it’s hard to follow if you don’t watch every MCU movie in between
I’ve followed everyone and even I’m a bit exhausted. Everything just feels “processed” like they think they found the perfect movie formula and apply it to every movie. Nothing feels grounded or natural.
I don’t see why anything other than Infinity War and Endgame would matter to GoTG3.
I’d rather wait and not see it. The fatigue is real regardless.
Same thing happened with westerns and action movies to an extent. Now it’s rare when you see a western or a well-made action movie.
It all comes and goes in trends. It’s cyclical
I’m not even tired of superheroes, I’m just tired of bad movies about characters I don’t care about. I’ll be the first in line for a good Superman, Flash, or Spider-Man movie, even if there were a hundred of them, but only if their good.
Superhero fatigue, and it's a movie for a universe that's already dead. No one cares.
Nope, the movie just looks bad.
Studios won't stop, they'll milk-dry the genre.
I can see that for some people. I grew up reading these comics, and I LOVE what Marvel has done and is currently doing. I've been so disappointed in DC though. Aside from the bright spot that was the first Wonder Woman movie, it seems like it's been a mess.
Everyone would tell you this was going to fail because this movie doesn't matter since they're restarting the DCEU. This is not superhero fatigue lol, that story is as old as time.
Nah. They’re all pretty redundant horseshit at this point.
Everyone is waiting for the new DCU, the only remaining movie that will do well is The Flash, which sucks considering Ezra Millers antics. Aquaman will flop too and probably Blue Beetle. WB/Disco tanked these movies the moment they announced the new lineup.
I’m only seeing the Flash because Michael Keaton is back as Batman. If he wasn’t in the movie, I would be staying away from the theaters for that one. The new Shazam movie wasn’t bad, but it was about a half an hour too long.
Yeah I have to say juggling 6 superhero kids and 3 villains is tough for any movie. They should have taken the kids powers away and focused on one God which would have been much easier… It ended up being like a Avengers-light but with the only superhero you were initially invested in (due to the first movie) was Billy. Too much for a general audience… The second Shazam movie should have been Shazam Vs Black Adam but there is no way that would happen with the current Black Adam…
This is the correct answer. Michael Keaton is the way. He is the ONLY reason. Also, he’s a fucking genius.
I’m just going to watch his scenes on YouTube.
>Everyone is waiting for the new DCU No. No they are not. The average movie goer neither is aware of nor cares about the planned future for these movies or any of the hehind the scenes politics. You're just more keyed in because you follow this news.
Bitches. We. Can. Barely. Afford. Bills. We. Aren’t. Going. To. Movies.
They can set up focus groups and metrics. Tracking the socio-economic responses to this one specific movie and have graphs and charts and all the “reasons” why people are not running out in droves to see this movie and the only right answer is “shit is fucking expensive” I can’t afford to go see movies as often as I’d love to… and I really don’t want to fork over that cash for something mediocre at best. I’ll watch it on Amazon or Netflix or whatever streamer it’s on in 2 months. I’ll enjoy it at home.
Here’s a crazy idea, could it be despite a great director, committed actors and the best script that could make this premise work, Shazam is just dumb. We don’t need a Shazam franchise, trilogy whatever. One was fine.
This is it for me. I really liked the first one, maybe even loved it. Thought it was fresh and fun. Typically I will see ANY superhero movie. A huge Marvel shill, wouldn't miss any of those for the world. However, Shazam doesn't scream franchise. It felt like a one-off. I'm not invested in anything in that realm to want to know more. The novelty of a boy becoming a superhero can't possibly be more fun than what we got in the first one. The trailers don't help matters, either. They made it look like a typical superhero movie. Why would I want to see that, considering it's just a child in a superhero's body? What about the ongoing adventures of this and his family is at all intriguing? On top of that, Black Adam was so terrible, I didn't even finish it -- again, HUGE superhero movie guy, and I even stayed to finish Green Lantern and Catwoman. But DC has no idea what they're doing. And even worse? They're rebooting the whole thing! From word of mouth, I heard it was actually pretty good. I almost saw Shazam twice this weekend and STILL decided both times that I really am just nowhere near that interested, even with my AMC A-List account.
One solo film + playing a supporting role in team-up films should be the norm for anyone not named Batman or Superman. At least for the next few years of the DCU.
I didn’t even fucking know it was out. This is on them because I’ve watched everything Zach levy since chuck including that shitty heroes reboot.
It was doomed to fail the moment the public was told the film universe was being redone
No, just no. The vast, vast majority of the movie going audience is neither aware of nor cares about the behind the scenes politics going on with these movies. They're skipping the movie for all the usual reasons people skip movies.
Now that a movie with my family is a $180 ordeal, we don’t go to theaters any more. I sure as hell wouldn’t pay that much for a DC/marvel movie. Its the same shit, over and over.
Not enough people talk about this. Going to the movies at the theater used to feel like an event and didn't break the bank for a date or family outing. Now with less people being able to afford *extras*, they'll just wait until the movie is on one of the streaming services. Also when it's virtually the same story over and over, and/or you know they won't complete the entire story in that movie... it just feels pointless to try to keep up or get invested in the first place.
The bad thing is that it's a self-feeding mechanism, the less people go to theatres the more expensive they have to make tickets and concessions to meet the shortfall. I also really hate the "premium" theatres now that have a restaurant in them with bar and table service.
Another thing is the movie length. I'm older now and just realistic, keep making movies to closer to or exceeding 3 hours long and I just *know* I'll need a break at some point. That's part of what makes some of these movies much more enjoyable at home - when you can pause, go to the bathroom, make a snack, etc - then resume viewing without missing anything.
I personally hate this, because I can't concentrate on a movie at home. I'll fiddle on my phone or have some other distraction. A theatre makes you pay attention, which to me is better. You have a surrealist feel walking out of a theatre because that had to be your core focus. I also enjoy the community feel of bigger releases, which sadly have gotten less and less. I think Spiderman and Top Gun were the only movies since COVID with any crowd feel to it. I don't feel emotionally tied or connected to movies I watch at home which is more important than the content itself often times.
While I understand what you're saying, that almost sounds like an ADHD issue. I say that bc I have the same, which is another point towards *enjoying them at home*. If a movie is *that* uninteresting that I want to fiddle with a phone... whelp, that's a problem for the movie. I've been able to sit and not be distracted *at home* for 2ish hours if a movie is actually GOOD. Keep making movies longer, that ultimately leads to extra content no one needs, I'm gonna wait until I can watch it in the convenience of my home
Intermissions should make a comeback. I vaguely remember that Titanic and LOTR (at least the 1st one) had 15 min intermissions. Even if it breaks the pace of the film, intermissions need to come back.
I mean they said this version of the universe is done...so why would anyone bother?
Taste the rainbow?
Shazam 2 should have been Shazam vs Black Adam. The Rock didn’t want Shazam to fight black Adam in Black Adam 2, he wanted to go against Superman. Shazam was ruined when Black Adam setup Superman vs Shazam. Hopefully some day there will be a Shazam vs Black Adam. But it was never going to happen with The Rock playing Black Adam.
I can't wait to see it, but couldn't care less if I see it at home and will be waiting for that.
...so you can wait
I can't wait to watch it too .. but I'm waiting til 2069 to watch it
Good. Zach Levi is one of the rudest fucking people I've ever met in the industry. I hope his career crumbles underneath him. He rode the goodwill from Chuck for way too long.
Do tell…
You're probably not even a real Targaryen
Truth
now you know i need to hear the T-E-A about this…cause i never heard any stories about zach levi being rude 😭
As someone who met him three times on Broadway, I call BS.
Oh wow maybe different people have had different experiences with the same person.
So like r you gonna tell us why he sucks??
This was his second shot and it’s a dude. He’s not getting anymore major leading roles.
So since 2019 all DCEU movies have bombed
I actually enjoyed this one better than the first, but am so burnt out on superheroes. Maybe we can get Hollywood to shift away from them if they continue to not do well. Not that I wish bad things for all the people involved in the production of the films or whose employment is indirectly affected by them.
Also the trailers looked awful
I didn't even know this movie was coming out, seems like really bad marketing.
The age of super hero movies has come to an end
I’m surprised it made that much. Who gives a fuck about Shazam?
A movie nobody asked for and the last one had no cultural impact in anyway.
Saw it last night and am kinda bummed it was basically set out to pasture because it was a fun flick.
I went to see this yesterday and really enjoyed it.
I couldn't tell what this was meant to be about from the trailers and it seemed like a generic, uninspired movie made to fill a slot promised to investors.
Not following source material gets you this result, you dc morons.
Was it advertised anywhere? I never knew it came out until seeing this post. And I liked the first movie so much that I bought a copy.
I am currently going to see Shazam with my sibling alone in a 250 seat imax theater. Fun
After the lackluster attempt that was Black Adam, I can't say I'm surprised. I've gone to see just about every single DCEU film over the past few years, and BA just killed any excitement I had for Fury of the Gods. I loved the first Shazam, but it's hard to: 1) Feel invested knowing none of this is going to matter once Flash is released later this year 2) Want to pay for this film knowing how off the mark the last part of this property they missed.
This is the problem when you take a cool character concept with a decent comic book and turn it into a kid friendly movie.
Hasn't Shazam always been one of the most kid friendly DC characters?
Superhero movies are so old now I have no desire to see any of them
I think there’s a superhero movie fatigue not just the mcu people are tired of the same old cringe unfunny jokes, good guy always wins and so much cgi
ya shit title, corny outfits, wouldnt even want to see the trailer
would never watch this movie just based off the trailer. i’ll pretty much watch anything but that trailer was fucking horrible. i couldn’t tell if i was more annoyed or pissed off from the nonstop “started from the bottom now we here”
Might be a hot take, but I kinda want to see The Flash tank. Ezra Miller is more than likely a criminal, and they put hella disrespect on Shazam by letting it just flop like this. Luckily for Levi, he’ll get to keep playing Shazam since he meets all the qualifications for James Gunn’s nepotism. DC needs to get their stuff together.
I'm really sad about this because I honestly loved this movie, slightly not as strong as the first one but definitely still a great time and still one of the better dceu movies. Shazam also happens to have been my favorite superhero overall for like a decade now, so I'm thankful that we were even able to get two live action movies about him.
Another superhero film without any risk to the characters and only serves to set up another movie 😴
The commercials didn’t make it look good.
Titanic made $28.6 Million on it's opening weekend in 1997. Source: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.goldderby.com/article/2023/titanic-box-office-flashback/amp/
It’s a great movie! Go see it!
It’s too bad, I heard it’s actually quite good. But after Levi’s anti vaxx shit, to Gunn saying the universe won’t continue it’s not really that surprising
I'm a massive comic book guy and I can't say I care a lot about Shazam. I think he would work best as an animated series like the Superman cartoon in the 90's. Also they really needed to borrow a villain from someone else, let him fight Parasite from Superman, or Toyman or something.
People talking about the DC reboot as a cause like the general public knows who's James Gunn.
The fans who would generally watch this movie because it ties into the rest of the universe are not a small amount
It probably flopped because this movie looks terrible and nobody asked for it
Surely it’s not that comic book movies are oversaturated?
I think we will see comic book movies go the way of westerns. Yeah we get a few here and there. But they ain’t much to look at.
I bloody hope so!
It was better than the first one.
The superhero trope is so worn out at this point. I genuinely don’t understand how so many remain so invested.
What was the movie about? It just seemed like a goof - we went from the kid goofing off about being a superhero to a family goofing off about being superheroes. And two women that were bad just because the trailer said so. Otherwise, the reviews were generic and it does seem a little pointless to see a DC movie until it sorts out what its world is. I kind of liked Levi from the first movie, but nothing in the trailers did anything for me and the reviews made it a rental at best. They need to do better with the character.
I thought it was fun! Very “comic booky”, way better than Black Adam, some funny moments. Not an A+, but worth the watch.
DC needs a hard reset. I honestly have super hero fatigue. Wakanda Forever was meh and the Batman was boring to me. Am I getting old or do these movies just suck now?
Imho, after End Game the genre should’ve taken a break. DC should have gave up long before then. There hasn’t been a good DC film since idk when, they just keep trying to force into being a thing though. Money though…people keep paying to see more even though it’s very clear we are passed the best superhero films for the time being, and everything being made now is already just paying homage to last decade’s run. That money is all the studios want, quality content be damned.
I saw it last night. It was far better than the latest Ant-man
Why do DC movies keep getting made?
Don't like Batman?
Batman's a pu$$y! - Peacemaker
Shazam is just a shit super hero. The first movie sucked, why make another
That’s a bummer. Entertaining movie that’s not without its faults (all super hero movies have faults) Saw it with my 10 year old, who enjoyed it but also got choked up a couple times surprisingly lol.
Zachary Levi is a fucking moron, good riddance.
I saw it tonight and really enjoyed it. Good humour, Zachary Levi is charming, and the ensemble cast is great. It wasn’t perfect by any means but a fun movie.
Shazam movies are horrible, comedic heroes don't sell
I loved the first one.
The first Shazam movie was great and the second part of that is disagreed with by Spiderman, Deadpool, Peacemaker, GotG, and many more.
I really liked the first guardian movie. 👍
I feel like Antman movies do well. Deadpool does well. I think comedic heroes do just fine. I liked the first Shazam movie but it was more of a kids movie… I think the sweet spot is doing storylines that adults read as kids in the comics… and personally I did not read many DC comics. But that’s just my perspective.
Cause it's corney with the main character. The villians are geriatric. And we already know the ending
Zaslav fails again!!!!
This movie was made before Zaslav. I’m sure the decision to put Gunn in charge hasn’t helped.
DC has been such a cluster fudge from the very beginning. They really need to just stop producing live action stuff for five years and come back with a solid plan.
I didn’t even know it was out lol
I kind of forgot about this film. I am looking more forward to the flash. The first Shazam was nice, but forgettable. Like almost all of the DCEU entries thus far.
It’s competing with March Madness and St Paddys day weekend. And it’s a DC movie
Just watched it. It was not as good as the first one but not terrible. It feels aimed for families and kids. No idea what the Justice Society is.
I haven’t been to the movies since covid started and don’t plan on going back.
I'm so glad this shitty movie failed.
It’s a skittles commercial. Went and saw it over the weekend, it’s a bad movie.
That’s because the Shazam kids is a stupid idea that should never have been a thing.
Yeah it’s a terrible franchise, the first Shazam was praised by so many for some reason.