With a worldwide gross of “only” $367 million, 2019’s Shazam! didn’t exactly dominate at the box office. However, after a series of grim superhero flicks, fans felt relieved to find something lighter, so Shazam enjoyed pretty good word of mouth.

Four years later, a sequel arrives via 2023’s Shazam! Fury of the Gods. It made a shockingly low $133 million worldwide, a figure that would’ve probably killed the franchise if new DC movies head honcho James Gunn didn’t already want to take the studio in a different direction.

Foster teen Billy Batson (Asher Angel) acquired magical abilities that allow him to turn into Shazam (Zachary Levi), a being with massive superpowers. His fellow fosters Mary (Grace Caroline Currey), Freddy Freeman (Jack Dylan Grazer), Eugene Choi (Ian Chen), Pedro Peña (Jovan Armand) and Darla Dudley (Faithe Herman) also eventually received these skills.

The kids attempt to ply their superheroic trade around Philadelphia. However, they made rookie mistakes and sometimes cause more harm than good.

Billy and his “Shazamily” get a major test when gods from ancient Greece appear and cause havoc. Hespera (Helen Mirren) and Kalypso (Lucy Liu) seek the restoration of magic long stolen from them, and the Shazamily attempts to stop them.

I loved Shazam comics as a kid in the 1970s, so I go into these films with a sense of nostalgic affection. That didn’t save the 2019 movie, which I thought came with too many issues to hit the mark.

Does Fury fix what ailed its predecessor? No, but I think it becomes a more satisfying adventure.

Though not a particularly more coherent adventure, I must admit. Fury attempts to balance a lot of plot threads, especially because it gives the foster kids their own tales in addition to the main thread related to the ancient beings.

These can make the movie seem overstuffed and overly long. Fury runs two minutes shorter than the first movie, but that one came with a lot more necessary exposition since it acted as an origin story.

Given that Fury comes with most of the characters already introduced, it doesn’t need the same explanatory real estate. However, it bogs down in all those subplots, and they can make the end result less than concise.

The focal point of the prior film, Billy gets somewhat lost along the way in Fury. He enjoys less of an arc than his foster siblings, and this seems like an odd choice given his central nature in the series.

Even the main narrative about the sisters feels messy and semi-confusing. Of course, the basic tale remains simple, but Fury muddies the waters too often and makes the end result occasionally tough to follow.

Despite all these issues, I must admit I think Fury offers a reasonably fun superhero adventure. Maybe this reaction stems from the fact the 2019 movie left me so cold, as I entered Fury with low expectations.

Or maybe Fury just gives us a more rollicking adventure. The new castmembers help, as Mirren and Liu add spark to their roles.

We also find Rachel Zegler as Anne, a new high school classmate for whom Freddy falls. She comes with her own secret and manages some charm and vivacity.

Levi annoyed me in the 2019 film, as he overplayed Shazam’s kid side too much. His performance didn’t echo Angel’s at all, as Levi felt like a silly stereotype of a teen.

Levi probably still mugs too much in Fury, but he nonetheless manages to tone down his act. This gives the character more gravity and removes an obstacle to the prior flick’s success.

At no point can I argue that Fury turns into a great superhero movie, and I cannot claim to feel much sorrow that the Shazam franchise apparently ends here. Nonetheless, the flick delivers a fairly exciting little adventure that entertains.

Footnote: added scenes appear both during and after the end credits. They point to a Shazam future that almost certainly won’t come to fruition for reasons already noted.

Shazam! Fury of the Gods appears in an aspect ratio of 2.39:1 on this 4K UHD Disc. As expected, the movie came with fine Dolby Vision visuals.

Sharpness seemed strong. Nary a hint of softness impacted the image, so it remained tight and concise.

I saw no shimmering or jaggies. Both edge haloes and print flaws remained absent.

Like every other modern action movie, Fury opted for an amber and teal orientation, though it came with splashes of purple and red as well. The disc depicted them in an appropriate manner, and HDR added range and impact to the tones.

Blacks showed good depth, and shadows offered largely nice clarity and smoothness. A few low-light sequences came across as slightly opaque, but these weren’t a major issue.

HDR contributed power and force to whites and contrast. In the end, the movie provided pleasing visuals.

Downconverted to Dolby TrueHD 7.1, Fury brought us a strong Dolby Atmos soundtrack. As one would expect, the soundscape opened up best when it indulged in its many battle sequences.

These used the various channels in a vivid, immersive manner that placed the elements in logical spots and meshed together well. The track gave us a strong sense of place and action.

Audio quality also pleased. Speech remained natural and distinctive, while music was full and rich.

Effects came across as accurate and dynamic, with tight low-end. I liked this mix quite a lot.

How did the 4K UHD compare to the movie’s Blu-ray version? Both came with identical audio.

As for the Dolby Vision image, it came from a true 4K source, and that meant improved delineation, colors and blacks. Expect a nice step up in quality with the 4K.

When we go to extras, we start with an audio commentary from director David F. Sandberg. He presents a running, screen-specific look at story/characters, cast and performances, sets and locations, production, creature and costume design, various effects, cut - and added - scenes, music, Easter eggs, and connected domains.

Sandberg offers a pretty terrific commentary. He digs into a broad range of topics and does so in an honest and vivid manner.

Sandberg even hints at the absurdity of parts of the shoot such as when he mentions the crew needed to make Georgia - the place used for Fury - look like Toronto - the location of the first movie - look like Philadelphia, the town the story is set. This becomes a highly enjoyable and informative chat.

One footnote, though: I feel disappointed Sandberg doesn't reveal the name of the song they wanted to use for the scene that now utilizes Bonnie Tyler's "Holding Out for a Hero". Given what he does say, I suspect the film desired Bette Midler's "Wind Beneath My Wings", with Mariah Carey's "Hero" as my second choice. Those are just my guesses, though.

The remaining extras appear on the included Blu-ray copy, and 30 Deleted Scenes occupy a total of 30 minutes, 31 seconds. This domain also includes a 35-second introduction from Sandberg as he just gives a basic reference to the nature of the cut footage.

If you do the math, you can tell that the scenes tend to wind up on the short side. That doesn’t mean these feel superfluous.

The majority offer minor character beats or plot points, though I mean “minor” in that they don’t seem necessary in regard to the film’s overall narrative or impact. A surprising number of the scenes offer useful material.

For instance, we get more detail about some story elements, and we also find out what Mary did at “the eye doctor”. Additional action ensues as well, so this turns into a better than average compilation of unused film.

Six featurettes follow, and Let’s Make a Sequel runs 24 minutes, 49 seconds. It brings notes from Sandberg, producer Peter Safran, writer Henry Gayden, costume designer Louise Mingenbach, supervising stunt coordinator Chris O’Hara, VFX co-supervisor Bruce Jones, VFX supervisor Raymond Chen, and actors Zachary Levi, Asher Angel, Jack Dylan Grazer, Helen Mirren, Adam Brody, Cooper Andrews, Marta Milans, Jovan Armand, Rachel Zegler, Djimon Hounsou, Grace Caroline Currey, Meagan Good, DJ Cotrona, Ross Butler, Ian Chen, Faithe Herman and Michael Gray.

We get some topics connected specifically to the sequel along with more general notes about cast/performances, story/characters, locations and sets, costumes, effects, stunts, creatures, Sandberg’s presence on the set, cameos, and bonus scenes. The program mixes facts and fluff but works acceptably well.

The Rock of Eternity: Decked Out spans five minutes, 42 seconds and involves Gayden, Sandberg, Levi, Butler, Brody, Currey, Grazer, Cotrona, Armand, Good, set decorator Danielle Berman, and production designer Paul Kirby.

Here we learn a little about the Rock of Eternity set. It comes with a mix of good notes.

Next comes The Zac Effect, a four-minute, 20-second reel with Levi, Cotrona, Grazer, Angel, Gayden, Zegler, Brody, Butler, Safran, Currey, Sandberg, Mirren, Good, and Milans.

We learn how much fun Levi is on the shoot. Honestly, he sounds exhausting, and this becomes a puffy reel.

Sisterhood of Villains goes for seven minutes, 54 seconds and includes remarks from Safran, Zegler, Grazer, Mirrren, Sandberg, Gayden, Currey, and actor Lucy Liu.

“Sisterhood” discusses the new characters and actors. A few worthwhile comments emerge – along with some interesting audition footage - but most of the featurette sticks with happy talk.

After this we get a Scene Deconstruction that fills 10 minutes, six seconds. We hear from Sandberg, Chen, Jones, O’Hara, Kirby, Mirren, Levi, visual effects artist Ariel Feblowitz, SPFX supervisor JD Schwalm, and location manager Caleb Hinshaw.

We see details for a few scenes. Expect an informative piece despite a little of the usual fluff.

Mythology of Shazam: Fury of the Gods occupies four minutes, 59 seconds and features Sandberg, Zegler, Mirren, Levi, and Chen.

As implied by the title, we learn of ancient lore used in the film. It offers a few worthwhile insights.

Finally, Shazamily Reunion runs five minutes, one second and presents notes from Sandberg, Levi, Angel, Zegler, Grazer, Good, Milans, Andrews, Butler, Armand, Housou, Currey, Brody, Herman, Cotrona and Chen.

“Reunion” talks about the connections among the castmembers. It offers little more than superficial praise.

A serious box office flop, Shazam! Fury of the Gods deserved a better fate. Though not a great superhero flick, it nonetheless offers a pretty lively and engaging tale. The 4K UHD boasts excellent picture and audio and a nice allotment of bonus materials. We get a nice release for a fairly fun adventure.

To rate this film visit the prior review of SHAZAM! FURY OF THE GODS