Movie Review: 'Black Adam' Amps The Rock To Epic Proportions
LOS ANGELES, Oct. 18 (UPI) -- Black Adam , who arrives in theaters Friday, is as boisterous and scary as you'd expect from superhero character Dwayne Johnson. It's entertaining and never boring, but fast enough to keep the audience off the questions it asks.
In 2600 B.C., slave Kahnda was granted Shazam powers by a council of witches. Tate Adam (Johnson) was buried nearly 5,000 years ago until Adriana (Sarah Shahi) found the Sabak crown in his grave.
Adriana summons Shazam to wake Adam, who discovers that his power is greater than any modern weapon. But the Justice League, not to be confused with the Justice League, doesn't want a rogue superhero in Kahandak.
Then Hockman (Aldes Hodge) and Dr. Faith (Pierce Brosnan), Atom Smasher (Noah Centenio) and Cyclone (Quintessa Swindell) arrive to try to stop Adam.
Oddly enough, Warner Bros. She did not promote Black Adam as a Shazam movie because it is associated with the same myths. Comic book fans knew where Adam came from. It is explained to all beginners.
Adam and the movie itself make it clear that he's not your average superhero, especially since he kills people. But it's still not much darker than the rest of the DC or Marvel slate.
Adam kills the bad guys, but they are all common criminals from Intergang, the occupying force of Kahandak. The villains of the Fast and Furious series are acquitted after killing too many innocents, so Adam will get permission if he doesn't do what he can to save the villains while protecting the innocent.
It is somehow accepted that Interbang is a group of villains who have taken over the modern era and oppressed people. The movie seems to agree not to ask too much about Intergang or how Adam woke up speaking good English (magic. Maybe?).
Throwing a grenade in the evil Black Adam's face is cool, but the movie stays strong with the trick. Adam's silent physicality is even more frightening than it was when he started talking in the first scenes.
The action scenes are big and loud, but they're still all CGI. Man of Steel has already explored the possibility of hitting flying people and smashing buildings, and it was quite controversial for Superman because of the collateral damage it causes. So black Adam can play in this world as well.
Adam's unstoppable power is hilarious as he cuts through walls and pushes heavy furniture out of his way. Adam's hatred of his defeated foes remains amusing as director Jaume Collet-Best finds new ways to kill the regular members of Intergang.
The film honors international superhero morale when, in reality, it is concerned with their further destruction. That's right, because the world also needs gray films.
But when Adriana questions the Justice Society for standing up to a Middle Eastern country with her superhero, well, the Justice Society doesn't have an answer.
It's also funny because Adriana is right. The world of superheroes ignored him when the priest had to save him. But the DC movie world also ignored the Middle East until it became a superhero, except for some random scenes where Superman rescues Lewis from terrorists.
Adriana also does what should be the main point of the movie. “You are not a hero, but you are not a monster either.” The world and the industry are more complex than the good guys and the bad guys, but unfortunately, it all boils down to more rejection.
Black Adam , the Marvel movie competition, has managed to solve this complexity with Captain America. In Civil War movies and even Spider-Man. In the No Way Home movies. So it is possible to have amazing themes without sacrificing superhero action.
Adriana's son Amon (Body Sabungwe) catches Adam by surprise, in a world that has woken up with other superheroes. Aman also appeals to audiences limited to Batman and Superman.
Johnson is happy to show that he is angry with Adam Amon, but he tries to learn some phrases from him. This is another joke that Edward Furlong taught Arnold Schwarzenegger in Terminator 2 , and it's funny too.
As a darker version of Shazam , Black Adam repeats the mistakes of fewer DC movies. Justice Society character roles are as boring as any member of the Suicide Squad.
So if The Rock destroys more things than he seems to enjoy with the human characters, Black Adam delivers. He knows his fans, so his "WWE 11-oriented" aesthetic feels right.
Fred Topple, who attended Ithaca College Film School, is a UPI entertainment writer based in Los Angeles. He has been a professional film critic since 1999, critic of Rotten Tomatoes since 2001, and a member of the Television Critics Association since 2012. Read more about his work in the entertainment field.
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