Black Adam

OK, this isn't a bad movie. But, it as a bit much CGI (like everything else nowadays) and I think modern audiences are getting tired of paying out the wazoo to basically watch a video game. And then the narration. The voice is too young and though it does make sense with the plot, it is jarring because basic tradition is that narrations have an older and wiser voice... Morgan Freeman, Spock, etc. So that is going to instantly set the radiance off. And then the Snyderverse is over. Period. They made no illusions about that, we have known it was over for years, there was even a massive backlash about his cut of Justice League because it was given the fans what they wanted and thus bad... because politics and politics have declared that people that are enthusiastic about anything that isn't left wing politics are evil. Because the world has gone insane. But the greater point is that people already don't care. They not only already don't care, but they were sort of told not to by the very people that made the movie. It's world is over. This world ended before it was released. Which, sucks, because Shazam was my favorite to come out of the DCEU. People aren't going to care. They aren't going to watch it and when they do it's going to come with disdain. But as far as a Superhero movie goes... come on, you're not really getting much. They aren't Chinatown, they are just popcorn munchers and nothing more, and that isn't bad. But let's call it what it is. Unless they are political like the MCU, they are just mindless action and gags. And if they are political like the MCU, they sort of stink. This is relatively politics free. It's high on adventure and so-so on action (see the above CGI comment) so you have a decent film for the genre. It just should have come out before they declared the universe dead.

In search of the all powerful crown of "Sabbac", "Adrianna" (Sarah Shahi) unleashes "Seth-Adam" (Dwayne Johnson) from his mountain-encased tomb deep in the desert. With super-human powers akin to "Superman", he returns to his home city of "Kahndaq" which is under the control of the "Intergangs". Will he decide to help her and her son "Amon" (Bodhi Sabongui) free them from this criminal tyranny? Well what nobody had counted on are the folks from the Justice League/Brotherhood/Department - led by "Hawkman" (Aldis Hodge) and "Dr. Fate" (Pierce Brosnan) who have decided that "Adam" is a bit of an wrong-un and so bring their state-of-the-art rocket ship as well as the "Atom Smasher" (Noah Centineo) and "Cyclone" (Quintessa Swindell) to capture or destroy him. Thing is, "Adam" is the stuff of legend to these people - reputedly having defeated an ancient despotic king - but is/was he all that he seemed? Is he good or evil or both? Well, to be honest I didn't really care. This is a very well produced and technically superb creative effort, but the story is all over the place and the repetitive combat scenes just grate after a while. Johnson has charisma, we have seen it loads of times, but here he exudes none. Hodge looks great in his winged-suit but again, his character is as deep as an Ethiopian river in July. Centineo has some fun as the giant - more than a passing resemblance to Mark Ruffalo, don't you think? Otherwise the rest of this is about as derivative as it comes. Hopefully this is just a one-off, as this is nobody's finest work and is up there with "Morbius" as a superhero film too many!

In all honesty, I was anticipating the same old rubbish. Neither the teaser nor the people involved left me feeling optimistic. To my surprise, I got a rather well-crafted superhero film that, despite its imperfections, is still superior to the vast bulk of its genre’s offerings in recent years. Coming from the DCEU, which has produced some of the most inconsistent content in recent memory, and starring Dwayne Johnson as the lead, who, apart from his charm and muscular physique, isn’t exactly known for his acting talents. In many respects, “Black Adam” had more going against it than for it. Nevertheless, thanks to director Jaume Collet-Serra, writers Adam Sztykiel, Rory Haines, and Sohrab Noshirvani, and a supporting ensemble that makes the most out of a script that is at best passable, “Black Adam” manages to stand out from the recent run of lacklustre comic book films. It manages to establish a broader universe without appearing forced while introducing some new concepts to the genre. “Black Adam’s” most distinctive characteristic is the way it refuses to settle for any clear-cut morality. It all adds up to a film that succeeds more often than not. In 2019, when the Infinity Saga ended, you couldn’t have convinced me that I’d be more interested in the DCEU than the Marvel Cinematic Universe. But fast-forward three years, and that is precisely what has happened; DCEU has produced some good content during that time (Zack Snyder’s Justice League, The Suicide Squad, Peacemaker). The future seems bright for the DCEU! ___ Rating: 6.9/10 (Good, It Gets the Job Done, Slightly Flawed)