Formula: 1 / Shazam!
Can we all collectively accept that superhero movies are a staple now? It seems like any time a superhero movie doesn’t destroy a box office record, the whispers pick up about if audiences have reached a saturation point. Look, it’s been at least two decades of this whether you want to use Spider-Man (2002), X-Men (2000), or even Batman (1989) or Superman (1976) as your starting point. That’s longer than basically any era other than Westerns. In the last year, Spider-Man: No Way Home blew away all box office expectations, The Batman made a $350 million domestic despite brand confusion and fatigue, and two MCU movies exceeded their prior installments in the box office. Even if Black Adam is seen as a disappointment, it’s still the biggest opening of Dwayne Johnson’s career*. So, even I am bored theorizing about what Black Adam could mean for the DECU or superhero market in general. I’d rather look at the film like any random Dwayne Johnson blockbuster.
*As the sole star. Technically, he’s in Fast and Furious and Mummy movies that opened bigger, but he was very supporting in those films.
Black Adam (Dwayne Johnson) is the story of a magical hero of a fictional middle eastern (?) nation of Sabbac. He was given powers by sorcerers to defend Sabbac but was magically imprisoned. In the thousands of years since his imprisonment, Sabbac has been run by a series of tyrants and thugs. One day in the present, archeologist Adrianna Tomaz (Sarah Shahi) accidentally awakens Black Adam. It turns out, Black Adam isn’t a noble hero. He’s vengeful and quick to kill. He then has to figure out if he really wants to be the hero that Sabbac needs. Meanwhile, an off-brand Justice League called the Justice Society, led by Hawkman (Aldis Hodge), has been sent to put a stop to Black Adam. Apparently, an all-powerful being who doesn’t give a shit is dangerous to society. The story is messy; messy in a way that I like. It’s fun that there are three opposing forces in this. The balance shifts a lot. The Justice Society are the traditional good guys, but are they really in the right? Black Adam certainly isn’t evil, but isn't a hero either. And the bad guy who I forget, is he – no, he’s just a bad guy. It’s a comic movie. It’s only going to get so complex.
As a Dwayne Johnson vehicle, I wasn’t super impressed with the movie. He’s fine, but the character felt thin. I don’t see why Johnson has spent so many years trying to get this movie made. However, as a 90s action movie made in 2022, I enjoyed this movie. Two movies I kept thinking of as I watched this were T2: Judgment Day and The Power Rangers Movie (1995). Black Adam bonds with Adrianna’s teen son, Amon (Bodhi Sabongui), who introduces him to modern life and concepts, much like John and the Terminator in T2. Obviously, the big difference here is that the Terminator is a robot and Adam is a person. In one, a lack of personality is a feature. In the other, it’s a bug. The Power Rangers comparison is a little harder to pinpoint. I think it has to do with the feeling of this being part of a larger world – ex. Amanda Waller is the one who deploys the Justice Society – yet it's self-contained. It didn’t feel like this was trying to set up a larger world. It’s not as quippy as an MCU movie or as dark as The Batman. It’s a happy medium, although that does lead to a lack of any distinguishing characteristics.
The eclectic cast of DC characters does leave Black Adam feeling like a movie built out of the leftover pieces of the DECU. That leaves room for entertaining performances by Noah Centineo, Quintessa Swindell, and Pierce Brosnan. I don’t see this specific tone as something DC will revisit. The movie is far more anonymous than bad.
Verdict: Weakly Don’t Recommend
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