Black Adam, the latest superhero epic from Warner Brothers Discovery, was released in theaters on October 21st of this year. Starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Black Adam introduced a new wave of characters to the DCEU and marked the film debut for the Justice Society. But you, dear reader, are probably asking, “how was the film?” and “is it good?” If I were to describe the film in a single word, I would call it “fun.”
Black Adam is not what you would call a “cerebral” film. It's not a movie that makes you think or ponder life. It's a film about an ancient man waking up and proceeding to beat the living tar out of just about everyone around him. Teth Adam, as Johnson’s character is referred to in the film, is an ancient hero who adheres to a brutal code of justice. While Shazam! didn’t shy away from violence, Teth-Adam does not hesitate to kill his enemies, and when he does so, it's usually incredibly violent, including ripping one foe of his in half. Black Adam has a somewhat similar vibe to 2021’s The Suicide Squad, as not only are there frequent bouts of violence but also cheesy jokes galore. The main character struggles to learn how to be a modern hero from a young boy, including learning how to properly quip during a fight. Aside from Teth Adam, the film had a roster of new heroes to expand the super community outside of the Justice League. Each member of the Justice Society is interesting but could’ve used more fleshing out.
Though I found Black Adam to be an enjoyable movie, I would be lying if I said there were no shortcomings. Despite being a spin-off of 2019’s Shazam!, Black Adam somewhat ignores some of the lore of the previous film. In Shazam!, the wizard revealed to Billy Batson that the previous champion of magic had joined forces with the Seven Deadly Sins (some of that film’s major antagonists) for revenge against those who had wronged him, a plot point that is never brought up in Black Adam. Instead, Teth-Adam is stated to be imprisoned for taking revenge against a brutal king in his time without the Sins making a single appearance.
Another glaring issue from Black Adam is the inconsistent tone with the other DCEU films. While trying to get some mooks to spill the beans on their boss’s big plan, Teth Adam gets reprimanded by Hawkman for his violent methods, the latter hero telling him, “heroes don’t kill.” Well, as someone who has seen every film come out of the DCEU, I can confidently say that is a lie. “What rock has Hawkman been living under,” members of the audience asked as they remembered Superman snapping Zod’s neck, Aquaman stabbing Black Manta’s father or even Batman of all heroes blowing up cars and running over people.
To summarize my opinion: Watch Black Adam. It's fun and kinda dumb. And it is fine to like dumb media. 3.5/5.
