God!!! This was awful! The comedy is not it, it is what made the movie miss its mark mainly because the alter ego characters do not fit with their counterparts. Does the power make kids more kiddies? I don't think so but it's what it implies.
Also, wtf for some reason I thought the Freddy kid was Shazam. Is Billy supposed to be the MC? I don't get it.

Anyways what made this movie horrible is:

1. Lack of character coherence with the younger versions: Istg they seem reasonable when they're kids.
2. Setting: Ik it's based on the comics but let us be real adaptations require ingenuity these days. The villains in this setting seem ridiculous and inconspicuously move a banal plot point you don't give a fuck about.
3. The adult actors: This may seem harsh but they fucking suck at acting as kids, especially Zachary Levi. Idk what's his deal but he fucking needs to chill. Tell me how he's turning 18 but acts like a 6-year-old as Shazam.
4. Obsession with other DC characters: I'm all for connectivity in dceu but this just takes the enjoyment out of solo movies. First, you need to make the MC of the main story stand out on their own and be able to be interesting without bubbling about Superman, WW, batman etc. A great example is WW (2017)
5. No change in the formula: Despite being at the centre of attention, superhero movies and TV shows suffer from predictability and the same outcomes. You know that at the end of the day, there'll be no high stakes such as character death, impactful events etc BC they want them for later projects. They're like, hundreds of characters that never got the chance to be introduced in live-action.