Directed by: Ángel Manuel Soto
Written by: Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer
Starring: Xolo Maridueña, Adriana Barraza, Damián Alcázar, Raoul Max Trujillo, Susan Sarandon
Rating: [3.5/5]
With the glut of superhero movies out in the marketplace, it’s safe to say audiences know the formula that exists in these origin stories. We have the basic beats that these heroes go through in initially accepting the challenge that comes with the power or tool placed upon them. Therefore, getting something different makes all the difference in finding a level of enjoyment from the tale with all that Blue Beetle does not succeed in, it has enough to keep us engaged throughout.
An ancient artifact called the Scarab gets found by Kord Industries CEO Victoria Kord (Susan Sarandon). Hoping to use it for evil purposes, Victoria’s niece Jenny (Bruna Marquezine) decides to sneak it out of their building by handing it off to unsuspecting prospective employee Reyes (Xolo Maridueña). When he unlocks the Scarab, it wraps around him like a suit and operates as a weapon of mass destruction he can barely control.
With no knowledge of this character from a lack of interest in comic books as a whole, Blue Beetle, on the surface, feels like a knock off version of Iron Man where instead of a genius mind piecing together the suit, the suit itself works as magic. Instead of a Jarvis created by Tony Stark, the suit itself serves as its own operating system that leaves the user at its mercy with what it can do. That alone should dry up any interest I would have in what this film should offer, especially with the recent woes of the studio behind the film, but this film had something different going for it. Something that would pull in my interest no matter how much I did not initially care for it: it centers on the Latine community and a Latine family in particular. That alone served as what drove interest for me and it ultimately became the saving grace of the film as a whole.
To be completely forthcoming, everything about the superhero origin elements were nothing other than plain and formulaic. Nothing worth writing home about and could honestly be skipped, but when it came to the dynamic of the family and how it relates to the overall story, it drew me in and kept me going when all else failed. The Reyes family and all of their shenanigans simply became this delight to take in as they react to the craziness of this Scarab in their lives. It made for much of the comedy the film had to offer and each member certainly played their part in driving all the enjoyment for me. Each had their distinct personality traits, from a grandmother not to mess with in Nana (Adriana Barraza) to the kooky uncle far too into conspiracy theories in Rudy (George Lopez). They were such a refreshing presence in the film and each time we got away from them to delve more into this uninteresting Scarab, I wished we would get back to them.
In addition to the family dynamic, this film also lightly looks upon how this Latine family and many others get impacted by companies like Kord Industries, which make things difficult for this family in Palmera City, which was essentially this universe’s version of Miami. It parallels aplenty the issues plaguing the Latine people of that city that bring much the personality that is loved about it and while the film does not delve too deep, I still appreciated it highlighting the difference between the haves and have-nots. DC movies tend to focus on godlike super beings like Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and Superman. When we focus on humanlike individuals, they are multi-billionaires like Bruce Wayne as Batman. Blue Beetle displays a different struggle, where the biggest issue Jaime had prior to the whole Scarab situation was getting a job to help support himself and his family.
While narratively not bringing anything new in regard to a superhero origin story, I found plenty to like in Blue Beetle in pretty much everything other than the superhero elements. This family proved to be incredibly charming and fun and we have a memorable protagonist at the center of it all. Perhaps they could just do a spinoff of this family and their adventures in Palmera City, as I would love to continue to follow them and just leave all the superhero stuff aside. Everything culturally with the family allows me to forgive everything subpar about it, and I have no shame in saying it.
Films with Josh 
