They say if you can’t say something nice about someone, don’t say anything.
Sooooo…… I will say that this film has way better CGI than the previous DC Movie, The Flash, and that Nana (Adriana Barraza) was pretty cool and like the Black Panther, it is good to see a cast of actors that don’t get the same representation.
If I am going to review this film then yes, I have some issues with it.
Blue Beetle (Dir. Ángel Manuel Soto) follows Jaime Reyes (Xolo Maridueña), who has just graduated but has no job opportunities. He lives with his family on the wrong side of town. His father Alberto (Damián Alcázar) has recently had a heart attack, and his little sister Milagro (Belissa Escobedo) won’t stop giving him a hard time.
Mum, Rocio (Elpidia Carrillo),Nana, and Uncle Rudy (George Lopez) round out the family who are down on their luck and will have to move out of their homes because a big bad corporation is going to gentrify their area.
Jaime happens to get a job cleaning the home of the head of the big bad corporation that is making them move, Victoria Kord (Susan Sarandon). Jaime tries to stop an altercation between Victoria and her niece Jenny Kord (Bruna Marquezine). Shockingly, he gets fired.
Jenny offers to get him a new job and this leads to Jaime receiving the Blue Beetle. He needs to keep it safe until Jenny can figure out what to do because her completely one-dimensional evil Aunt Victoria wants to use the beetle to make more money.
Does Jaime do what he is told, of course not, he plays with the Blue Beetle, unlocking it and binding it with him to turn him into a superhero.
The main frustrations with this film are that nothing is earned and everything is black and white. The good guys are all good, the bad guys are all bad, and there is no nuance. We have had superhero films for years now and this does nothing but hit all of the basic beats.
We find out that not just anyone can use the Blue Beetle. We don’t find out why the Blue Beetle chose him, just that it did. The bad guys keep making evil decisions, the good guys are all wonderful. Jaime as the Blue Beetle doesn’t want to kill anyone but then many people are killed just a few moments later by his decisions and his family’s love of pulling the trigger.
Nana makes a scene-stealing turn and is quite fun.
Instead of having an interesting villain, there is a red Blue Beetle for him to fight. Just like Iron Man fought another Iron Man over a decade ago. And he wins, not be learning anything but because he has family. I didn’t realise this was a fast-and-furious spin-off film.
Films are a miracle. They are so hard to write, so hard to get money to make them, so hard to actually make them after you get the money. The share act that it exists is a miracle, in saying that, this film is definitely one of the lesser miracles.
Luke McMeeken-Ruscoe
19th September 2023