Warner Bros. Pictures presents Blue Beetle exclusively in UK cinemas from August 18, 2023.
Synopsis
Recent college grad Jaime Reyes returns home full of aspirations for his future, only to find that home is not quite as he left it. As he searches to find his purpose in the world, fate intervenes when Jaime unexpectedly finds himself in possession of an ancient relic of alien biotechnology: the Scarab. When the Scarab suddenly chooses Jaime to be its symbiotic host, he is bestowed with an incredible suit of armor capable of extraordinary and unpredictable powers, forever changing his destiny as he becomes the Super Hero BLUE BEETLE.
Review
Blue Beetle, the latest DC film and the first confirmed movie to feature a character from James Gunn’s DCU, focuses on Jaime Reyes (Xolo Mariduena), a young man who moves back home with his family shortly after graduating college. After a number of events occur he finds himself fused with the mysterious Blue Scarab and gaining incredible new abilities. Now along with his family he must fight against a corrupt corporation and save the people he loves.
Going into the film, my knowledge of Blue Beetle and Jaime Reyes was predominantly from the 2nd season of Young Justice where he and the origins of the scarab were part of the main storyline across the season. This did lead me down through some of the comics but largely it was Young Justice and Injustice 2 where I really got to know more of the character. The portrayal of Jaime by Xolo Mariduena is nothing if not sincere, he is openly loving of his family, he is a hard worker and before he is granted his powers he is already prepared to put himself in harm’s way to help others. He exhibits all the characteristics and traits of a hero long before he needs to and the acting of Xolo perfectly exudes this. He is a fresh burst of energy against the backdrop of the more darker and tonally serious demeanor of the other DC heroes.
When Jamie gains his powers and settles more into its capabilities he really shines brightest. Summoning a wide array of weapons and skills to subdue his enemies and strongly against killing any of them, it’s clear Xolo’s previous work in the Karate Kid series regarding choreography worked in his favour as the Blue Beetle flawlessly takes out foe after foe.
But Jaime is not the only character left to shine as he shares the spotlight with his family, who all in their own right are standouts. It’s not uncommon to see the secondary cast regulated to the background only allowed to watch or worse be kept in the dark about the main characters’ duel life. Instead they are immediately in the know on the situation and actively help Jamie when possible. Grandma is a major standout played by Adriana Barraza Gonzalez but I’ll let audiences learn the reason why this is. I found this incredibly refreshing that the hero is not weighed down by their new responsibilities but instead embraces them and uses them to their best capability. Jaime Reyes is every bit a teenager granted some incredibly cool powers!
The film is brimming with some truly awesome action scenes, you can tell the director Angel Manuel Sota is a huge fan of anime with how he stages the fight scenes and the subtle references here and there. As a huge anime fan myself the nods were hugely entertaining and to see Jaime Reyes embrace his newfound powers by trying to copy skills and weapons someone his age would idolise in games.
I feel the film’s biggest weakness is falling into the tried and tested trope of having a villain who is basically a copy of the hero. Iron Man had Iron Monger, Superman had General Zod and Blue Beetle has Conrad Carapax. While his origins are explored and he cuts an intimidating figure he is more or less a one note villain. Same for a film original character Victoria Kord who is the brother of Ted Kord. While played by the impeccable Susan Sarandon, she is every bit of a moustache twirling villain in the same vein as Ant-Man’s Yellowjacket. Just an unredeemable business minded person who is more than happy to kill people for her goals.
Visually from the get go you can tell the film is a major departure from the latest batch of DC Movies, it’s taken a more vibrant look to the aesthetics as well as a semi futuristic look with holographic banners and company signs lighting up the fictional city of Palmera City. As this is the first of the DCU continuity, time will tell if this is exclusive to this city or if Gotham, Metropolis and Star City also follow with their somewhat high tech futuristic advances in technology.
Blue Beetle has given me strong hope for the DCU moving forward and its use of bright vibrant unique characters that exist within the DC continuity. It’s a fantastic introduction to an amazing new hero which Xolo Mariduena brings to life in an incredibly strong performance as well as his family there to support him.
Verdict
Blue Beetle is a bright, energetic, bold hero on the big screen for an entirely new generation to look up to and admire! The film is bursting with fun, excitement and beautifully executed action scenes. While the villains needed more time to cook, the first steps Jaime Reyes takes into joining the elite heroes show he has what it takes, particularly with his strong loving family standing right behind him.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
