The original DCEU utters it's last wheeze with Blue Beetle, a film with just about enough character to avoid being the most generic superhero movie of all time. Emphasis on just about.
It really should be better than it is since it has plenty of elements that ought to add up to a fun super hero caper. The focus is on a whole family rather than yet another lone outsider, it puts a different culture front and centre and it leans (or at least tries to) into the bright and silly side of the genre. Unfortunately so many parts of the movie feel like they've been given the absolute minimal effort.
The story sees Jamie Reyes return to his home city after graduating law school to find out his family are facing eviction. He takes a job with his sister at the mansion of an industrial CEO and promptly gets them both fired but ends up in possession of "The Scarab", an alien super weapon that is basically a sentient Iron Man suit. Naturally the evil corporation the suit was liberated from want it back and conflict ensues.
Pretty much every part of the plot is as by the numbers as you can imagine. Evil corporation treading all over the little guy? Check. Said corporation's villainous goal is create an army of super soldiers? Check. Bad guy that's a colour swapped version of the main character? Check. Day saved by the power of family/friendship? Check. Its all here and not delivered with anywhere near enough finesse to excuse the cookie cutter nature of proceedings. The same "it'll do" approach is applied to dialogue and even the special effects, with jokes that pretty much never land and wildly inconsistent CGI.
The acting ranges from not bad to, well, bad. At one end of the scale is Xolo Mariduena who despite having crumbs to work with in terms of character development manages to inject enough likability into Jamie that you don't want to see him get smeared across the floor, even with the insipid dialogue between him and the B-tech Friday AI that powers the Beetle suit. On the other end of the scale is a career low performance from Susan Sarandon as Victoria Kord. I'm not sure if she was asked to chew scenery but decided to try and play it more sinister or was told to be intimidating but decided to camp it up. Either way she falls completely flat somewhere between the two. Maybe she read the final script and simply couldn't be bothered. It's a pity since, with a bit fleshing out, her character could have been interesting given she has every right to feel scorned. As it stands the message from her character arc seems to be patriarchy is...good?
The only thing saving Blue Beetle from the absolute dregs of the genre is the Reyes family. None of them are particularly complex but they are all enjoyable and give off a genuine sense of family togetherness that adds some heart to proceedings. They mostly all get a moment to shine but you feel the best version of this film would have found a way to put them more front and centre. There is one joke/twist involving the grandmother that just doesn't work at all. I can imagine the film makers pictured the audience rolling in the aisles but staring in bemusement is the more likely outcome.
It really feels like Blue Beetle needed taking back to drawing board and rebuilt one more time but the studio just wanted to toss it out there so they could get on with starting their whole universe afresh.
4 failed revolutions started by 10 geriatric matriarchs.
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