I feel like this film snuck up on me because I hadn’t seen a lot of fanfare among my friends when it was announced.
Plus, the closest recollection about any blue beetle or bug-based superhero was the original television run for “The Tick” sitcom – and I know those aren’t even the tiniest bit similar in any way.
Still, that’s all I had to base my experience on before seeing the trailer debut before every movie I’ve been seeing in theaters for the past two months.
The action sequences are pretty solid but I spent more time laughing at the comedic banter between family members.
Blue Beetle is a 2023 American superhero film based on the DC Comics character Jaime Reyes / Blue Beetle, produced by DC Studios and The Safran Company.
The film was directed by Ángel Manuel Soto and written by Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer.
It is the 14th installment of the DC Extended Universe (DCEU).
It stars Xolo Maridueña as Jaime Reyes / Blue Beetle alongside Adriana Barraza, Damián Alcázar, Elpidia Carrillo, Bruna Marquezine, Raoul Max Trujillo, Susan Sarandon, and George Lopez.
The movie clocks in at 127 minutes long and is rated PG-13 for sequences of action and violence, language, and some suggestive references.
In a remote frozen tundra, Kord Industries manages to locate an artifact known as the Scarab.
Meanwhile, Jaime Reyes (Maridueña) returns to his hometown Palmera City after graduating college in Gotham and learns that his family will be losing their home due to financial difficulties.
Jaime’s sister Milagro (Escobedo) manages to get the two of them a job working at the mansion of Kord Industries’ CEO, Victoria Kord (Sarandon).
However, both are fired after Jaime steps in to stop a confrontation between Victoria and her niece Jenny (Marquezine).
Jenny tells Jaime to meet her at Kord Tower the next day to discuss a job opportunity.
The next day, Jenny finds that Victoria is using the Scarab for her One Man Army Corps (OMAC) projects.
She steals the Scarab and avoids security by giving it to Jaime hidden inside a to-go burger box.
At home, the Reyes family convinces Jaime to open the box.
When Jaime touches the Scarab, it activates and fuses with him creating an armored suit and a hilarious synchronization process between the machine and Reyes.
Jaime later goes to find Jenny for answers and rescues her from Victoria’s armed forces.
Jenny tells Jaime that the Scarab is an ancient sentient weapon and that it has willingly chosen Jaime as its host.
With the help of Jaime’s uncle Rudy (Lopez), Jaime and Jenny break into Kord Tower and grab a smartwatch that once belonged to Jenny’s father Ted, but are attacked by Victoria’s bodyguard - Ignacio Carapax (Trujillo).
Unfortunately, Carapax has an OMAC prototype infused in his body and a propensity for violence.
The Scarab is revealed to be named Khaji-Da, temporarily takes over Jaime’s body and battles Carapax.
Rudy and Jenny help incapacitate Carapax, then escape with Jaime to Jenny’s childhood home.
But, as always Victoria and Carapax are far from done with the Reyes family and it only gets predictably worse before Jaime and the Scarab become fully symbiotic.
Overall, I think it’s a great introduction to a DC Comics character that isn’t super mainstream or known at large to the general population.
My absolute favorite is Jaime’s uncle Rudy and the tight-knit family dynamics portrayed through the adversity and obstacles they all face.
