Can a movie teach you the meaning of a family, has its own superhero and seems like a breath of fresh air in a complicated world of multiverse, all at the same time? Well, DC’s Blue Beetle is such an action film, certainly different from the usual extended-universe comic book fare.

Starring Cobra Kai’s Xolo Maridueña as ‘Blue Beetle’, and seasoned actor Susan Sarandon as the antagonist, the movie is DC’s first with a Latino superhero, who has a colourful family and a villain who wants to take over the world.

Although Blue Beetle made its debut in DC Comics around 1939, it was not seen much until 2006. In the category of Shazam and the most recent Flash, the movie is quite close to being termed as DC’s version of Ms Marvel, something with a male protagonist. Jaime Reyes arrives from college in the fictional Palmera City, only to find that his father, Alberto (Damián Alcázar), lost his auto shop business and his childhood home is in danger of being repossessed by Kord Industry.

Despite his pre-law degree, Jaime struggles to land a job and goes to work with his younger sister Milagro (Belissa Escobedo) as help at a resort, owned by Victoria Kord. Sister of Ted Kord, the original Blue Beetle, Victoria is a true representation of the ‘rule the world’ psyche and is obsessed with the Scarab, the power source of Blue Beetle. Things change when Jaime comes in contact with the Scarab and becomes the new Blue Beetle, and after initial reluctance, decides to save his family and later the world with his superpowers.

As for the performances, everyone is fit in their characters especially Xolo Maridueña who looks the part at all times. His sister Milagro is played by Belissa Escobedo of Hocus Pocus 2, while Jaime’s uncle Rudy, (played by George Lopez) is phenomenal in his role, whereas Brazilian star Bruna Marquezine plays the love interest of Jaime, Jennifer ‘Jenny’ Kord, the true heir to the company. Director Angel Manuel Soto makes sure that Jaime Reyes’s Mexican roots are explained and his bond with his loving and close-knit family explored.

Jaime’s transformation reminds one of Shazam, when Zachary Levi gets super-hero powers for the first time. Full of well-choreographed action sequences, family jokes and a familiar origin story of a superhero, Blue Beetle is a movie that can be enjoyed with the family. From a revolutionary grandmother to an eccentric uncle, somewhat in the league of Doc Brown from the Back to the Future series and a ‘guiding’ angel Khaji-Da to make Blue Beetle more powerful, the 127-minute movie is not to be missed. Unlike The Flash, this movie is going to be part of the DCU going forward.

Published in Dawn, Young World, October 14th, 2023