Ángel Manuel Soto

The Reyes family in Blue Beetle (2023) are broke, loud and plainly fond of one another. Ángel Manuel Soto makes their company the chief reason to stay with an otherwise routine superhero origin story. We warmed to them because he keeps their affection apparent through all the noise. There is a good family comedy here, but the superhero plot is much less satisfying. That leaves us interested in Soto without being persuaded by the whole film.

His feature debut, La Granja (2015), examined economic hardship in Puerto Rico. Charm City Kings (2020) followed with a coming-of-age story set in Baltimore’s dirt-bike scene. His work with local or non-professional performers on that film fits a broader interest in getting the details of a community right. Moving into DC filmmaking with Blue Beetle changed the genre without abandoning that concern. A Mexican-American family remained at the centre, with its shared troubles and pleasures given considerable attention.

Soto favours long takes and rhythmic editing to keep action connected to character. In Blue Beetle, he gives the family comedy enough room to hold our attention on its own. The bilingual speech and attention to gentrification also make the Reyes family’s circumstances specific, rather than treating their identity as something settled by casting. These details give the household a life beyond its function in a superhero story. We value that care, though it is not a reason to overlook the ordinary plotting.

Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer’s script supplies a conventional origin story, and Soto does not find a way to make it feel less familiar. The comedy and the superhero plotting remain awkwardly joined. His affection for the Reyes family makes those weaknesses easier to sit through, but it does not remove them. The household deserves more of the running time. Try Blue Beetle for the family, provided a routine superhero plot is a price worth paying.