Elpidia Carrillo – Movies of the Soul

Vampire Owl: So, are we looking for a Vampire Beetle?

Vampire Bat: Beetles are too small to be transformed into vampires.

Vampire Owl: Well, they can be trained to bite people secretly.

Vampire Bat: We are vampires. We can bite people publicly in our territory.

Vampire Owl: Beetles can infiltrate other territories for our people.

Vampire Bat: We are not in war with any other territories.

Vampire Owl: With the exception of werewolves, zombies and witches.

Vampire Bat: The witches will identify a vampire from miles away.

Vampire Owl: With the right amount of magic, the beetle can go through.

Vampire Bat: No, we have always preferred resistance to magic.

[Gets a vancho cake and three cups of elaichi tea].

What is the movie about? :: Jaime Reyes (Xolo Mariduena) is a recent graduate from college in law who comes back to his home after a long time, only to find that his family is going to be evicted from where they have been staying. His parents Alberto Reyes (Damian Alcazar) and Rocio Reyes (Elpidia Carrillo) more than just happy to see him again, and are glad to be together as a family and asserts that they would solve this as one as they have always done with their troubles. His sister Milagro Reyes (Belissa Escobedo) finds both of them a job at a mansion and resort owned by Victoria Kord (Susan Sarandon), the CEO of Kord Industries. He comes across a heated argument between her and her niece Jenny Kord (Bruna Marquezine) about the company which was earlier headed by Jenny’s missing father manufacturing dangerous weapons able to trigger a third world war. As Jaime intervenes, Victoria immediately fires him and his sister. But Jenny asks him to meet her at the Kord Tower on the very next day to discuss the possibility of a job opportunity.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: Victoria has been using an ancient alien artifact known only as Scarab for her One Man Army Corps (OMAC) projects creating a large number of super-soldiers. Jenny steals the same and hides it inside a burger box which she gives to Jaime who arrived there to see her, as she runs away while being chased by the security after the alarm is set off. As Jaime opens the box, the Scarab activates and fuses with his body. Jaime is not able to control what the Scarab is doing as it forms an exoskeleton on his body, leading him to search for Jenny for answers. They decide to infiltrate Kord Tower again to retrieve a smart watch that belonged to Jenny’s father, only to find them being attacked by Ignacio Carapax (Raoul Max Trujillo) who is a cyborg-like soldier serving as Victoria’s personal bodyguard and meant to lead the future group of super-soldiers. They just manage to escape from there, but can they make sure that the OMAC never gets built? Can they stop Victoria before she brings the war to everyone?

The defence of Blue Beetle :: It can be seen that Blue Beetle becomes another movie that focuses on the superhero of the family, something which would make the Fast and Furious franchise proud. This particular focus on family makes sure that there is a lot of heart associated with the movie, and the feel-good also has a role to play. This also leads to the assurance that there will be an emotional side that runs strong in between. The action sequences are really good, even when not done in a grand mode – the battles are never really overdone, and controlled within the possibilities of the main characters. With its family-friendly content, it is the kind of movie which one can watch with the whole family and enjoy without second thoughts. The skill to keep the world not that complicated, can also be appreciated, as we can smoothly go through this one, and yet the movie does not compromise on quality. The final moments also assure the possibility of a sequel which can follow with a grand sequence of proceedings, expanding the world by a long way. This is the movie which surely deserved better reception in the theatres, and the funny side is also pretty good.

The claws of flaw :: There can be no doubt about the fact that this movie could have done better with the action and the use of antagonists. The visuals could have created better detail with the battle suits as well as the special effects during combat. The predictability factor does have its presence in this movie, and very often, this is the superhero movie that follows the usual procedure – often resembling movies outside Marvel and DC Extended Universes too. One cannot be blamed for making the wish to watch something divergent, as Marvel has done most of the things possible with the worlds of superheroes already, and ending a wave of grandeur well with Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. There are so many DC movies which have deserved better, including Black Adam, and Blue Beetle sadly did not do that well at the box-office, but we hope that the same will be watched more in the OTT platform. A good viewership there would be the reminder that this is one movie which is much more than what the box-office numbers say.

The performers of the soul :: Xolo Mariduena makes the character of Blue Beetle a fun watch, and he works with the bonding with family as well as the superpowers really well. The Brazilian actress Bruna Marquezine plays the female lead here, and makes a good point to become an action heroine running through DC Extended Universe, as the character is left with lot of options. We never really have enough billionaires who can help the superheroes in their work, unless the hero gets to be among the richest people around. We have always remembered Elpidia Carrillo in relation to an original Predator and Arnold Schwarzenegger hunting as well as being hunted, and it is good to see her around here. Damian Alcazar makes a lovely father figure here, while Adriana Barraza adds on as the grandmother in style. Susan Sarandon is pretty much an interesting antagonist, while Raoul Max Trujillo makes the nemesis who gets all the action sequences to perform. George Lopez also makes a fine impact here while Belissa Escobedo adds to the family well.

How it finishes :: Blue Beetle might feel like Antman from a distance, but we know that they are not similar as it begins and gets the first interesting sequences. It really deserved to be a grand success with the content that never ceases to be entertaining. In the DC Extended Universe, this particular superhero has the chance to be something big, but considering the lack of success of this film might have blocked that opportunity – I would find that choice of audience surprising though, as the strangest of superheroes have done better, and Deadpool might be the weirdest that deserved no big attention. The movie here could have brought more though, and if there is no sequel, that cannot be achieved – this is that kind of a film which can broaden its scope by a long way. We would remain hopeful against a future with a sequel, and at the same time, consider this as an interesting origin story. Until then, we enjoy this movie, and consider this particular superhero as someone who can rise even above some of the well-known superheroes.

Release date: 18th August 2023
Running time: 127 minutes
Directed by: Angel Manuel Soto
Starring: Xolo Mariduena, Bruna Marquezine, Adriana Barraza, Damian Alcazar, Raoul Max Trujillo, Susan Sarandon, George Lopez, Elpidia Carrillo

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@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Vampire Owl: How many horror movies can one watch in a small gap of a few hours?

Vampire Bat: We vampires do not have limitations in horror.

Vampire Owl: During the Corona virus times, there should be restrictions.

Vampire Bat: Not in the case of films, for we are not watching them in theatres.

Vampire Owl: You mean to say that vampires should go back to horror.

Vampire Bat: We were always in horror. You didn’t know that?

Vampire Owl: This is not the horror that we were born into.

Vampire Bat: You should remember that all kinds of horror are connected.

Vampire Owl: Not in the watch of owls. Maybe that works for bats.

Vampire Bat: Still doing better than the Vampire Crocodile.

[Gets a choclate cake and three cups of Munnar special tea].

What is the movie about? :: In the 1970s, a Mexican-American couple are expecting their first child, and during this time period, they move from Los Angelos to a migrant farming community in the nineteen seventeens, and he would be working as a manager in a farm. The area chosen for the same is in California, and the place seems to be quite peaceful and quiet enough for the baby when it arrives. Diana (Ariana Guerra), the pregnant lady is American, while Beto (Tenoch Huerta) is Mexican, and had migrated to the United States. The small town where they move to, seems to have more of a Spanish influence too. The first person that they meet in the town is Anita (Elpidia Carrillo), who provides them with a blessing of Holy Mary, and assures them that the town can be a wonderful place to live in, much to the dismay of Diana who wonders why it is not already such a place. Beto doesn’t work much about the same.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: As Beto goes for work, Diana feels that there is something strange about the place, and that doubt leads her to the outhouse building near the house, and she finds a few things which might have belonged to the previous owners. She also gets locked inside, and after somehow getting out, finds a severed eye being hung on tree outside the house. Beto feels that these were not things to be worried about, as the door might have closed due to the wind and the severed eye might have been there for a very long time, and maybe it meant something for the previous owners or the locals. They also meet the locals who seems to be friendly enough, but don’t get much of information, even though they end up having more acquaintances. Still, they remains more of Beto’s friends, as he is Mexican and good at Spanish. Diana only gets more and more disoriented during her time there. She wonders if there is more than what meets the eye about the place.

The defence of Madres :: The one advantage that this film has over the others is that it really has its creepy world going strong during all times. The environment here is really good, and very much notable. An ancient curse in the background seems through run through here, and adds to the creepy atmosphere really well. Even though there seems to be something supernatural around here, we soon come to know that it is not all, and we soon face the mystery being revealed. Some of us might be able to guess the final twist, but it also has its own small changes related to the same. It also leads to a few things which really happened, and it does remind of a few things which can happen if we are not aware. It leaves the message that with or without the presence of the supernatural, the world and its people are not what we feel they are, for people will always have their hidden agenda and a good dose of hatred inside. The music here is also very much suitable for the same.

The claws of flaw :: Just like the case of The Manor, this film also has the problem of being classified completely into the category of horror, as this one is also no fully something that focuses on the scares. It could have used the horror, as well as the grand atmosphere that it possesses with the house and the town with maximum effectiveness, for these days, many horror films are on a continuous struggle to be what it really should be. It is actually not restricted to one location with scope for here, as there is a lot more in here, for the town itself has something in store at different parts. A faster movie could have dealt with all of these with better strength, but this one hesitates to pick up the pace. The movie also released without much of a hype, and not many people know about its entry into Amazon Prime Video – the title also has people confused about the language. The movie came silently, and it is still there, but not many people know about the same.

Performers of the soul :: Ariana Guera plays the one character who seems to be fully English, and she is also the upcoming mother in trouble, here she is acting as the main protagonist, as well as the centre of attraction. She achieves the same really well, as we look at the scenes here. She is not that much of a believer in the supernatural, and we see her knowing things the hard way. Tenoch Huerta gets into his role really well too. The next important character is played by Elpidia Carrillo, and you will remember her from Predator, fighting the monster with her newly discovered American allies. She has blended into this role, even though one does feel that it should have been better written. The others are just part of the usual process, and they just blend in here too. Most of these characters become relevant at some later stage of the movie, and we are not to avoid them – there is the twist about this particular mystery that awaits us later.

How it finishes :: This one has some similarities with The Manor with how it progresses, how it deviates from its genre, and how it joins different things in a building as well as with an environment that catches our attention. Instead of the old age home and the strange surroundings, this one has one home and a lonely enough world around it. As far as the whole atmosphere is concerned, and related to the progress that happens in each minute, Madres has the advantage. This is also part of the Welcome to the Blumhouse film series, just like The Manor. I would suggest this movie to those who are interested in some slow, atmospheric horror, with a strong base on ancient legends and curses, and this is not your Annabelle, The Conjuring, Insidious, Don’t Breathe and Lights Out. You just need to live through this atmosphere rather than trying to be scared at all times, for there are different things of interest here.

Release date: 8th October 2021 (Amazon Prime Video)
Running time: 83 minutes
Directed by: Ryan Zaragoza
Starring: Elpidia Carrillo, Ariana Guera, Tenoch Huerta, Jennifer Patino, Kerry Cahill, Evelyn Gonzalez, Britton Webb