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Netflix’s ‘Chupa’ is poorly paced and lacks characterization

Graphic by Sarah Irwin

Children’s movies vary as wildly in quality as any other genre, the most recent bad example being Netflix’s film “Chupa.”

The film follows Alex (Evan Whitten) as he’s sent by his single mother to live with his grandpa and cousins in Mexico. The young boy struggles to settle in with his new home and relatives who try to encourage him to come out of his shell after his father’s death.

Directed by Jonás Cuarón, “Chupa” comes across as very similar to the plot of “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial.” This new film is similar to the 1982 classic in the way that it takes the basic structure and introduces its own scenes and slight variations of character archetypes. 

The movie maintains an inoffensive and plain tone with a brisk pace. At the beginning, the titular Chupacabra, a monster from Mexican folklore, is introduced immediately and the main conflicts become clear.

Researchers and employees of a pharmaceutical company are hunting the Chupacabra and following its introduction, the beast looms at certain points until its existence is suddenly brought back into the fold. After that surprising entrance, the pace is unbalanced and by the end, races to the finish.

Part of the problem is that the time spent characterizing the Chupacabra with sympathetic qualities doesn’t create a special connection. It’s at this place where the film becomes trope-ridden and fails to interest the viewer with the main relationship of the film.

The computer effects generated for the Chupacabra are satisfactory and don’t take away from the movie as one might expect from a lower budget film sent to streaming.

As the film progresses, multiple problems and resolutions occur one after another, and these moments could have used more build-up to justify the investment being put into the characters. The film could’ve used more scenes like the one that shows Alex bonding with his family over their culture and having fun.

“Chupa” has the most strength with Alex’s grandfather (Demián Bichir) being the most interesting character. He acts as both the main comic relief and emotional connection with the audience so he ends up as the best part. Perhaps his role in the story could have used more support from the other actors who are given stock deliveries and lines.

Whitten is competent enough as a child actor but there are some scenes where his performance does not endear or elevate the movie at all. The ending is evident of the rushed pace, which is further contrasted with the fact that “E.T.” had room to breathe in order to create effective mystery and adventure.

A highlight of the film is the representation of Hispanic culture. Of course, this is always welcome but perhaps more could have been done with the uniqueness of the culture instead of boiling down to familial drama.

Overall, despite showcasing excellent representation and special effects, “Chupa” suffers from a poorly paced plot and lack of effort into the main characters.

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