In today’s world of nostalgia-driven sequels and prequels, reboots and re-envisioning, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is a breath of fresh air.
The sequel to Tim Burton’s 1988 horror-comedy classic feels like a true homecoming after years of helming big-budget Hollywood films. It’s weird in all the right places with his cast delivering wonderfully lived-in performances — in particular Michael Keaton who defies all forms of sense and logic by channeling the same intensity, energy and vulgarity he did in 1988. The film has an earnestness about it that even with its numerous issues, you can’t help but find yourself enraptured by the love this director and cast have for the film.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice finds Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder) as a the host of paranormal talk/reality series produced by her oily, pony-tailed boyfriend Rory (Justin Theroux, who brilliantly channels all of Catherine O’Hara’s affectations from the original). She’s estranged from her daughter Astrid (Jenna Ortega), who is furious that her mother, who can see ghosts on the regular, has never seen her late dad.
Following the death of Charles Deetz (originally played by Jeffrey Jones, who was referenced only in claymation and photo), Lydia, Rory, Astrid and Delia (O’Hara) head to Winter River to bury Charles. Meanwhile, Beetlejuice (Michael Keaton) is desperately trying to get back into Lydia’s life and is now starting to find success. But even the Juice has problems as his ex-wife (Monica Bellucci) has escaped imprisonment and is out for vengeance.
Here lies the issue with Beetlejuice Beetlejuice — there’s so much going on that the main storyline (Lydia and Astrid) does not have room to breathe. The Monica Bellucci storyline is extremely one-note and has a terrible pay-off. The Charles Deetz storyline should be confined to one or two moments, not a series of them (and given Jones’ history, it can be off-putting). There’s also a lot of time spent with Willem Dafoe’s actor turned “Chief of Police” in the underworld that only works because Dafoe perfectly parodies scene-chomping tough guys like Clint Eastwood. In short, it lacks the balance of the original. We dealt with Lydia and her family and The Maitlands with Beetlejuice causing chaos for both parties — and that’s it. Here there’s too much going on for a strong emotional story to blossom.
The other main issue with the film is Winona Ryder’s Lydia Deetz — as the film cannot put a finger on who they want Lydia to be. At times she is still our favorite goth rebel. This is evident during her scenes with Catherine O’Hara. The begrudging respect and unspoken love they have for each other is some of the best emotional work in the film. You can feel the history between these two. However, more often than not, Lydia is portrayed as Joyce Byers from Stranger Things cosplaying as Lydia. It’s a lot of worried eyes, hand-wringing and chasing after a child in peril. Had the film given Ryder, who is doing her utmost best, more time with Ortega (whom she has a dynamite chemistry with), it would’ve undoubtedly improved Lydia’s character and the film in general.
However, this film is called Beetlejuice Beetlejuice for a reason. Michael Keaton steals the entire film with the same ungodly manic energy he had in the original. This performance does not feel lived in — it feels like Keaton literally picked up where he left off 36 years ago. This is an absolutely wild notion given the fact Keaton is giving the same energy to his performance in his 70s as he did in his late 30s. Keaton gleefully makes Beetlejuice as lovably disgusting as possible, but also never lets us forget that the Juice is in fact the villain of the film and is to never be trusted. The love Keaton has for this character jumps off the screen at every moment, and while probably no one asked for this sequel, it was a true joy to see him back in the role one more time.
As mentioned previously, Tim Burton felt truly back in his element. This film had that classic Burton-esque vibe — it’s this very meticulous ’60s meets the ’80s alt Hollyweird aesthetic. The macabre whimsicality that the original film, Edward Scissorhands and Nightmare Before Christmas absolute classics can be found through the film particularly through Keaton’s performance and the production design. While the film isn’t perfect, you can feel the fun had by Burton (and company) in making the film. It felt right for him to be directing this film, to be back in this world with these characters. That feeling jumps off the screen is a great deodorant for the film’s many issues.
Is Beetlejuice Beetlejuice on the same level as the original? Absolutely not. However, what you do get with this long-in-the-works sequel is an extremely fun film that showcases the brilliance of Michael Keaton, the worlds of Tim Burton that we all fell in love with, and a reminder of just how good actors like O’Hara, Ortega and Theroux are. This film is absolutely worth your money to be experienced in theaters and should definitely be put on your future Halloween movie marathons.
