195) Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice (2024) - NEW TO HORROR

"I've spent so much time talking to the dead, it's time I started living. I want to make memories with people I love, rather than be haunted by them later."

Director

Tim Burton

Cast
Michael Keaton - Betelgeuse
Winona Ryder - Lydia Deetz
Catherine O'Hara - Delia Deetz
Jenna Ortega - Astrid Deetz
Justin Theroux - Rory
Monica Bellucci - Delores
Willem Dafoe - Wolf Jackson
Arthur Conti - Jeremy Frazier
Danny DeVito - The Janitor

Spoilers ahead!

I can't say I'm a major fan of the 1988 supernatural comedy "Beetlejuice", but I enjoy it primarily thanks to its unusual style, and Michael Keaton's performance as the titular character. And it's a stand-out film in director Tim Burton's filmography. Now, after 36 years, "Beetlejuice" gets a sequel. That's the trend these days in Hollywood. Sequels to movies made over 20 to 30 years ago are all the rage now. I previously mentioned my thoughts about the first "Beetlejuice" in a post on my reaction to the "Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice" trailer back in May. 

In recent years, Keaton has taken on more dramatic roles in movies such as "Spotlight," "The Founder," and "Dopesick" among other titles. The first dramatic role I saw Keaton in was the 2005 horror thriller film, "White Noise." All I remember about it was Keaton's performance. The movie was terrible, but Keaton nailed the role. 

He's also stepped back into some of his more popular previous roles - namely Batman as seen in "The Flash" (2023) whom he stars as in Tim Burton's 1989 movie "Batman" and its 1992 sequel, "Batman Returns." 

Keaton, true to his comedic form, returns as Beetlejuice - the "ghost with the most."  

Anyways, a Beetlejuice sequel has been an idea tossed around since the period right after the 1988 movie. 

One of those ideas sequel ideas bore the title "Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian." I believe deep, deep down that this actual sequel, released Sept. 6, is better than whatever the story idea was for "Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian." It's an assumption I think is safe to make.

In this sequel, Winona Ryder, Catherine O'Hara, and Michael Keaton reprise their roles from the first film.

Thirty-six years after the events of the first movie, Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder) is suddenly seeing glimpses of the ghost, Beetlejuice (Michael Keaton) who tormented her family back in 1988 when they moved from New York to the small town of Winter River, Conn. Since her first encounter with the ghost "Betelgeuse," she says she has always felt his presence. Now, he's appearing to her.  

She has since moved out of Winter River and hosts a paranormal show called "Ghost House." 

Her boyfriend, Rory (Justin Theroux) is the show's producer. During a taping of the show, she has a glimpse of Beetlejuice sitting in the audience which causes her to panic during the show. 

Soon after, she goes to see her mother, Delia (Catherine O'Hara) at her art exhibit somewhere in Manhattan where Delia just received news that her husband, Lydia's father, Charles Deetz died in a plane crash.

So, they head back to Winter River, picking up Lydia's daughter, Astrid (Jenna Ortega) from boarding school along the way. 

Michael Keaton and Winona Ryder return in Tim Burton's "Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice"
after starring in the first film 36 years ago. 

Back at the old house that once belonged to Adam and Barbara Maitland from the first movie, Delia makes funeral arrangements for Charles. Lydia tries to strengthen her relationship with Astrid, who's still angry and mourning for her father, Richard (Santiago Cabrera), who died during a trip to South America. 

Meanwhile, from the afterlife, Beetlejuice, who works at a recruitment desk job, is still trying to pursue Lydia and marry which he almost did in the first film. 

Beetlejuice is also informed by an afterlife police investigator, Wolf Jackson (Willem Defoe), who was a B-Hollywood actor during his life, that his ex-wife Delores (Monica Bellucci) from the mortal world is on the loose in the netherworld trying to find him. During her lifetime during the black plague, at which time she met Beetlejuice and married him, Delores belonged to a soul sucking cult and is now sucking the souls out of random ghosts as she wanders the afterlife looking for her late husband and seek revenge on him.

There's a lot going on in this movie. 

After Rory proposes awkwardly to Lydia during the funeral reception, Astrid rides off on her bike in anger. She doesn't care for Rory and deep down, wants her mother's attention instead of watching her chase ghosts.

While riding through town, Astrid meets a boy named Jeremy (Arthur Conti) who's friendly at first but isn't quite the person Astrid thinks he is. He reveals later that he's a ghost and wants to take Astrid to the afterlife so that he can return to earth. "The Handbook for the Recently Deceased" has a whole chapter on how to make that happen. He convinces Astrid to enter the afterlife by promising that she can see her dad again. 

So, despite her better judgement, Lydia feels the only way she can find Astrid in the afterlife and bring her home is by summoning Beetlejuice for help. All she has to do is say his name three times. 

When she does, Beetlejuice agrees to help only if Lydia will sign a contract agreeing to marry him. 

Like the first, the story is really centered on the Deetz family. This time it focuses on the relationship between Astrid and Lydia, as well as Lydia and Delia. 

Beetlejuice remains a side character despite being the titular character. Beetlejuice is certainly not overused in part two.  

(L to R): Catherine O'Hara, Jenna Ortega, Winona Ryder, and
Justin Theroux in "Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice."

"Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice" relies more on its story than it does on its surreal depictions of the afterlife though it delivers in that regard because the afterlife is a crucial part of the story. 

There are multiple plot points going on at the same time. Thankfully, it's not confusing and it all ties well enough together. 

The sequel captures the same atmosphere and style as part one without straying too far into trying to be something all on its own. It's a story continuation and it doesn't try to be anything but a continuing story. 

It gives a few more glimpses into the story's version of the afterlife, and the audience gets some backstory about Beetlejuice while he was alive during the black plague. In the first movie, Beetlejuice already reveals he lived through the black plague during the scene when first meets with Barbara and Adam Maitland. It follows it by claiming, "And I had a pretty good time during that." In part two, we can see just what he meant by this actually sarcastic remark. 

Like the original, Tim Burton pulls a lot of inspiration from early German expressionist films such as "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" to create the movie's atmosphere. This is true for many Burton movies, and it's just as true for "Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice."  

Monica Bellucci's character is rather underused. She serves as an antagonist, and the only thing that makes her memorable to any degree is that she's Beetlejuice's ex. She's not used much, and when she finally confronts Beetlejuice, she's taken out by a sandworm. Delores should have been explored more as a character and as an avenue to explore Beetlejuice a bit more as well. 

In fact, a lot of the afterlife might have been explored more as it leaves the imagination wanting to know and see more about how things work in this depiction of the afterlife. Then again, I supposed it leaves the rest up to the audience's imagination. 

While Michael Keaton is truly back to form, his energy levels have slowed down just a tad. He is back to his classic comedic self, like the class clown at a high school reunion. His personality is the same, more or less, but his age isn't. 

Keaton doesn't give quite the lively performance he did in 1988. For a dead guy, Beetlejuice has certainly gotten older. That's not to say Keaton isn't entertaining and hilarious to watch. Though some jokes and gags are call-backs to the first movie, there's plenty of fresh material that got a lot of laughs which make up for the 36-year span. Keaton really picks up right where he left off. This is still very much classic Michael Keaton!

The character Lydia received some criticism from Beetlejuice fans for not being the angsty self-absorbed teenager Winona Ryder portrayed her as in the first film. Evidently, characters are not allowed to change within a 30+ year span. 

Monica Bellucci as Delores.

I appreciate her going from what I just described, to being a mom trying to be responsible and supportive of her daughter after suffering a terrible loss before the story begins, and still grieving over it. Astrid is angry at her mother because, well, she needs her mother and feels she isn't getting that motherly support. There's some good character development in there.  

Meanwhile, Astrid isn't the goth type like her mother was, but she is as morose and bitter as her mother was in her teenage years. 

Lydia had to cope with the loss of a parent who's replaced by someone else. Astrid deals with the same. So, like her mother was, Astrid has that angsty characteristic, too. She's an updated version of Lydia. And Jenna Ortega puts on a deadpan frustrated look making her a great fit for the role of Lydia's daughter. No doubt she borrows a little from Wednesday Addams, whom she plays in Tim Burton's mystery series, "Wednesday." 

Her presence in "Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice" seems to also work as a means to pull younger audiences in and introduce them to the world of Beetlejuice. Seeing as how Ortega is popular among Gen Z audiences, it's only logical to cast her in the movie. 

I think I caught a slight reference to "Batman Returns" in Danny DeVito's cameo as an afterlife janitor as in one instance, he make a few grunts that sound similar to Penguin, whom he plays in "Batman Returns." 

Also, Rory seems a bit similar to the character Otho from the first film, played by the late Glenn Shadix. Both are similarly eccentric with clueless and awkward personalities. 

In this film, there's a few sequences that involve a "soul train" which takes souls from the afterlife to "the great beyond" whether it be the pearly gates or eternal damnation. 

Those waiting on the platform to board the soul train constantly engage in a song and dance routine. As unusual as it sounds, this part of the movie was, well, the most unusual. It felt contrived and out of place. Go figure.

The colorful vibrancy, the style, the comedy and the imaginative creativity is still there. Tim Burton is back to his roots with his style of fantasy, even down the stop motion animation like that used in "Beetlejuice." 

I think the September release and limited competition helped score the Beetlejuice sequel success with its number one spot at the box office, topping the domestic box office with its $51.6 million in ticket sales, according to the AP. International sales brought in an additional $28.7 million, giving "Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice" a total of $264.3 million.

Tim Burton's latest sequel, even after so many years, does entertain and leaves the audience with memorable elements. It's a respectable enough follow-up to a story from 36 years ago. It has its own laughs and a good number of them! Maybe if they do a third movie, perhaps Beetlejuice should take that trip to Hawaii. They could take the franchise in a whole new direction.