Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2024)
Directed by: Tim Burton
Premise: A sequel to the 1988 film. Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder) and her teenage daughter (Jenna Ortega) return to the family home. Lydia has visions of the demon Beetlejuice (Michael Keaton) whose former wife (Monica Bellucci) has been resurrected and wants revenge.
What Works: The original Beetlejuice was one of filmmaker Tim Burton’s early successes and in the ensuing decades it has stood out in Burton’s filmography as one of his most distinct and popular titles. Burton’s later career has floundered with some uninspired and underwhelming films and Beetlejuice Beetlejuice feels like the work of a filmmaker attempting to reconnect with his earlier self. That’s evident in the very premise. The goth teenager from the original movie is now an adult whose daughter despises her and regards her as a sellout. The sequel has a deliberately retro feel, recreating and frequently recapturing the look of the original film but also the Beetlejuice cartoon that ran for four seasons in the early 1990s. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is frequently funny and playfully gross. The story takes the audience deeper into the afterlife which offers opportunities for random and creative visuals. The filmmakers create some compelling stakes and avoid replicating some of the mistakes of other sequels. The character of Beetlejuice was not the protagonist of the original film; much like Captain Jack Sparrow in the original Pirates of the Caribbean, Beetlejuice was a supporting character and a chaos agent that drove the story. Unlike the Pirates of the Caribbean sequels, the filmmakers of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice keep the title character in a supporting role. Instead, the focus pivots to the Deetz family and the troubled relationship between Lydia and her daughter. The casting is terrific with Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, and Catherine O’Hara reprising their characters. Jenna Ortega, Justin Theroux, Willem Dafoe, and Monica Bellucci are well matched with their roles.
What Doesn’t: The original Beetlejuice was primarily about the Maitlands (Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis), a normal couple who met an untimely end and haunted their own house. The first film was about the Maitlands and the Deetzes learning to live together but in the sequel the Maitlands are gone with barely an explanation. This undermines the ending of the original picture. The story of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is a hot mess. The plot often feels like parts of multiple scripts (or episodes of the cartoon) were flung together. The film is pulled between various subplots and none of them have the space to develop. This problem comes to a head in the ending which is a rushed flurry of character entrances while rehashing the climax of the original movie.
Bottom Line: Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is a messy but fun sequel. It’s not likely to be beloved like the original was and the story is overstuffed but Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is entertaining and funny and generally recaptures what was appealing about its predecessor.
Episode: #1013 (September 15, 2024)