BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE Review

“Burton (and Keaton) know how to bring just the right amount of weirdness into the mix, if that’s what’s necessary to entertain the fans.”

I honestly can’t remember if I ever saw the 1988 Beetlejuice when it first was in theaters, because at that time, I had already moved to New York and was working in the recording studio, which often left little time to go to the movies.

It’s been 36 years since that movie, and clearly, the success of Tom Cruise’s Top Gun: Maverick has led to many other filmmakers and actors thinking that maybe it was time for them to give it a try. In the case of Beetlejuice Beetljuice, it seems like they’ve been trying to make a sequel for decades, and maybe it took the success of the admittedly different Top Gun sequel to get this one greenlit.

Catherine O’Hara and Winona Ryder return as sculptor and performance artist Delia Deetz and her stepdaughter Lydia, who return to their old Winter River house after the death of Jeffrey Jones’ Charles, with Jenna Ortega playing Lydia’s daughter Astrid, whose father also died. Michael Keaton’s Betelgeuse is still trapped in the afterlife, but he’ll do anything to get out, something that’s exacerbated when Astrid gets in over her head with a good-looking love interest (Arthur Conti) and Lydia has to call upon the mischievous demon for help.

I didn’t really know much of what to expect for this sequel, other than the fact that a few of the principles were back, while others were omitted. For instance, those hoping for the return of Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis’ Adam and Barbara Maitland, who were so key to the first movie, might be disappointed that they barely get a mention, though there are plenty of other things to enjoy, both new and nostalgic. For instance, Monica Belluci plays Betelgeuse’s ex, Delores, one of a number of intriguing antagonists, while Willem Dafoe plays an amusing actor-turned-afterlife-detective trying to end all the craziness going on. I wasn’t nearly as crazy about Justin Theroux as Lydia’s manager and fiancé, as she’s continued to capitalize on her ability to talk to the dead with her television show called “Ghost House.”

You know you’re in for a lot of weirdness when we learn how Charles died (illustrated via the stop-motion animation with which Burton became famous earlier in his career), and they figure out a way to have the character make multiple appearances in a much more amusing way than the similar appearance by a character in the recent Alien: Romulus. 

There are parts of the film that are a little obvious, like some of the stuff brought back purely for nostalgia factor, such as Sandworms and Harry Belafonte, but the story itself is pretty solid in keeping the audience amused and entertained throughout. At the top of that list is Michael Keaton, who somehow manages to slip back into Betelgeuse’s checkered suit, as if no time has passed whatsover, and it’s fun watching him and Burton pushing the limits on how far they can go with the gore and make-up FX without facing an R-rating.

And that’s just one aspect of the film that proves Burton to very much be on his game in terms of chanelling his younger, weirder self, while also using his decades of experience to make a better movie with the help of cinematographer Haris Zambarloukos and reuniting with the likes of costume Designer Colleen Atwood, and others who have worked with Burton on “Wednesday.” A real standout is the work by animatronic and special makeup effects supervisor Neal Scanlan, who is working with Burton for the first time and really delivers on a critical aspect of the film.

Of course, regular Burton collaborator Danny Elfman is back composing another exemplary score, which is surrounded by a wild soundtrack that includes everything from Mazzy Star to Sigur Rós and even Richard Harris’ “McCarthur Park” (in a section that comes about as close to a musical number as the movie gets). 

There are certainly weird moments that might turn off even some of the diehard fans of the original movie, but it’s all done in fun, and there’s stuff that should appeal to the older Burton fans while also making Beetlejuice Beetlejuice the perfect gateway to bring the older kids (maybe 7 or 8 and up) into the world of lighter horror-comedy.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is a pretty weird follow-up to a Tim Burton movie that has become a classic, but it also proves that Burton (and Keaton) know how to bring just the right amount of weirdness into the mix, if that’s what’s necessary to entertain the fans.

Rating: 7/10

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice opens nationwide on Friday, Sept. 6 with previews on Thursday starting at 3pm and also special advance screenings at some theaters on Weds.