Movie Review: ‘Beetlejuice Beetlejuice’ starring Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder

It’s been 20 years since director Tim Burton put out a good film. I’m proud to say that the 20-year drought is finally over with the new, and albeit unnecessary, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.

First, I’ll start with the good. Michael Keaton reprises one of his career-defining roles as the ghost with the most, Beetlejuice. Keaton is on top of his game, as usual. For my money, Keaton is one of the best actors out there. He can go from a psychotic killer to a comedic father in the blink of an eye. Keaton proves he can still give the role of Beetlejuice, well…juice.

In the original, released in 1988, Keaton is only in the entire film for 17 minutes, which is hard to believe. Yet, that film had the solid script featuring Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis, who are a married couple restoring an old farmhouse when they are killed in a car accident.

After the couple realize they are dead and the Deetz family has not only moved into their home, but drastically upgraded it, they hire the evil demon, Beetlejuice to scare them out of the home. The plan backfires and it’s all out chaos. A young Winona Ryder plays the Deetz’s gothic daughter in one of her better roles of her acting career. Throw in a hilarious Catherine O’Hara, who is back for the sequel, along with Jeffrey Jones and the cast also brings a lot to the original.

Sad to say, one of my problems with this second film is the cast. While Keaton is worth the price of admission alone, the rest of the cast, besides O’Hara is just sort of ho-hum. O’Hara returns as Delia, the strange and quirky artist with a kind heart. She reaches out to Lydia, once again played by Ryder, to let her know her father has passed away from an accident. Lydia is the host of a paranormal show, produced by her boyfriend Rory, played by Justin Theroux. Lydia’s daughter, Astrid, played by Jenna Ortega is away at boarding school. She is not a fan of her mother, as she does not believe in ghosts and has not gotten over the death of her father.

While the Deetz’ mourn the death of Charles, Beetlejuice is in the netherworld, dealing with his own issues. His ex-wife, Delores, played by Monica Bellucci, is on the loose and trying to find her former lover. Their past sequence is told in Italian and black-and-white in what is an inspired Mario Bava giallo-esque sequence. Creative on Burton’s part, yet I didn’t feel like it went over with the audience as well as the director would have hoped.

Just like in the first film, both the living and dead worlds collide.

At times, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is too much for its own good. Willem Dafoe is wasted in the film, which is an extremely difficult thing to do. Also, I thought the way that Baldwin and Davis’s characters from the original film were mentioned was just plain lazy on Burton’s part. I honestly thought we might see them show up in the end, as there is one pretty cool cameo in the film. I found his character to be more annoying than anything. But then there are times when Burton captures the magic of the past. That magic that made him a great filmmaker of movies like Edward Scissorhands and Batman. Keaton and Ryder are magical in reprising their roles. The chemistry between the two is undeniable. Both have been experiencing a career resurgence recently. If you haven’t seen Keaton in Knox Goes Away, put it on your list. It was a great role in a solid film. It made me remember why I loved Keaton’s roles in films like The Dream Team, Gung Ho, and Pacific Heights. While Beetlejuice is one of his well-known roles, and rightfully so, I’m hoping this sequel gives movie-goers who may have forgotten, or perhaps not realized how talented the actor is.

All in all, I enjoyed Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. For me, it was one of those nostalgic films that took me back to my youth. I laughed out loud at some of Keaton’s antics quite a few times during the movie, but there were also times when I found myself losing interest because the newly introduced characters in the film just weren’t that intriguing, or perhaps miscast. But in the end, despite its flaws, the film succeeds thanks to Keaton and Ryder. Their performances alone make the Beetlejuice Beetlejuice worth the squeeze.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice gets a B-.