Even if you have never seen the original, you know to stop at two.
Beetlejuice is so firmly locked into the cultural landscape that viewers can be new to the franchise and still know enough to enjoy this sequel 36 years in the making.
In fact, it may be best if memories are a bit hazy because it will make it easier to swallow the smorgasbord of new characters and storylines served alongside favorites and fan service.
Tim Burton gives us a busy film that gives glimpses of the creepy zaniness that drove the original and a growing confirmation that’s all we’ll get going forward.
Nearly every main character from the family is back in the mix.
It is fair that those who do not follow the real-life sagas of the cast may not remember Glenn Shadix has since passed or that Jeffrey Jones’ serious legal issues mean he has no business being supported.
Even in an age where de-aging actors has become more accepted, Burton has wisely chosen to send the Maitland’s to the Great Beyond in a plot loophole rather than use the technical one to bring back Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin.
As they return to the original homestead to bury Jones’ original character, the Deetz family is now comprised of a jumpy and broken Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder), the delightfully self-serving Delia (Catherine O’Hara), and Lydia’s chip-off-the-angsty-block teenage daughter Astrid, played by franchise newbie Jenny Ortega.
Some may feel disappointed that Lydia is a traumatized shadow of her confident teenage self, but it allows Ortega’s Astrid to step into a roll that’s surely meant to prep her as trilogy lead.
This setup, and the threatened return of Beetlejuice, would be enough to service a sequel but several more storylines get added in.
Journeying home with the Deetzes is Lydia’s off-putting New Age partner, with Justin Theroux playing an absolute[ly forgettable] tool. Beetlejuice also gets a partner in the jilted soul-sucking ex played by Burton’s own paramour, Monica Bellucci. Not to be left behind, Astrid too manages to fall for a guy during her brief visit (Arthur Conti). Any of these storylines would be an acceptable addition as a subplot to the family burial, allowing for new life to be woven into the loss of original aspects. But mixed in together, no one gets the time they deserve for the quality of casting we see. Bellucci and Theroux could have been easily edited out for a stronger and snappier movie, while Astrid and Lydia’s relationship deserved more exploration.
The ghost with the most is still played by Michael Keaton, and wonderfully at that.
Given the gloriously grimy prosthetics from the first, aging is almost a non-factor for the character. Keaton gives us a slightly expanded version of what we got in 1988, as does Catherine O’Hara. Both keep up with the high camp of their characters, whether that’s in Beetlejuice’s vulgarity or Delia’s absurdity. All throwback elements are working overtime to keep everything together – a return to old-school stop-motion, practical effects, and stunning physical sets instead of greenscreen to make even the underworld seem as real as the waking one. These are signature Burton moves that provide much-needed visual depth when the writing is skewing shallow.
When you have waited nearly half a lifetime for the next installment, “serviceable” is simply not enough.
The audience feels like they are constantly being set up for the next gag without giving time for the previous one to land, rushing through a film that is the right length for the genre but not for the amount of material Burton is trying to cover.
Here’s hoping that by the time Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice appears, Burton is more comfortable cutting unnecessary updates and sending them downstairs to their eponymous star.
* * * * *
Produced by Marc Toberoff, Dede Gardner,
Jeremy Kleiner, Tommy Harper, Tim Burton
Screenplay by Alfred Gough, Miles Millar
Story by Alfred Gough, Miles Millar, Seth Grahame-Smith
Based on Characters by Michael McDowell, Larry Wilson
Directed by Tim Burton
Starring Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, Catherine O’Hara,
Justin Theroux, Monica Bellucci, Jenna Ortega, Willem Dafoe
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