BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE – A Review by Cynthia Flores
It has been thirty-six years since the first PG-rated Beetlejuice by Director Tim Burton graced the big screen with its bizarre, twisted dark comedy that won it an Oscar for best makeup. All of it was scored by the iconic music of Danny Elfman. If you watch it, which is a good idea if you were not even born yet when it first came out, you will notice a few ragged edges. Cheesy special effects were the best they could do way back then.
Well, it’s the 20th-century baby, and Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (a cute way of saying part two) is all shiny and new. Mr. Burton has the best technology that money can buy at his disposal this time and he uses it well enough to get bumped up to a PG-13 rating due to some of the gory bits and bobs that happen in this film. Don’t worry, this film does not look like a high-definition slick video game because that is not how this director rolls. Instead, it looks more like an animated Salvador Dali painting with a bit of a nonsensical mushroom trip thrown in. With all the technological power of today, this movie is able to respect the world he created so long ago and instead of obliterating it he happily builds on it instead.
I won’t give away too much but I can tell you there are a few more “Jump Scares” that happen in this continuation of the story of the evil demon Betelgeuse (how he spells his name) and his connection with Lydia Deetz. The woman he vows to marry so he can come back to the land of the living.
To appease the fans who don’t want any spoilers, i.e. famous people who do short bits to be in the film (you will love who shows up as a janitor in the very beginning), I will stick with the approved studio-provided synopsis of the film:
After a family tragedy, three generations of the Deetz family return home to Winter River. Still haunted by Beetlejuice, Lydia’s (Winona Ryder) life is turned upside down when her teenage daughter, Astrid (Jenna Ortega) accidentally opens the portal to the Afterlife.
Everyone, from the original film, is still alive. And anyone that was needed to continue the story is back for the live-action part of the film. My favorite is Catherine O’Hara as the over-the-top artsy stepmother Delia. She is hilarious in part two of this franchise. She banters with Winona Ryder as grown-up Lydia and jokes about Karma being a bitch. You see, Lydia is now the one dealing with a dark brooding teenage daughter in Jenna Ortega as Astrid. Reminds me of my mom yelling at me, “I hope you have a kid that is just like you and you’ll see what I am dealing with.”
Of course, the star of the show is Micheal Keaton as the evil, sly, gross, and wild-haired Betelgeuse. With his quick responses to any situation, Keaton was born to play this role. He doesn’t look a day older but he plays the character smarter with a few more layers and an origin story that will make you laugh. Did you know he was married before to the dangerous Delores brought to the screen by the sultry Monica Bellucci? She gives killer looks a wicked bad name.
I give Beetlejuice Beetlejuice 4.5 stars. It’s a perfect way to continue the story by thrilling old fans of the original and creating new fans just discovering it and a character just named “BOB”. As I left the theater, I heard someone say “They gotta make this a trilogy and call the next one Beetlejuice Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.” If they can make it as good as this one I agree. But please don’t make us wait as long for the next one.
Directed by: Tim Burton
Written by: Alfred Gough, Miles Millar, Seth Grahame-Smith
Rated: PG-13
Selig Rating: 4.5 Stars
Running Time: 1 hr 44 min
Dark Comedy, Fantasy, Horror
Wide Release: Only in theaters Sept 6th
Starring: Micheal Keaton, Winona Ryder, Catherine O’Hara, Jenna Ortega
The Selig Rating Scale:
5 Stars – Excellent movie/show, well worth the time and price.
4 Stars – Good movie/show
3 Stars – OK movie/show
2 Stars – Well, there was nothing else…
1 Star – Total waste of time.
