Beetlejuice Beetlejuice: Decently Decent
The studio trend of long-awaited sequels and revivals has run its course for some, but not at all for Beetlejuice. In addition to the original film’s sequel being in development hell for over thirty years, it felt right for the story to return specifically now. We’re in a period of cinema where weird, experimental horror films are back in full swing and audiences keep coming back for more. Beetlejuice, fitting into all three of those categories, has remained as timeless a talking point as ever. Especially with the success of the unfortunately short-lived Broadway adaptation, it made all the sense in the world to revisit Tim Burton’s twisted world all these years later.
The sequel has already grossed over $300 million and counting on a $100 million budget since its release earlier this month, and for good reason. The film immediately grabs your attention with how different it looks from the others out at the moment, which especially works to its benefit. The palette and sets don’t look out of place when compared with the world the original film sets up. Burton’s insistence on using practical sets is a staple of his work, and it really shines in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. This decision helps make the afterlife ironically feel even more alive than before.
The actors work within these locations super well, both returning and new additions to the cast. Winona Ryder’s portrayal of Lydia in this film isn’t an exact one-for-one translation of how she was in the original, but rather an evolution. Jenna Ortega’s character plays a bit closer to the original iteration of Lydia from Beetlejuice, though is far from an exact copy. Her reluctance to believe in anything supernatural ends up creating this distant and mysterious character who’s two sides of the same coin with a young Lydia. Michael Keaton’s Betelgeuse hasn’t aged a bit, still as disgustingly hilarious as you remember him to be. Funny enough, Keaton having not aged as Betelgeuse works with the narrative well, as we see others retaining their form they first took on when they died. The same makeup, outfits and voice bring the film home as what feels like a true next step in the Beetlejuice franchise.
With how loose and unpredictable the original Beetlejuice can be, it’s hard to describe Beetlejuice Beetlejuice as a return to form. In fact, some of its decisions feel just as spontaneous as the original film, though this doesn’t always work to its benefit. The flames of hell opening up beneath one of the film’s antagonistic forces is undoubtedly a hilarious gag, and definitely feels VERY Tim Burton. However, the antagonistic forces in the film, while involved in some entertaining sequences, just seem to come and go at times. Neither of the two shown are onscreen for a long enough time for any stakes to really build up as an audience member. This isn’t to say the original film needed that to hook people for as long as it has. Rather, neither antagonist is able to have quite as much staying power as someone like Betelgeuse himself has had.
That may feel like an easy out of sorts seeing as it’s his name on the poster, but it’s an important point to be made. While the film is entertaining, its stakes just seem a bit confused in their motivations. In addition to the antagonists with little staying power, I still wonder why Lydia even began seeing visions of Betelgeuse in the first place. It’s never elaborated upon other than him still yearning for Lydia as well, which isn’t even directly stated to be connected. The conflict between the two seems over and done with very quick, which is a problem I had with a lot of the film’s pacing now that I think about it.
Despite being cooked up for decades, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice feels more than a little underbaked. If you’re looking for problems, you’re more than likely to find a lot of them. However, when taking off the critical lens, it’s clear Burton’s passion for the world of Beetlejuice is as active as ever all these years later. It’s a passionate film where the cast and crew clearly had a lot of love for the property and a lot of fun working with it. It’s a strange, unusual sequel to a comedy horror classic, but when that’s the point of the original film as well, there’s no need to exile this sequel from the full story.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is now playing in theaters worldwide.