Time: 104 Minutes
Age Rating: M – Violence, offensive language, horror & content that may disturb
Cast:
Michael Keaton as Betelgeuse
Winona Ryder as Lydia Deetz
Catherine O’Hara as Delia Deetz
Jenna Ortega as Astrid Deetz
Justin Theroux as Rory
Willem Dafoe as Wolf Jackson
Monica Bellucci as Delores LaFerve
Director: Tim Burton

Understandably, there was some skepticism surrounding Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. The original Beetlejuice was certainly a classic, but I don’t think anyone wanted a sequel. Not to mention that Tim Burton’s recent filmography has been hit or miss to say the least. However, this sequel turned out to be much better than expected.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is a legacy sequel, and it does fall into many of the legacy sequel trappings. The circumstances which bring the original characters back to dealing with ghosts and Beetlejuice is very contrived, and the movie is weirdly reverent towards the original film (which I don’t get doing for Beetlejuice of all things). Things are also a bit slow in the first act; while the original movie takes its time to set things up, it felt considerably sluggish here. That being said, there is a point where the movie takes off, and from that moment, it’s entertaining all the way through to the end. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice keeps the spirit of the original film, and retains much of what people liked from that movie. It is funny and bonkers in all the right ways, with good slapstick and dark comedy throughout. The movie definitely has a messy narrative; the original was 90 minutes long and it made the most of that runtime. The sequel is 15 minutes longer, but still managed to feel slightly overstuffed with unnecessary subplots and characters (mainly with Monica Bellucci and Willem Dafoe).

Some of the original cast returned with Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder and Catherine O’Hara, and it was great to see them back. Ryder and O’Hara are really good, but as usual it is Keaton as Beetlejuice who steals the show, jumping back into the title role with ease. He really hasn’t lost a step at all and gives the same amount of unrelenting energy as he did back in 1988, and delivers another bonkers, comical and entertaining performance. Some of the new cast additions include Jenna Ortega, Justin Theroux, Monica Bellucci and Willem Dafoe. Theroux is quite funny, and Ortega is good despite being shoved into the role of “child of character from the original film who has a difficult relationship with their parent”. Bellucci and Dafoe are welcome additions, but their characters were a bit unnecessary in the film. Dafoe is reliably great and hilarious in all of his scenes. Bellucci is also good and does feature in one of the best scenes in the movie (a flashback between her and Keaton/Beetlejuice), but her scenes and subplot don’t amount to much and have a pretty disappointing payoff.

Tim Burton’s recent movies have been hit or miss, but this is some of his best work in a while. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is full of energy and style and definitely feels like it was made by the director of the first movie. It has some striking visuals with nice lighting, the production design, makeup and costumes are great, and the practical effects and CGI are creative and mixed together really well.

Despite being a little overstuffed, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is a surprisingly solid legacy sequel and Tim Burton’s best movie in a while. It’s entertaining and funny, with a great cast, and creative and stylistic direction. Definitely has its issues, but worth watching if you liked the original.