There are few things more attractive to Hollywood than the pull of nostalgia, and now that we’re in the full swing of decades later sequels for the likes of “Ghostbusters,” “Scream,” “Jurassic Park,” and “Top Gun”, it only makes sense that the film that popularized the “fake poster tricking moms on Facebook” trend finally gets its own actual next installment. With Burton, Keaton, and Ryder involved once again, it's time to say his name for a second time with the cleverly titled “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.”
Set a few decades after the events of the first film, this latest installment follows television psychic Lydia Deetz, played by Winona Ryder (“Stranger Things,” “Girl, Interrupted”), returning to the town of Winter River with her daughter Astrid, played by Jenna Ortega (“Wednesday (2022),” “Scream (2022)”), and hapless boyfriend/manager Rory, played by Justin Theroux (“Mulholland Drive,” “”), in tow after the death of her father Charles. While back in town along with her stepmother Delia, played by Catherine O’Hara (“Schitt's Creek,” “Home Alone”), she encounters the bio-exorcist demon Betelgeuse, played by Michael Keaton (“Spotlight,” “Birdman”), once again as he attempts to hide from his soul-sucking ex-wife Delores, played by Monica Bellucci (“The Matrix Reloaded,” “Mozart in the Jungle”), and former-actor-turned-dead-cop Wolf Jackson, played by Willem Dafoe (“Spider-Man 2,” “Poor Things”).
It’s quite a cast, not just in terms of new and returning star power, but in terms of size as well. And that’s not even including the myriad of small cameos, as well as Astrid’s love interest in the form of Jeremy, played by Arthur Conti (“House of the Dragon”), or the number of shrunken headed grunts working for Betelgeuse. It’s quite a stuffed film and that’s honestly its biggest flaw. For as fun as it can all be, at just over 100 minutes, co-writers Alfred Gough (“Shanghai Noon,” “Wednesday (2022)”), Miles Millar (“Shanghai Noon,” “Wednesday (2022)”), and Seth Grahame-Smith (“Dark Shadows (2012),” “The LEGO Batman Movie”) have delivered what feels like too much of a good thing. There are something like three different antagonists, with each of them capable of standing on their own. By the time the third act hits, they all feel as though they get the short end of the stick, leading to an ending that feels strong thanks to the titular demon, but weak in the antagonists’ resolutions.
Even if it has a few too many characters, those characters are all a blast to be around. It cannot be overstated how Keaton and Ryder simply slip back into these roles, seemingly completely in step with how they were decades ago. O’Hara is also excellent, keeping the same bizarro line deliveries she’s made a career staple for years now. Ortega is a fun addition to the cast, keeping in step with Ryder, although she’s a smaller part of the film than one might initially assume. Bellucci, as good as she is, feels wasted given how little she ends up on screen, and Dafoe hams is up almost too much every moment he’s on screen, a hard thing to do when you’re in a “Beetlejuice” film. Theroux meanwhile feels weirdly underbaked, a compelling antagonistic force filled with slimy buffoonery, but yet he lacks a real identity besides being a sleazy wimp.
With Tim Burton (“Batman (1989),” “Edward Scissorhands”) back in the director’s chair, it's safe to say that the film’s effects and sets live up to his madcap sensibilities. Each moment is bent wall-to-wall angles and otherworldly locations, leading to a real tactile sense of fantasy throughout. Danny Elfman (“Men in Black,” “The Nightmare Before Christmas”) also returns to compose for the film, and he also steps right back into the world without missing a beat. It simply looks, feels, and sounds exactly like the world of the original film, but just expanded in some very natural ways.
This also works as a fantastic example of Burton returning to form. While of course it makes more sense given that this is a world he’s previously inhabited, he slides back into it effortlessly. It makes the last two decades of works like his live action “Alice in Wonderland” and “Dumbo (2019)” films and "Dark Shadows” feel like they were made by a completely different person. It’s a joy to just watch him play, and even if the film has narrative issues and feels a bit overstuffed, watching a skilled director play in a space he’s so familiar with makes a lot of those issues go over much smoother.
The cleverly titled and playful “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” might not be as much of a lightning strike as the original, but it's hard to deny the pure joy on display throughout the entire adventure. It’s a return to gothic form for Burton, and Keaton and Ryder slide back into these roles fantastically, surrounded by a tale that makes great use of virtually every practical effect and set technique in the book. It’s exactly the kind of adventure you’d expect, and despite a few too many characters giving it an overstuffed feeling by the end, it’s still a film full of ghoulish delights. 4/5
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