“Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” (2024) is a legacy sequel done right – Tim Burton has masterfully brought this wacky and silly world into the present day.
It has been a long time since the release of Burton’s beloved 1988 comedy “Beetlejuice”: “The Golden Girls” (1985-1992) won what would be its final Primetime Emmy Awards (although they continued to receive dozens of nominations), table tennis became an Olympic sport and “Never Gonna Give You Up” by Rick Astley was topping charts.
Michael Keaton, the actor who plays the title character, was 36 years old during the filming of “Beetlejuice,” and now, in September of 2024, he is 73. Watching Keaton reprise the role so effortlessly, I couldn’t help but fall in love.
“Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” would not be the film it is without its wide-ranging cast. Winona Ryder and Jenna Ortega, who contribute heartfelt and eccentric performances, also bring the film’s emotional core: the ever-great theme of familial love and acceptance. Catherine O’Hara is as funny as ever and you can tell Burton is using her popularity from the television show “Schitt’s Creek” (2015-20) to his advantage. It works brilliantly. Willem Dafoe, Justin Theroux and Danny DeVito are also terrific supporting characters. As for Keaton, he delivers another iconic performance as Beetlejuice — somehow funny and abrasive yet endearing at the same time. In my opinion, he fully cements himself as one of his generation’s best comedic actors.
Burton’s filmography has been up and down since “Beetlejuice” came out 34 years ago. He has garnered critical and financial successes such as “Batman” (1989), “Edward Scissorhands” (1990) and, more recently, the Netflix hit “Wednesday” (2022). He has also had some low lows, like “Planet of the Apes” (2001) and the live-action remakes of “Alice in Wonderland” (2010) and “Dumbo” (2019). I can happily say that Burton returns to form with “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.” His fantastical costume and set design, along with his quirky, dark sense of humor, fits right in with the story being told here.
The afterlife and its cast of characters are both silly and wildly entertaining. Burton directs each scene confidently and purposefully, something I can’t say about many other films that have come out recently. Cinematographer Haris Zambarloukos uses off-putting and crazy camera angles, like the world in which the film is set, in service of the story being told. Danny Elfman, whose work you may know from “Batman,” “Spider-Man” (2002) and “The Nightmare Before Christmas” (1993), continues to show he is one of the best film composers during his lifetime. He expertly builds off his amazing score from the first film and manages to, at times, surpass it.
Although the film was strong, I have some complaints. The plot takes a little while to kick into gear, but that can be partially forgiven because the viewer needs to get reacclimated to the characters. Beyond that, the film hosts many side characters and ensuing side plots, resulting in it getting lost in the middle.
Overall, “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” is a pitch-perfect example of how to make a legacy sequel that honors its predecessor while building on and expanding the characters and world we so deeply love.
My Final Rating: ★★★★☆
