“The juice is loose!”
After several years of development, “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” the long-awaited sequel to 1988’s “Beetlejuice,” has finally been released in theaters.
Taking place over 30 years after the events of the original film, “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” focuses on Lydia Deetz (played by Winona Ryder), who is now the host of “Ghost House” — a reality talk show that is in a similar vein to real-life paranormal programs such as “Ghost Adventures” and “Ghost Hunters” — with the producer of the program being her boyfriend Rory (played by Justin Theroux). At the same time, she keeps having constant visions and hallucinations of Betelgeuse (played by Michael Keaton). Soon, the Deetz family has to return to the village of Winter River after tragedy strikes the family — including Lydia’s estranged daughter, Astrid Deetz (played by Jenna Ortega), who refuses to speak to her.
In the Afterlife, a mysterious woman named Delores (played by Monica Bellucci), a soulsucker who has a history with Betelgeuse, has escaped and began a murderous rampage — sucking out the souls of the residents of this realm, searching for Betelgeuse. Investigating these strings of attacks is Wolf Jackson (played by Willem Dafoe), a ghost detective who was once a prominent action star who, like Tom Cruise, would do his own stunts.
Returning to portray the titular role, Michael Keaton delivers a hilarious performance that retains the high-energy screwball comedy elements that he brought to the character in the first film. Many of the film’s funniest moments involve his character, such as his interactions with his employees at a call center, all being shrunken-head ghosts trained as “bio-exorcists.”
Reprising her role as Lydia, Winona Ryder delivers an excellent performance, nailing down her offbeat personality quite well and retaining the characteristics of her younger self.
Tim Burton returns to direct and delivers a sequel containing the first film’s distinct visual style and humor. Burton retains elements from the first film, including the prominent usage of stop-motion for the Sandworms on Titan and the distinctly gothic look of The Afterlife with a color palette of greens, blues, and reds.
As the first film, easily one of the strongest aspects of “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” is the film’s soundtrack. Whether it be the classic Bee Gees track Tragedy, which is featured during the sequence where a janitor accidentally releases Delores, or the 60s baroque pop epic MacArthur Park by Richard Harris (which is featured in the final act, in a similar vein to the usage of Day-O in the first film) “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” features a ton of classic tracks like the first film. There are also callbacks to the first film included here, such as an acappella rendition of Harry Belafonte’s Day-O in the film’s first act.
While it isn’t as good as the first film, “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” is still a fun watch that is easily Tim Burton’s best film in years, with a fantastic soundtrack, a cool visual style, an excellent dosage of humor, and great leading performances.
It’s showtime.
“Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” is now playing in theaters and is also available to rent or buy on Amazon Prime Video.
