It’s been 36 years since Michael Keaton won over audiences with his off-color ad-libs and outrageous antics in the humorous horror hit Beetlejuice (1988). Although on screen for a mere 17 minutes, the titular “ghost with the most” has since become a pop culture phenomenon via theme parks, video games, an animated series, a Broadway musical, and Tim Burton’s long-awaited Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2024).
Judging by the movie’s title and the character’s popularity, one might assume Betelgeuse (Keaton) will be on camera twice as long in the sequel. Unfortunately, he’s again limited to just 17 minutes per the rationale that he’s a villain. While that label may have stuck in the first film, it’s highly debatable in the second.
Even if Beetlejuice Beetlejuice doubled Keaton’s coverage, he’d still clock in under Kevin Kline whose 42-minute portrayal of antagonist Otto garnered him a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for A Fish Called Wanda (1988). In retrospect, Keaton should have taken home the gold that year but he wasn’t even nominated. Hopefully the Academy can rectify that this time around.
In addition to reuniting Burton and Keaton, the sequel successfully re-creates the sights and sounds of the original movie with old school (CGI light) visual effects, Colleen Atwood’s creative costumes (including that iconic striped suit), and Danny Elfman’s rousing and recognizable score.
Because of death (Glenn Shadix, Sylvia Sidney) and aging (Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis), not every cast member from Beetlejuice returns. Rather than bringing back registered sex offender Jeffrey Jones, the friendly patriarch he played is killed off with a claymation backstory, special effects, and a whole lot of references that ironically border on reverence.
Plotwise, the demise of Charles Deetz (Jones) motivates his widow Delia Deetz (Catherine O’Hara), now-grown daughter Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder) and her daughter Astrid Deetz (Jenna Ortega) to bury him in Winter River and sell their once haunted home. It’s strange Astrid’s last name is Deetz since her mother Lydia was married to her father Richard (Santiago Cabrera) when she was born. Inexplicably, neither he nor Lydia’s current fiancé Rory (Justin Theroux) have surnames.
These oversights are among many holes in an otherwise exposition-heavy script by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar. The complexities of women and dynamics of mother-daughter relationships seem lost on the men who previously penned Shanghai Knights (2003) and produced Wednesday (2022). Ortega is charming enough to make an all-too virtuous Astrid believable, but Ryder is unable to flesh in the vacantness of an underdeveloped Lydia.
As the leading lady of the first film, Davis emitted warmth and comic timing yet these traits elude Ryder now that she’s stepped into the sequel’s main role. To counter this vapidness, her co-stars overcompensate with improvisation. While Theroux’s interpretation is more cutting than O’Hara’s Schitt’s Creek shtick, it’s also more problematic since the slimier his character becomes, the harder it is to understand what Lydia sees in him — unless she has PTSD from being betrothed to a lecherous demon when she was a teen.
Had the script touched on this, Lydia’s transformation from a budding Goth photographer in the first film to a pill-popping sellout in the second would make more sense. It also may explain why she divorced her husband Richard who is depicted as a good guy. Plus, it opens the door to some funny situations.
Imagine Lydia confronting Betelgeuse for inappropriately using her when she was 15 and his reaction to #MeToo allegations. Considering the legal problems of Beetlejuice alumni Baldwin, Elfman and Jones, a cancel culture bit seems like a given for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.
Granted, the screenplay provides some woke jokes and trigger digs but having Betelgeuse prefer a bureaucratic afterlife over a politically-correct world would be both comical and topical. Instead, the script converts the perverted poltergeist into a softie who wants to wed Lydia because he now realizes he loves her due to their psychic connection.
Meanwhile, Betelgeuse’s expired wife resurfaces. In an Italian-language vignette, Italian actress Monica Bellucci enters as the Spanish-named Delores. It’s said they met and married during the Great Plague. But on their wedding night of passion, Betelgeuse discovers Delores is a soul-sucker so he offs her. Centuries later, she literally puts herself back together except for her ring finger which Betelgeuse took — it’s one of this pic’s cleverest nods to the original flick.
Delores seeks revenge on her former lover yet also seems smitten with him. A similar setup between Barnabas Collins (Johnny Depp) and Angelique Bouchard (Eva Green) led to some invigorating exchanges in Burton’s Dark Shadows (2012). But the romantic tension in this battle of sexes setup has no payoff. Other than their flashback, Betelgeuse and Delores barely have a scene together.
Like Bellucci, Willem Defoe is woefully underused in his storyline. He appears game for anything yet isn’t given much to do. In yet another subplot, Arthur Conti plays Astrid’s dubious suitor. The film also includes the arrival of an animatronic Betelgeuse baby as well as a cameo by Danny DeVito of Batman Returns (1992) and Dumbo (2019) also directed by Burton.
At 66, the fantastical filmmaker stages musical numbers to Soul Train (1970-1993) hosted by Don Cornelius and the “MacArthur Park” (1968) single by Richard Harris. Whether these retro sendups work will depend on the age and mood of viewers. Ultimately, the movie is meant to be a fun time for all. And it succeeds in this endeavor whenever Keaton is on camera.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is currently playing at the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema Wrigleyville and Landmark’s Century Centre Cinema.
