No assembly RequireD

There is a rarity today’s films and finding one that truly goes all out. Reserved can be appreciated but far too many pick the conventional and often tame route. But you also have to be careful about what you wish for because sometimes getting what you want works in your favors but can also find a way to destroy everything in its path. BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE much like its trickster titular character is a product of getting your wishes while also seeing it work against itself. Since its 1988 release, “Beetlejuice” has become a cultural phenomenon that dominates Spirit Halloween stores, endless memes, and enough emo appraisal to lift all the dead in the cemeteries. A film that followed a trickster named Beetlejuice (Michael Keaton) torment a recently diseased couple as well as the new tenants that moved into the house, more specifically the fifteen year old daughter and Goth icon Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder). “Beetlejuice” was (and still is) the kind of film that never screamed sequel (if nothing else it gave you the underrated cartoon series) and in today’s world of “legacy sequels” it was the last thing that seemed beneficial to the wild yet charming original film. However director Tim Burton with screenwriters Alfred Gough and Miles Millar have brought a new chapter to the Beetlejuice lore that avoids legacy sequel trappings and instead feels more in the realm of Beetlejuice: The Adventure Continues. A carnival funhouse that is nonstop bonkers behavior that even when several of its endless plotlines get short changed its hard not to fall for everything else circling around you. A whiplash of a film that at its best displays a cast who is clearly having the time of their lives (or afterlives) as well as showing a filmmaker who has defined themselves by the strange and has once again found a way to continue these antics. BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE may not work at every nook and cranny, but to have a house filled to the broom with wild macabre energy its exciting to see how alive things still can be.

Lydia Deetz still sees dead people. Several decades after surviving an almost marriage to Beetlejuice she has found herself using her supernatural abilities to connect with the dead in a more lucrative manner. A reality show appropriately titled “Ghost House” has her hosting a schlocky ghost hunting show that would have the Discovery Network begging for time slots. Her manager/boyfriend Rory (Justin Theroux) spends his days keeping Lydia off her pills while constantly gaslighting her into feeling sorry for him and all the hard work he does to keep her and their show alive. To add to Lydia’s troubles her daughter Astrid (Jenna Ortega) is distant from her Lydia’s first husband died. But at least her relationship with her step-mom Delia (Catherine O’ Hara) has strengthened even if Delia is now a full blown performance artist keeping right in line with a woman once obsessed with turning a ghost house into a roadside attraction. Getting to see O’ Hara and Winona Ryder back together is a nostalgic charm but even better is there now mended relationship that very much plays into the teenager vs the adult that Lydia is now dealing with Astrid. The film doesn’t spend time reminding us of the antics that these two women got involved with in the first film, but rather showing how time can help anyone grow even if it seems like you are in a rut. With news of the passing of Lydia’s father and Delia’s husband it brings the three women (and a tagging along Rory) back to Winter River and their mysterious house that was once full of signing and dancing ghosts. The filmmakers have some awkward real life situations to maneuver around (Jeffrey Jones as Lydia’s father Charles does not make an appearance due to real life criminal offenses as a registered sex offender). but the film with some humorous stop motion and an even simpler more convenient answer of loopholes clears this up as well as the absence of original cast members Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis. Again this is a film less focused on revisiting every element of the past. Thankfully it is a film that knows that Lydia is at the forefront and her struggles with Astrid will be the real heart.

Anyone unfamiliar with the original film may be surprised to learn that Keaton’s Beetlejuice is neither the main character nor does he carry a ton of screentime. His presence is made known and even though BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE wants to spend a lot more time with him he is still wonderfully understood as the glue of the film not the film itself. Keaton as Beetlejuice falls right back into place as his wildcard perverted lunatic but this time around some of the tricks are on him. A deadly return of his first wife Delores (a criminal underused Monica Bellucci) seeks his soul to send Beetlejuice beyond death and gone forever. This on top of a hilarious dead actor/wannabe cop Wolf Jackson (Willem Dafoe) has Beetlejuice terrified. He also still longs for his once bride Lydia. There should be great praise for all the set and art decorators bringing us back into the land of the dead as the filmmakers use practical sets and props to bring the strange and unusual to life. The costume design is an Etsy creator’s paradise as we see familiar characters as well as new and exciting ways to show someone still in the state that they died. One of these practical (although possibly well used CGI) moments comes in the form of Delores reassembling her body as all the different parts of her crawl and be put together by a staple gun. All to the tune of the Bee Gees” “Tragedy.” It is a segment to show off the effects while also reminding the audience exactly what kind of film this is and will remain.

Astrid may find it harder and harder to be amongst the living and Ortega is a delight showing why she is most likely the most in demand young actress right now. Ortega already familiar with the deadpan of Burton (she plays the title character on Burton’s Netflix series Wednesday) but this time around Ortega gets to show off more heart as she meets a mysterious boy Jeremy (Arthur Conti) connects with him through their love of emo 90’s music and poetry all before finding herself in a situation not too different than her mom did all those years ago. This isn’t to say that Burton uses Astrid as a way to repeat the same plot but instead praise to how he finds a way to tie Astrid, Lydia, Beetlejuice and the dead world all in one. For a film that has far too many storylines going it can be fun to see many of them connect whole disappointing to watch others falter. BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE is not the film that relies solely on the charm of its cast but it helps that they are up for anything. Once the film starts introducing musical numbers, Scooby doo like chase scenes and even a returning stop motion sandworm it helps that both its leads and supporting cast play into like gangbusters, O’ Hara doesn’t miss a beat delivering every absurd whine with complete sincerity while Theroux doesn’t just get strapped with the douchebag role but rather someone thrust into the same madness as everyone else with full participation. There can never be a complaint that the film and those involved do not give you enough, but you do find yourself asking throughout why do I feel so rushed at times. Not just in pace but acknowledgement of every storyline but heavy or mild.

BEETLEJUICE BEETLJUICE is the type of film that will be separately loved by its admirers. Some will connect with the mother daughter, others will adore its ability to not just live in the past, and others may just absolutely adore hearing Keaton drop a perfectly timed (and one allowed) use of the word “fuck.” But this is a film that while living fully in its Halloween origins is all about reconnecting. The good and bad connections, the memories we can make and the ones we will never be able to shake. It is a film that knows you carry its predecessor through every frame but that does not mean you cannot move forward and learn to enjoy a new addition. It is the kind of film that will remind you to never say his name three times, but that doesn’t mean you won’t want to return to see him again, and again, and again.

B+

BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE IS NOW IN THEATERS FROM WARNER BROTHERS STUDIOS