Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
3 out of 5 stars
The Juice is indeed loose but comes only in small doses, which really shouldn’t be that much of a surprise since Beetlejuice himself was only in the first one for a whopping 17 minutes. Not sure what the count is in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, though I do know Michael Keaton wanted to have the same limited screen time as before. The trouble with that is we’re entertained the most when our debauched, devious demon is dying to live again. As a shock to no one, Keaton doesn’t miss a step with a stupendous and committed performance. Making us all say his name, he looks and feels right at home, having the time of his life stepping back into the black and white striped getup.
The two other OG cast mates, Winona Ryder and Catherine O’Hara, are back as Lydia and Delia Deetz , respectively. Their daughter/step-mother relationship is in a better place with less resentment these days. Meanwhile, Lydia is experiencing a bit of karma with her own daughter, Astrid, played by Jenna Ortega, who just seems born to collaborate with Tim Burton. Watch Wednesday on Netflix if you don’t believe me. Whatever sort of emotional heartbeat this movie has, these three ladies are the reason for it.
Conversely, the rest of the cast is purposeless and forgettable. There’s a one-note Justin Theroux playing Lydia’s money-hungry manager, a criminally underused Willem Dafoe as a dead actor playing detective, and Monica Bellucci is the soul-sucking ex-wife of Beetlejuice who’s absolutely unnecessary. Their mere presence is appealing, yet doesn’t move the story forward whatsoever. Speaking of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice’s story…it’s all over the place. It’s fun and wacky and chaotic and overstuffed.
There’s too much trying to be crammed in to a movie that simply doesn’t need it. And what the movie is doing doesn’t at all live up to its predecessors’ ingenious. The dark humor is sporadic without a ton of laughs; however, when they do occur, you can thank Keaton and O’Hara for them. But through it all, the beauty of watching Burton inarguably go back to his roots, returning to a world he crafted that’s unlike any other, will put a smile on your face. Paying tribute to his 1988 ghoulish classic is a must, yet how he is able to capture that same demented spirit with such glorious visual/practical effects, makeup, and set pieces all these years later is praiseworthy.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is bittersweet. It’s awesome to see these characters back and ready to roll around in the weird and grotesque. You can tell Burton, Keaton, and company hold this near and dear to their hearts. So it’s rather heartbreaking to witness this legacy sequel slowly lose its mojo due to its severe lack of focus. Of course, there remains a sense of enjoyment in seeing Beetlejuice back on the big screen after 36 years. How could there not be? But for God’s sake – if the Juice is loose then truly let him loose and do something wild and new. It’s Showtime damnit, so lets act accordingly.
Brandon Vick is a member of The Music City Film Critics’ Association and the Southeastern Film Critics Association, the resident film critic of the SoBros Network, and the star of The Vick’s Flicks Podcast. Follow him on Twitter @SirBrandonV and be sure to search #VicksFlicks for all of his latest movie reviews.
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