There have been a few iconic roles in film where that surprised us by the actor’s choice like Steve Carell in Foxcatcher or Robin Williams in One Hour Photo. For me, the top of that list belongs to Heath Ledger as The Joker in The Dark Knight, but there is also Michael Keaton in Beetlejuice. Taking the world by storm, the fans have been longing for a sequel for many years, and now it’s here.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is again directed by Tim Butron and returns Keaton, Winona Ryder, and Catherine O’Hara while adding Jenna Ortega, Justin Theroux, William Defoe, Arthur Conti and Monica Bellucci. Taking place decades after the original film, there has been a death in the Deetz family, reuniting Delia (O’Hara), Lydia (Ryder), and Lydia’s estranged teen daughter in Astrid (Ortega) in Winter River. Astrid questions her mother’s abilities since she cannot commune with her father, and after trying to do so on her own, Lydia has to turn to Betelgeuse (Keaton) to help as everything around her is descending into chaos.
The visuals here are incredible, with a great mix of practical effects, CGI effects, and solid filming locales in New England; they are all just outstanding and even surpassing the first film. The acting is fine with both the returning cast and new characters, but Keaton still has that one-of-a-kind performance that only he can do. Even with that, my shout out performance has to go to Ortega as a teen who is an outcast due mostly to a family tragedy who is just trying to figure out her way in this life.
At just under an hour and forty-five minutes, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is just about the right length, keeping me interested and went by really fast in a good way. There is also good mix of comedy, relationship issues, and even some good scares, paying tribute to the original and bringing new things to the story as well. I also really enjoyed the soundtrack, which made some great moments even more fun. I am usually leery of sequels, but this one was done right, and even though it may not be as good as what came before it, I still recommend it as a twilight showing in the theaters.
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