1988 was a formative year for me as a movie fan, as two films released that year in Japan and North America introduced me to the concept of the anti-hero. Those films were Akira (which I could only access via a bootleg Japanese-language VHS copy) and Beetlejuice. If memory serves, my younger brothers and I rented Beetlejuice on video for their 9th birthday party. It was the first time I saw Michael Keaton (known for Mr. Mom and Gung Ho) play an irredeemable villain. My teenage brain was confused, and I wasn’t alone—most of the party guests lost interest halfway through, and we moved on to playing video games.
It was only with maturity and repeated viewings on VHS and TV that I began to appreciate Beetlejuice. In addition to its strong box office performance, the film spawned a successful animated series and enjoyed further success when director Tim Burton teamed up with Keaton again for Batman (1989), which received praise from fans and critics alike. Given all that, it’s hard to believe it took 36 years to get a sequel, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, but here we are. So, is the “juice” still worth the squeeze in 2024?
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice returns us to the idyllic town of Winter River, where the eccentric, white Victorian home once shared by the Deetz family and the friendly poltergeists Barbara and Adam Maitland still looms over the community. The Maitlands, having found a loophole decades ago to free themselves from their curse, have moved on, and the Deetz house now sits empty as the family members live apart.
“As a sequel, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice doesn’t recap or simplify the story for newcomers.”
Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder), a teenager in the original Beetlejuice, is now middle-aged with a teen daughter of her own. She has parlayed her ability to see and communicate with ghosts into considerable wealth as the host of a successful TV show about supposedly haunted houses. Though the hauntings are fake, Lydia is still tormented by real visions of the demon Betelgeuse (pronounced “Beetlejuice”), causing her to suffer panic attacks, which she staves off with medication. She rarely spends time with her daughter Astrid (Jenna Ortega), who resents her for it.
Meanwhile, Astrid’s step-grandmother Delia (Catherine O’Hara) is hosting a successful art installation in London, while grandfather Charles travels the world pursuing his love of birdwatching. After Charles dies in a plane crash over the Pacific, Lydia, Delia, and Astrid reunite in Winter River for the funeral and to decide the fate of the house. The attic still contains Adam Maitland’s miniature model of Winter River, which symbolically traps Betelgeuse within.
On the other side of the glass (in the Afterlife), Betelgeuse’s bio-exorcist business has exploded, with an entire office staffed by shrunken-head employees. Despite his success, his decades-long obsession with Lydia hasn’t waned. Now, he’s close to her again, needing only his name spoken three times to set his devious plans in motion. But this time, he’s being hunted by an enemy even more obsessed with him.
As a sequel, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice doesn’t recap or simplify the story for newcomers. Viewers are expected to already know, or quickly grasp, the film’s world and its loose Afterlife rules, making a rewatch of the 1988 original essential. That said, newcomers may still enjoy the film, but they’re likely to leave with unanswered questions or missed dialogue that attempts to explain key points.
“The biggest issue with Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is that it doesn’t truly belong to any one character—not Betelgeuse, Lydia, Astrid, or Delia.”
For fans of Tim Burton’s style—comedic body horror, bizarre creatures, gross-out humour, and stop-motion-inspired effects—Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is a visual treat, particularly in IMAX. One of Keaton’s conditions for reprising his role was Burton’s commitment to practical effects over CGI, and the film largely delivers. While the green-screen backdrops and stop-motion sandworms from the original have been updated with CGI, many of the grotesque Afterlife characters remain faithful to the practical effects of the original.
Keaton’s return as Betelgeuse is hilarious. Neither he nor Burton has softened the character’s rough edges—he’s as crude and villainous as ever, and it’s still a guilty pleasure to watch him stir up chaos among both the living and the dead. In the original, Betelgeuse was notably handsy, which made me uncomfortable at times. Thankfully, he’s less so in this film, making it easier to enjoy his antics.
Catherine O’Hara’s performance as Delia Deetz is equally memorable. Narcissistic, pretentious, and delusional, she grows into the role of family matriarch after her husband’s death. At one point, when Lydia is experiencing a moment of weakness, Delia says, “What happened to the teen Goth girl who used to torment me? We need to find her!” O’Hara, a member of Canada’s comedic royalty, delivers on the hype.
Unfortunately, the film feels crowded. Ryder and Ortega portray Lydia and Astrid well, but their characters make several predictable, nonsensical decisions. It’s hard to provide examples without spoiling the plot, but their poor choices deflate the tension and spoil potential surprises. Ortega’s character doesn’t channel any of her Wednesday persona here—she’s more casual than dark.
Other characters, such as Lydia’s boyfriend/manager Rory (played by Justin Theroux), feel like filler. Rory serves no real purpose other than to complicate the plot. By contrast, Monica Bellucci’s Dolores is a more credible threat, but she too feels wasted, serving mainly as a plot device to push the action forward when needed.
The biggest issue with Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is that it doesn’t truly belong to any one character—not Betelgeuse, Lydia, Astrid, or Delia. It feels more like a warm-up for the inevitable third installment, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, which will likely be greenlit if this film performs well. The sequel is an enjoyable romp filled with sight gags, cameos, special effects, and even a musical number, but it eventually runs out of steam and relies on the same deus ex machina crutches as the original.
In the end, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is a fun reunion with the Deetz family and Betelgeuse. Just don’t expect much in terms of character development or world-building—except for Delia. For that, fans will have to wait for the inevitable third film.
