Continuation of classic stories is a gamble. Even when the right people are involved, expectations are very high and can lead to disappointment. Diminishing returns are unfortunately inevitable and are only avoided on rare occasions. Even then, whether it is better or not, gets debated on back and forth depending who really feels strongly about it. For Beetlejuice (1988), it was a special movie that has a very devoted following. The name other than being associated with the constellation, is now recognized as a Halloween icon. Languishing in development limbo for decades (not even years), it became very hard to believe that a sequel would be worth it. Of course many people would love a return but with too much time passing, possible cast members not returning or essential components being left out are all things viewers should rightfully be concerned about.
Surprisingly though, things actually turned around. Director Tim Burton finally returns to head the sequel to his original classic. As like the release of the original, many years have passed since the events of the first film. After the death of Lydia Deetz’s (Winona Ryder) father, she and her daughter Astrid (Jenna Ortega) come home to her mother Delia Deetz (Catherine O’Hara) to pay their respects. Meanwhile Beetlejuice (Michael Keaton) is looking to get out of the neitherworld again somehow. Whether that be by finding Lydia or another way after his ex-lover Delores (Monica Bellucci) goes on the hunt for him. The script was written by Alfred Gough, Miles Millar and Seth Grahame-Smith. All three have decent credits to their name where the first two worked on Spider-Man 2 (2004) and Smith from The Lego Batman Movie (2017). With that said, the film does a very good job at keeping connections straight which is very important.
Backstories for all the time passed between this film and original are a must and it was done expertly. Using Charles Deetz’s death for the reason to move the plot is perfect since disgraced actor Jeffrey Jones should no longer be cast in movies. Explaining why the Maitlands did not reappear within the film is also spot on for covering. It’s those little details that really help make the audience feel like care when into the story. The narrative itself is good too, as it naturally gives Beetlejuice a good reason to be involved. However, there are two main flaws to the final screenplay. The first being that as like the original film, there are a couple of sing along sequences. That’s fine, but it seems to be drawn out for longer than needed. The first film had it short and to the point for a gag payoff. This one felt like it took its time.
The other issue was that it felt like there were just too many characters. The essential characters from the first film are not in question. Lydia is now a popular paranormal TV host and her manager Rory (Justin Theroux) is there trying to keep her going. There’s also Willem Dafoe playing Wolf Jackson, a dead actor who’s in search of capturing Beetlejuice playing a glorified cop. There’s also Lydia’s husband Richard (Santiago Cabrera) who Astrid really wants to get to know better. Astrid even meets Jeremy (Arthur Conti) a boy she thinks she likes. All in all, these plot threads all convene on each other at some point, but really clutter up some of the flow too. If the undead cop and ex-lover were removed from the film, the time they took up could have been used elsewhere and the story still could have played out the same way more or less. It’s a little frustrating that wasn’t looked into further before finalizing on the script.
The acting is as good as usual though. Michael Keaton brings it his all with his return as the leading bio-exorcist. The quips are still there, along with occasionally breaking the fourth wall which the character is great at doing. It is great to see Winona Ryder and Catherine O’Hara return as well with their off brand humor. Jenna Ortega is also good as an add on to the franchise. All other actors perform well too. For visuals, the cinematography was handled by Haris Zambarloukos, who also shot for Mamma Mia (2008) and Thor (2010). The look and feel is very much the same to the original as are the practical effects, which includes stop motion animation and real props. Music is also kept equally competent with Danny Elfman returning to score the movie. These are the parts that make this sequel worth a watch.
Some could see shortcomings in the script having too many characters and some scenes that take a little long but it’s not a massive issue. Everything else is from the acting, effects and music are completely maintained to that of the first movie.
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