Say his name three times, you’ll be tremendously disappointed.
“Beetlejuice Beetlejuice”, a sequel to the beloved classic, made its long-awaited debut on Sep. 6, 2024. The buzz surrounding the film’s release proved overwhelming, to say the least.
The film, starring Jenna Ortega (Astrid) as the new angsty teenager shunned from society and various returning actors such as Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, and Catherine O’Hara, follows the Deetz family after the death of Lydia’s (Winona Ryder) husband. Astrid struggles to make friends at her school, search for peace in her home, and – because it isn’t a modern remake without it – find romance in unexpected places.
The film shoved plotlines where asymptotes fell; it was messy, and hard to follow. The audience gets glimpses of Beetlejuice in his mischief, his ex-wife’s vengeful mission, the Deetz family’s battle to escape the afterlife, and frivolous attempts at love in Lydia’s and Astrid’s life.
However, anything said in confidence is believable; a messy film is salvageable through script, line delivery, and artistic directory. It’s a shame “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” missed the memo.
Not only was the script awkward and corny, it seems the stage directors took a trip to the afterlife themselves. The cast delivered their lines with about as much grace as a shrunken head, fault lying on the producers.
The film was incredibly, unnecessarily, gruesome. The audience catches a case of whiplash, spinning from scene to scene, spilled guts in one cut, and shriveled up janitors in another. The use of fake blood, slime, and other icky factors felt haphazardly thrown into the mix, with no regard of its importance.
Beetlejuice is supposed to be raunchy, uncomfortable, and playfully inappropriate – that’s the film’s charm. But when the camera lens doesn’t know whether to focus on cheap gore or unnecessary side missions, the nostalgia audiences know and long for, is lost.
The title “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” suggests the existence of one more movie to make a complete trio. Say his name three times, correct?
Once was enough. Perhaps there lies a lesson to be learned: keep Beetlejuice in the afterlife. Or we’ll be tremendously disappointed.