Beetlejuice Beetlejuice

Since I watched the original movie only recently, I didn't come to this movie with huge anticipation. In that sense I might judge it differently than someone who was a fan of the classic, so keep that in mind.

Overall, I had a very good time, and I think the movie is a decent continuation of the cult classic. Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, who I've been a fan of since watching "Smallville" as a child, bring their unique storytelling style to the world of *Beetlejuice* in a movie that is very different from its predecessor, but in a fresh way that also respects the original.

Tim Burton, of course, brings his unique style, and this certainly feels like a Tim Burton movie in every sense of the word. The visual effects and production design are beautifully crafted, with that classic feeling of Burton films from the '80s and '90s, but enhanced with today's technologies and more extensive options.

The acting in the movie was excellent from all parties involved. Michael Keaton, in the iconic role, looks and behaves exactly the same, as if 36 years haven't passed since filming the first movie. Winona Ryder, who has become a much more experienced actress since the original film, leads the film proudly, and the great Justin Theroux is hilariously funny in his unique way. Jenna Ortega, while delivering a good performance, feels a bit overexposed to me in recent years, with the sense that her presence is unavoidable wherever you look. I would love to see her take on a more challenging role that presents a drastically different performance from what she usually does, to justify the hype. Another standout performance in the film was Willem Dafoe's, in an excellent and unconventional comedic role. Overall, the cast is packed with big names that are always a delight to see on screen.

Another strength of the movie is the musical aspect - something the first movie was very famous for. From a good choice of songs, especially fun "musical numbers," references to classics from the first movie, and in particular, a slightly different spin on Danny Elfman's iconic and wonderful theme music that will thrill any fan of the classic film.

In general, while I watched the first movie just recently, it's impossible to ignore the amount of fan service in this movie for fans of the classic film - and I mean that in the most positive way possible. It's not the modern, tiring fan service seen in quite a few franchise movies lately, but rather something that honors the original and gives fans who have been waiting for a sequel what they wanted, doing so in a logical, enjoyable way that remains true to the spirit of the story and what cinema should be.

While not a masterpiece or anything of that sort, I had a great time watching this film in IMAX, and I would recommend it to everyone - fans of the original and casual viewers alike.

I really didn't enjoy this movie. There wasn't enough of Beetlejuice, the human side of the drama was drab. I didn't feel connected to the new characters. The charm of the first one was Beetlejuice tormenting the Dietz family. There really wasn't enough of that in this movie. Overall, I think I'm very generous with the 6 out of 10 rating I could have gone lower. No real major complaints regarding the acting but it just didn't have that magic of the first film. Just was unable to capture that essence of it. If you haven't seen it yet, definitely something you can wait for it to come to streaming.

The wife and I were disappointed today when we watched the movie. It appeared that the writers were trying to be funny at times however they were just silly. One scene towards the end just kept going and going until it became boring and monotonous. The story line was average at best. The acting was good however the script was as predictable as stale beer. Instead of 1:45 run time they could have cut 20 minutes out of the movie and it would have had no impact on the story at all. The best character in the opinion of my wife and myself was "Bob", the shrunken head character from the original movie.

The special effects were amazing. The acting was good. But there were SO many storylines. And none of them got enough time to be fully developed. Any one of the storylines, could have been the focus of the entire movie. Each storyline was rushed through and ended so fast. It's really unfortunate. And they put too much focus on Lydia's father. They honestly didn't even have to address the fact that he's wasn't in the movie. The actor in real life is a sex offender, so why even discuss his character? It added nothing to the movie.

There are also a lot of ghosts from part 1 that I felt should have been in this sequel-just use makeup and special effects like they did for Beetlejuice. Or recast them if you don't want them to show that they've aged. Also, I almost walked out during the first hour. It was boring. The movie didn't get good until the second hour.

I was hoping it would pick up in the 2nd half and it does a little but not enough to make it more than a mundane sequel.

What is lacking in this sequel is zanny antics and the mystery of discovery. In the original we had Geena and Alec learning how to be dead and doing all these weird things to get rid of their human house guests. They were fun characters who did things that were both fun and funny even before Beetlejuice was introduced.

In this one, there is literally nothing going on for about an hour... just a group of depressingly boring people yapping on about their mundane lives.

The inquisitive Lydia is now an old broken yawning shadow of her younger self. She is soft spoken, hate her life and falls for some shallow dude that the young Lydia would have found vomit inducing. Her daughter, Astrid, who I suppose is more like young Lydia, isnt nearly as colorful, and is presented as an airhead who falls for something stupid. She is just a plot point to move the Lydia and Beetlejuice story forward.

That brings us to Keaton and Beetlejuice, who is entertaining but just lacks the old magic and energy. It almost felt like he didnt get enough character development time and that entire cake musical felt like a drag. That brings us to the Juice's wife, who was completely and utterly useless. She has no personality and like Astrid, does nothing interesting and exists only to push the plot forward only to have her part end in a thud. She didnt matter at all.

Long story short, this felt like a money grab. I didnt get the sense that anyone loved making this film. They just went through the motions. I might be wrong but thats how it felt to me.

Still its not the worst movie ever made but I wouldnt want to see it again either. Id say its very average.