BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE

 

BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE = A 

Funnier, more intriguing, and more interesting than the original.  I really enjoyed this film.  With that said, I do have a couple of complaints. Or perhaps better stated, I feel there a few things that the film could have done better.  I'll get those out of the way. 

First and foremost, I feel there was way too much focus on the Charles Deetz character.  Jeffery Jones wasn't even in the film, and while his character's death was essential to the plot, the attention he otherwise received was inconsequential. Furthermore it slowed the pace of the film down.  The character of Jeremy Frazier was much more interesting and evoking yet received far less screen time.  His comeuppance was still satisfying, yet if he were given more character development and buildup for us as an audience to truly hate him, it would have been all the more rewarding.  The film lollygagged around with the setup and then rushed through the payoff.   I also felt the film could have ended as easily with their final victory.  The dream sequence at the end added nothing to the film and if anything took away from how good the ending could have been had the credits rolled minutes earlier. 

Enough with the negative, onto the positive. 

Winona Ryder did an excellent job of encompassing the character she played over 30 years ago.  It's not always easy for actors to get back into roles they have defamiliarized from for so long, but it is as if she never left.  I couldn't believe how young she still looks, despite being 52 years old.  I'll same the same for Michael Keaton, who walked right into the shoes of Betelgeuse as if he had never taken them off.  Props to the makeup department for making the 73 year old look so good for his age.  Which not to go off on a tangent, but this point must be made... Michael Keaton at 73, Catherine O'Hara at 70 and Willem Dafoe at 70, all nailed their roles.  I hear so often the excuse of, "We could never see another sequel because so and so is too old" and they're often talking about actors 10 to 15 years younger.  As if we could never see " " because this actor is, Heaven fobid, 57 years old!  Give me a break.  Keaton is 73, and he did Betelgeuse every bit as well as he did when he was 36.  

The point of adding new characters to a film franchise is to enrich the franchise and add something good to it.  I feel all the new characters helped to do this. Jenna Ortega as Astrid Deetz fit into her place like a perfect puzzle piece.  Large enough to be noticed and appreciated, yet not trying to take up more space than she needed to.  As said before, I really liked the Jeremy character, wish the conniving psychopath would have been given more time in the story, but Arthur Conti did enough to make me wanna break his nose. So, job well done. 

As always, feel as if I could say more and as if I should say more, but over all really enjoyed this flick. 

There for a while I had avoided going to the theater.  Saw a handful of films I was either not impressed with at all, or at most, felt lackluster about.   Ashley talked me into giving a film a chance again, so we went and saw DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE.  I was thoroughly impressed.  So when she suggested BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE, I figured why not?    

The movies have won me over again.  Here's to hopefully keeping me around for a while.