By Jason Haskins
Adam and Barbara Maitland couldn't be happier in their humongous house that can't even maintain the love they have for each other. All of that ends abruptly, though, when they're involved in a car accident that leaves them...a little dead. Now they haunt their own house and can't even leave its confines without being put into this scary purgatory.
If matters couldn't be worse, a new family has moved into their home and aside from the gothic girl who they seem to connect with, the stepmother and father couldn't be more against what the Maitland's stood for. They opt to hire a bio-exorcist named Beetlejuice to scare these people out of their home so that they can live in peace...but when this individual turns out to be more than they can handle they find more problems than they originally anticipated.
Geena Davis and a young, trim Alec Baldwin star in this 1988 classic by Batman (1989) and Ed Wood director, Tim Burton. This was his second feature after Pee Wee's Big Adventure in 1985 and is a very important film in his filmography because it showed a clear distinction of where his career was going to go in terms of German Expressionistic-inspired design--the gothic feel he's been known for.
The special effects in this movie are extraordinary--claymation, interesting costume designs, and well-budgeted set designs boost the film's integrity in my opinion. In fact, I couldn't help but be disappointed even more by how far the man has fallen in recent years with his over-inclusion of computer animation.
This was always one of my favorite Tim Burton films. I remember putting this on so much as a kid and rewinding the VHS over and over again (which, in turn, would annoy the heck out of my sister). There's something magical about the movie that is actual a little dark to me now. The supernatural aspect of how it deals with death is fresh and isn't as foreboding as it sounds.
I'm of two minds about this movie. It's quite funny in many regards--as Beetlejuice (played excellently by Michael Keaton, who I'm sure made an impression on Burton as he returned to work with him as Bruce Wayne in the first two Batman pictures) is ridiculously gross and hilarious. He's definitely one of the largest reasons to watch the movie as he plays this peripheral character who keeps resurfacing to cause havoc.
Jeffrey Jones and Catharine O'Hara play the parents and they are so good here. O'Hara is easily one of the funniest aspects of Beetlejuice because she's a no-nonsense gal with a certain panache for her sculpture work. Both parents are New Yorker suburbanites out for dignity and recognition and they are put to the test here.
The ultimate point is to make them understand their daughter's bleak outlook, which is a very fascinating part of the movie for me. Winona Ryder is gorgeous here and at her prime as a young actress. She seems to keep the movie on an even playing field and as "emo" as she might be interpreted now, she does a great job with her role and is never too overbearing on the viewer.
The movie goes back and forth between light-hearted bits of comedy to extreme depressive activity (led by Winona Ryder as Lydia, the goth girl). The ideas are very interesting especially when you throw in that when you're dead you have certain rules. There are a few points in the movie where the Maitlands must go to this weird limbo in order to speak to their case worker for guidance on what to do as well as read their Recently Deceased handbook.
Most importantly, Beetlejuice is a very fun movie. It's rated PG, but I'd say is much closer to a PG-13 with some sexuality stuff, an F-word thrown in, and the overall thematic content. Beetlejuice may be a scary character for the youngsters and there are other matters at hand that may be confusing for children. Overall, though, this is a modern classic.
I think the performances are great, the script is pitch perfect, and the style of Burton's direction is genius--showing a lot of promise. This is one of my favorite movies to put on when I'm sick to make me feel better most likely because I connected with it so well when I was a kid. This is prime cinematic real estate for you and yours if you've never seen it and a must-watch again if it's been a while. Beetlejuice hasn't aged a bit.
5 out of 5 stars
© Jason Haskins, 2011
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