It may take two or three viewings to warm up to "Beetlejuice". It has a kooky, cockeyed sensibility and a rhythm that is by turns easy, lazy and frenetic. A charming couple in New England die and come back to their beloved home as ghosts, determined to rid the place of the horrendous new tenants. Possibly the most benign and engaging performance ever by Alec Baldwin; Geena Davis, Winona Ryder and Sylvia Sidney are also very appealing. The new couple from New York who take over the house (Jeffrey Jones and Catherine O'Hara) aren't as well written or thought-out as the other characters and some of their bemused, dry-ice comic lines take a few seconds to reach you. Of course, there's Michael Keaton, wildly comic as Betelgeuse. I recall hearing comments back in 1988 that Keaton wasn't around enough to make the picture worthwhile, but that's only if you watch the film for the fast quips and sight-gags. Keaton is truly wonderful, but he's also bombastic, and I felt there was just enough of him to satisfy--it's really not his story anyway, it belongs to Baldwin and Davis; Betelgeuse is used as a horny, vulgar punchline. Director Tim Burton is very careful not to overload the movie with raunch; he is surprisingly careful in setting up this story, and he works magic within a dubious scenario: a comic fantasy about dead folks which ultimately celebrates life. ***1/2 from ****
482 Reviews
Keaton the ghost with the most.
MeMyselfAndTheBeard10 April 2020
Considering he's not in the film that much and the film is named after his character he steals the whole show when he appears front and centre. He is so good you're amazed by him I wouldn't be surprised if Jim Carrey didnt use Michael Keaton's performance as Beetlejuice as a template for his fantastical cartoon character Stanley Ipkiss in the The Mask.
Love the B Movie special fx and the Shake Senora dance scene.
Little peave though was Betelgeuse/Beetlejuice dilemma. Wish they explained it a bit better thought I was having a dyslexic turn kept checking after all these years in was reading the name of the film wrong, kept stopping the film to check the title. The only downfall.
All in all funny and out there film. I'd just watch it for Keaton's performance.
Lots and lots and lots of fun
planktonrules6 August 2008
This is a great movie to simply watch and enjoy--no need to think or analyze--just enjoy the silliness and cool factor of this nice film.
A young couple living in their dream house (Alec Baldwin and Gina Davis) are accidentally killed and thereafter live as ghosts in the home. Some time later, a family of freaks (Jeffery Jones, Catherine O'Hara) and their disaffected daughter (Winona Ryder) move in--much to the ghosts' chagrin. That's because instead of respecting the lovely home's charms, the parents want to turn it into a pseudo-intellectual freak house. However, Winona somehow is able to see and communicate with the ghosts--but her parents can't believe that they exist or that they're doing anything wrong with the house.
The dead couple try to scare away the family, but their attempts are really lame (and funny) and this only makes the weirdos want to stay even more! So, out of desperation, they seek out the most evil and obnoxious ghost, Beetle Juice (Michael Keaton) to help. The problem is that although Beetle Juice is able to scare anyone, he's also a total maniac and once let out, he's amazingly difficult to stop.
The film abounds with many things you'd expect to see in a Tim Burton directed film--weird special effects, an odd set design (after the weirdos transform the house), fun and a definite "cool factor". The actors do a fine job as well. Additionally, the script is smart and fun. While some might find this too dark a film for young kids, for older kids and adults, it's mighty entertaining and silly. Plus the music is just so darn infectious and fun!
A young couple living in their dream house (Alec Baldwin and Gina Davis) are accidentally killed and thereafter live as ghosts in the home. Some time later, a family of freaks (Jeffery Jones, Catherine O'Hara) and their disaffected daughter (Winona Ryder) move in--much to the ghosts' chagrin. That's because instead of respecting the lovely home's charms, the parents want to turn it into a pseudo-intellectual freak house. However, Winona somehow is able to see and communicate with the ghosts--but her parents can't believe that they exist or that they're doing anything wrong with the house.
The dead couple try to scare away the family, but their attempts are really lame (and funny) and this only makes the weirdos want to stay even more! So, out of desperation, they seek out the most evil and obnoxious ghost, Beetle Juice (Michael Keaton) to help. The problem is that although Beetle Juice is able to scare anyone, he's also a total maniac and once let out, he's amazingly difficult to stop.
The film abounds with many things you'd expect to see in a Tim Burton directed film--weird special effects, an odd set design (after the weirdos transform the house), fun and a definite "cool factor". The actors do a fine job as well. Additionally, the script is smart and fun. While some might find this too dark a film for young kids, for older kids and adults, it's mighty entertaining and silly. Plus the music is just so darn infectious and fun!
That quote "And it keeps getting funnier every single time I see it" will be put to good use
Smells_Like_Cheese19 November 2003
Once again I'm not sure exactly how to start this comment other than to praise Tim Burton, Beetlejuice is a movie that was based on his idea and is still remembered to this very day. He picked a great leading male, Michael Keaton as well as to pick a very strong cast that turned into what could have been a total flop into a cult classic that will be remembered for ages to come. Beetlejuice is a very strange movie that explores life after death, turning into a ghost and having to accept that you died, now move on. But what if there was one ghost who maybe had too much fun and just wanted to rock the living world? That's what Beetlejuice is about, the one zombie that you'd love to party with once but then ignore at the next party he's invited too.
Barbara and Adam Maitland decide to spend their vacation decorating their idyllic New England country home. Upon returning from the trip to town, however, Barbara swerves to avoid a dog wandering the roadway. The couple's vehicle crashes through a covered bridge and plunges into the river below, killing Barbara and Adam. The couple soon returns home in spirit form and quickly come to the conclusion that they are dead. A book entitled Handbook for the Recently Deceased confirms the couple's suspicion that they are, in fact, dead. Barbara and Adam's peace is soon shattered when their house is sold and the new residents arrive from New York City. Charles Deetz, aspiring sculptor and Charles' second wife Delia, and Charles' goth daughter Lydia from his first marriage, move into the home. Juno, who informs Barbara and Adam that they must remain in the house for 125 years. If they want the Deetzes out, it is up to them to scare them away. Although the Maitlands remain invisible to Charles and Delia, their daughter Lydia can see Adam and Barbara and becomes their friend. Against the advice of Juno, the Maitlands contact the miscreant Betelgeuse, a freelance "bio-exorcist", to scare away the Deetzes, but they have their hands full now with this crazy psycho.
Beetlejuice is an awesome movie, it's one of the funniest movies you'll see. I will be honest, it's a strange humor as it's a dark comedy, but it's all good. Seriously Michael Keaton is such a great comedic actor, he was the perfect choice, he brought the right amount of cockiness and comedy to the role. Also Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin had great chemistry as well as the perfect Leave it to Beaver-esquire type of couple that has a hard time accepting their world as the afterlife. Jeffrey Jones, Catherine O'Hara and Winona Ryder were perfect as the Deetzes, quite disturbing and awkward. I highly recommend this movie if you get the chance to see it, it's a great comedy classic.
10/10
Barbara and Adam Maitland decide to spend their vacation decorating their idyllic New England country home. Upon returning from the trip to town, however, Barbara swerves to avoid a dog wandering the roadway. The couple's vehicle crashes through a covered bridge and plunges into the river below, killing Barbara and Adam. The couple soon returns home in spirit form and quickly come to the conclusion that they are dead. A book entitled Handbook for the Recently Deceased confirms the couple's suspicion that they are, in fact, dead. Barbara and Adam's peace is soon shattered when their house is sold and the new residents arrive from New York City. Charles Deetz, aspiring sculptor and Charles' second wife Delia, and Charles' goth daughter Lydia from his first marriage, move into the home. Juno, who informs Barbara and Adam that they must remain in the house for 125 years. If they want the Deetzes out, it is up to them to scare them away. Although the Maitlands remain invisible to Charles and Delia, their daughter Lydia can see Adam and Barbara and becomes their friend. Against the advice of Juno, the Maitlands contact the miscreant Betelgeuse, a freelance "bio-exorcist", to scare away the Deetzes, but they have their hands full now with this crazy psycho.
Beetlejuice is an awesome movie, it's one of the funniest movies you'll see. I will be honest, it's a strange humor as it's a dark comedy, but it's all good. Seriously Michael Keaton is such a great comedic actor, he was the perfect choice, he brought the right amount of cockiness and comedy to the role. Also Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin had great chemistry as well as the perfect Leave it to Beaver-esquire type of couple that has a hard time accepting their world as the afterlife. Jeffrey Jones, Catherine O'Hara and Winona Ryder were perfect as the Deetzes, quite disturbing and awkward. I highly recommend this movie if you get the chance to see it, it's a great comedy classic.
10/10
AND IT KEEPS GETTING FUNNIER, EVERY SINGLE TIME I SEE IT! (that's not just a quote)
Quinoa198427 September 2000
This is one of Tim Burton's best films. His sophomore effort shows the story of a married couple (the Maitlands played with good degree by Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis) who die accidentally off a bridge and wind up the target for a upper-class family (including a young yet well played Winona Ryder) and a weird yet scary ghost (with the most) named Beetleguise (or Beetlejuice in a scene of laughs) played to immense complexity by Michael Keaton. Sure this plot may sound a little anti-climactic being mainly gags and not really a focused story, but so what? In a film where you see sandworms from saturn, shrimps that attach after calypso and a nut who has seen the exorcist 167 time (insert quote here), why bother with a plot. Great fun every time I watch. Reccomendable to anyone.
Burton's true masterpiece, and one of the ten best 80s movies.
Infofreak7 December 2001
Watching this one more time on TV yesterday reminded me of the first time I saw it all those years ago at the movies when Tim Burton was just the guy who had directed that funny Pee-wee Herman movie. Walking into 'Beetlejuice' then, without knowing anything about it, was an amazing experience. Along with 'Blade Runner', 'Blue Velvet', 'Videodrome', 'Brazil', 'Paris, Texas', 'The Terminator' and 'Repo Man' it was one of the most astonishing and memorable movies of the 1980s, an era dominated by Hollywood dreck like 'Flashdance', 'Top Gun', and 'Footloose'. The whole Bruckheimer/Simpson/Spielberg/Hughes zeitgeist that dumbed down popular movies as never before. Movies like 'Beetlejuice' were a glimmer of hope in a truly awful period.
The big question is - how does it stand up today? The answer is better than ever! In fact I would argue that 'Beetlejuice' is Tim Burton's most successful and least compromised film. Everything about it is perfect. A great cast lead by the very appealing and likable Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis as the newly dead Maitlands, a star turn by Michael Keaton as the gonzo "bio-exorcist" title character, and strong support from Jeffrey Jones, Catherine O'Hara, and especially Winona Ryder (a performance that really put her on the map), as the new occupants of the Maitlands house. 'Beetlejuice' juggles gruesome, trippy and genuinely witty sequences, and ends up becoming one of the freshest and surreal movies to find a mainstream audience since the heyday of 60s/70s "head" movies. Forget Burton's more recent hit and miss big budget efforts, and try this for the real deal, Luis Bunuel meets Tex Avery meets George Romero, and then some! 'Beetlejuice' is a blast!
The big question is - how does it stand up today? The answer is better than ever! In fact I would argue that 'Beetlejuice' is Tim Burton's most successful and least compromised film. Everything about it is perfect. A great cast lead by the very appealing and likable Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis as the newly dead Maitlands, a star turn by Michael Keaton as the gonzo "bio-exorcist" title character, and strong support from Jeffrey Jones, Catherine O'Hara, and especially Winona Ryder (a performance that really put her on the map), as the new occupants of the Maitlands house. 'Beetlejuice' juggles gruesome, trippy and genuinely witty sequences, and ends up becoming one of the freshest and surreal movies to find a mainstream audience since the heyday of 60s/70s "head" movies. Forget Burton's more recent hit and miss big budget efforts, and try this for the real deal, Luis Bunuel meets Tex Avery meets George Romero, and then some! 'Beetlejuice' is a blast!
Okay.
Qanqor12 July 2009
Warning: Spoilers
This is one of the best Tim Burton movies I've ever seen!
But that's not saying much, since I despise Tim Burton. In fact, I didn't actually *know* this was a Tim Burton film, and when I popped it in my DVD player and saw his name on the opening credits, I nearly threw up a little into my mouth. I seriously considered turning the thing off right then and there, because I had already vowed never to see another Burton film.
But I'd heard a lot of good things about this movie, so I decided to give it a chance.
And in truth, I'm kind of glad I did, because it wasn't too bad. The premise was interesting and original. It was certainly a *different* take on the afterlife, and it definitely had me at times thinking "What would I do in this situation?" Which is a good thing. I liked the protagonist couple and was rooting for them. Also a good thing.
But in typical Burton fashion, it ends up trading coherence for oddity. This occurs as soon as the title character comes in. Betelgeuse the character makes no sense. His motivations, his situation, what it exactly *means* to say his name three times, none of this ever really makes sense in any coherent, consistent way. And Burton obviously doesn't care. He just wants to make things weird and over-the-top. So in the end, the plot really degrades into making no sense and going nowhere. How exactly is Betelgeuse apparently trapped in the model? No explanation offered. Why do the ghosts suddenly turn all old and dried up during the séance? No reason offered. It just makes things weird and over the top. What would have happened if the good guys *had* managed to say his name thrice during the wedding scene? No clue, Burton can't be bothered to think through his premise in any consistent way.
The result is a flashy, busy, climax, full of sound and fury and signifying NOTHING. In a movie where the whole plot was set up to be about a ghost couple trying to drive the living out of their house, the climax ends up being about stopping this *other* ghost from marrying one of the living. The plot has Officially Gone Nowhere.
And it's a shame, really, because this started out being a pretty good movie, and really could've been much, much better than it was. Step one would've been entirely removing Betelgeuse from Beetlejuice.
Jeez, they couldn't even manage to spell the title correctly.
But that's not saying much, since I despise Tim Burton. In fact, I didn't actually *know* this was a Tim Burton film, and when I popped it in my DVD player and saw his name on the opening credits, I nearly threw up a little into my mouth. I seriously considered turning the thing off right then and there, because I had already vowed never to see another Burton film.
But I'd heard a lot of good things about this movie, so I decided to give it a chance.
And in truth, I'm kind of glad I did, because it wasn't too bad. The premise was interesting and original. It was certainly a *different* take on the afterlife, and it definitely had me at times thinking "What would I do in this situation?" Which is a good thing. I liked the protagonist couple and was rooting for them. Also a good thing.
But in typical Burton fashion, it ends up trading coherence for oddity. This occurs as soon as the title character comes in. Betelgeuse the character makes no sense. His motivations, his situation, what it exactly *means* to say his name three times, none of this ever really makes sense in any coherent, consistent way. And Burton obviously doesn't care. He just wants to make things weird and over-the-top. So in the end, the plot really degrades into making no sense and going nowhere. How exactly is Betelgeuse apparently trapped in the model? No explanation offered. Why do the ghosts suddenly turn all old and dried up during the séance? No reason offered. It just makes things weird and over the top. What would have happened if the good guys *had* managed to say his name thrice during the wedding scene? No clue, Burton can't be bothered to think through his premise in any consistent way.
The result is a flashy, busy, climax, full of sound and fury and signifying NOTHING. In a movie where the whole plot was set up to be about a ghost couple trying to drive the living out of their house, the climax ends up being about stopping this *other* ghost from marrying one of the living. The plot has Officially Gone Nowhere.
And it's a shame, really, because this started out being a pretty good movie, and really could've been much, much better than it was. Step one would've been entirely removing Betelgeuse from Beetlejuice.
Jeez, they couldn't even manage to spell the title correctly.
Now this is life after death!
lee_eisenberg20 September 2005
You gotta figure that only Tim Burton could come up with this! An ultra-zany story of rural couple Adam (Alec Baldwin) and Barbara Maitland (Geena Davis), who accidentally get killed and witness a tasteless couple moving into their house, forcing them to hire "bio-exorcist" Beetle Juice (Michael Keaton), is truly something else. With a new joke almost every minute, the movie never gets dull. And how about that soundtrack? "Day-O" in the most morbid comedy ever? Yep, it's all here. Great support from Catherine O'Hara and Jeffrey Jones as the tasteless couple, Winona Ryder as their disaffected daughter Lydia, and Sylvia Sidney as afterlife counselor Juno, make this one of the coolest movies of 1988!
Aging hasn't treated this one properly
lsandv14 October 2020
Tim Burton's sophomore feature cements the director's iconic style with a joyfully inverted take on haunted houses and ghosts
IonicBreezeMachine16 September 2022
In the idyllic small town of Winter River, Connecticut, Adam (Alec Baldwin) and Barbara Maitland (Geena Davis) are a happily married couple who are content to fix up their house while on vacation from working the local hardware store. However, on a routine drive the Maitlands inadvertently plunge their car into a river trying to avoid hitting a dog in the road. Upon their return home the Maitlands start noticing odd things such as not remembering how they returned home and eventually discover with their inexplicably acquired book The Handbook for the Recently Deceased that they died in the river and are now ghosts bound to the property. A bad situation is rendered worse when their home is sold to the yuppie Deetz family consisting of stressed architect Charles (Jeffrey Jones) who hopes for peace and quiet, Charles' tacky socialite would-be artist second wife Delia (Catherine O'Hara), and Charles' gothic death obsessed daughter Lydia (Winona Ryder). As the Maitlands try to scare the Deetz' out of their home to no avail Lydia begins seeing glimpses of them, however a fast talking lecherous con-man named Beetlejuice (Michael Keaton) offers his services as a "bio-exorcist" to the Maitlands to get rid of the Deetzes, but Beetlejuice may be even worse than they are.
Following the success of Tim Burton's debut film Pee-Wee's Big Adventure, Burton became bankable enough for Warner Bros. That he became attached to the long stalled in development Batman. While Batman continued its turgid development Warner Bros. Offered Burton a number of scripts many of which he hated including the infamous Hot to Trot. Eventually Burton was given the script to Beetlejuice and decided it would be his next project. The script, originally written with a much darker and less comic edge was reworked by written Warren Skaaren and gave us the final darkly comic toned end result. The film received positive screenings from test audiences and upon release the film became a sleeper hit opening at #1 at the box office and staying there for four consecutive weeks ultimately making $74 million in North America alone against its $15 million budget which gave Warner Bros. The confidence to formally greenlight Batman which would only make Burton and even bigger name than he already was. Beetlejuice has become one of Burton's most iconic films as its undeniably the first film where Burton's signature style is fully on display (Pee-Wee's Big Adventure had glimpses, but it wasn't quite the Burton we all know). Visually creative, darkly funny, and incredibly quotable, Beetlejuice has become a classic for a good reason.
At its core, the movie is a culture clash of two exaggerate types with the Maitlands represent humble, nice, down to earth people while the Deetzes represent the garish tackiness of obnoxious urbanites who revel in excess and inanity and even when they come to small towns to "get away from it all" their thoughts turn to "how do we make this more like where we came from?". Burton loves larger than life characters and he does well with the over the top likable Maitlands and the over the top tacky Deetzes but we also get a more grounded core in Winona Ryder's Lydia who despite being positioned as a gothic outsider, is also ironically the most normal and down to Earth one of the group and serves as our proxy through which we experience the supernatural shenanigans. Baldwin and Davis are both incredibly likable and have fantastic chemistry as Adam and Barbara, and Catherine O'Hara is delightfully over the top as she voices her disgust with the Maitlands home and mutilates it along with her buffoonish and foppish interior designer Otho (Glenn Shadix) who's very much a jack of all trades and a joke at all of them. But of course, we can't talk about Beetlejuice without discussing the titular character and he steals every scene he's in thanks to the manic energy brought by Keaton to the role. Very much a Bugs Bunny by way of the Cryptkeeper, Beetlejuice is repulsively funny as he's essentially this fast-talking conman with vulgar appetites and lecherous leanings that he doesn't even try to hide that culminates in a satisfying climax where everything is fully unleashed.
Beetlejuice is an inverted take on Ghostbusters with the crazy surreal imagery that would become part and parcel to many a Tim Burton production. With sharp clever writing, beautifully ugly visuals, and memorable lines and characters it's no wonder why Beetlejuice's legacy has endured as long as it has.
Following the success of Tim Burton's debut film Pee-Wee's Big Adventure, Burton became bankable enough for Warner Bros. That he became attached to the long stalled in development Batman. While Batman continued its turgid development Warner Bros. Offered Burton a number of scripts many of which he hated including the infamous Hot to Trot. Eventually Burton was given the script to Beetlejuice and decided it would be his next project. The script, originally written with a much darker and less comic edge was reworked by written Warren Skaaren and gave us the final darkly comic toned end result. The film received positive screenings from test audiences and upon release the film became a sleeper hit opening at #1 at the box office and staying there for four consecutive weeks ultimately making $74 million in North America alone against its $15 million budget which gave Warner Bros. The confidence to formally greenlight Batman which would only make Burton and even bigger name than he already was. Beetlejuice has become one of Burton's most iconic films as its undeniably the first film where Burton's signature style is fully on display (Pee-Wee's Big Adventure had glimpses, but it wasn't quite the Burton we all know). Visually creative, darkly funny, and incredibly quotable, Beetlejuice has become a classic for a good reason.
At its core, the movie is a culture clash of two exaggerate types with the Maitlands represent humble, nice, down to earth people while the Deetzes represent the garish tackiness of obnoxious urbanites who revel in excess and inanity and even when they come to small towns to "get away from it all" their thoughts turn to "how do we make this more like where we came from?". Burton loves larger than life characters and he does well with the over the top likable Maitlands and the over the top tacky Deetzes but we also get a more grounded core in Winona Ryder's Lydia who despite being positioned as a gothic outsider, is also ironically the most normal and down to Earth one of the group and serves as our proxy through which we experience the supernatural shenanigans. Baldwin and Davis are both incredibly likable and have fantastic chemistry as Adam and Barbara, and Catherine O'Hara is delightfully over the top as she voices her disgust with the Maitlands home and mutilates it along with her buffoonish and foppish interior designer Otho (Glenn Shadix) who's very much a jack of all trades and a joke at all of them. But of course, we can't talk about Beetlejuice without discussing the titular character and he steals every scene he's in thanks to the manic energy brought by Keaton to the role. Very much a Bugs Bunny by way of the Cryptkeeper, Beetlejuice is repulsively funny as he's essentially this fast-talking conman with vulgar appetites and lecherous leanings that he doesn't even try to hide that culminates in a satisfying climax where everything is fully unleashed.
Beetlejuice is an inverted take on Ghostbusters with the crazy surreal imagery that would become part and parcel to many a Tim Burton production. With sharp clever writing, beautifully ugly visuals, and memorable lines and characters it's no wonder why Beetlejuice's legacy has endured as long as it has.
Michael Keaton is the show
vcpoltect7 October 2022
For me, it's Michael Keaton's interpretation of the title character that makes the picture. As the free lance bio-exorcist straight from (can I say it?) hell, he brings a manic quality to the character that just cracks me up even today. To this date, whenever I hear someone say 'It's showtime', it's Keaton's showtime I'm reminded of.
Some will say this is a macabre story, but it's got a strange balance of wit and humor. My favorite scene is the Da-yo sequence, seemingly coming out of nowhere with no connection to the events of the story, but it captures just the right tone to make the film enjoyable. Other little quirks like the 'Handbook for the Recently Deceased' and the 'Lost Souls Room' are curiously amusing as well. Probably the best gag in the picture was that cool tribute to Vincent Price's 1959 flick "The Fly", in that scene with the Zagnut Bar and the fly crying 'Help me, help me'. You just have to see that earlier picture to get it.
With Alec Baldwin's recent conflicted real life history, I can't say that I'm any kind of fan of his, but he does a fair enough job here. Geena Davis is always pleasing to see, and I recall this early film appearance of Winona Ryder with some fondness. The coolest casting surprise in the movie was Sylvia Sidney as the after-life spiritual guide. Hey, she worked with some of the best in her career - Bogart, Cagney, Raft and Hitchcock - and you can't get any better than that.
If you're an old time movie or TV fan, you've probably seen an episode or two of 'Topper'. Well "Beetlejuice" is like 'Topper' on steroids, but without the St. Bernard. You know, that would have been a good idea, so if anyone's thinking of a remake, that would be a good starting point.
Some will say this is a macabre story, but it's got a strange balance of wit and humor. My favorite scene is the Da-yo sequence, seemingly coming out of nowhere with no connection to the events of the story, but it captures just the right tone to make the film enjoyable. Other little quirks like the 'Handbook for the Recently Deceased' and the 'Lost Souls Room' are curiously amusing as well. Probably the best gag in the picture was that cool tribute to Vincent Price's 1959 flick "The Fly", in that scene with the Zagnut Bar and the fly crying 'Help me, help me'. You just have to see that earlier picture to get it.
With Alec Baldwin's recent conflicted real life history, I can't say that I'm any kind of fan of his, but he does a fair enough job here. Geena Davis is always pleasing to see, and I recall this early film appearance of Winona Ryder with some fondness. The coolest casting surprise in the movie was Sylvia Sidney as the after-life spiritual guide. Hey, she worked with some of the best in her career - Bogart, Cagney, Raft and Hitchcock - and you can't get any better than that.
If you're an old time movie or TV fan, you've probably seen an episode or two of 'Topper'. Well "Beetlejuice" is like 'Topper' on steroids, but without the St. Bernard. You know, that would have been a good idea, so if anyone's thinking of a remake, that would be a good starting point.
A landmark supernatural comedy as well as being a refreshingly flaky fantasy
TheLittleSongbird16 April 2010
Beetle Juice may be strange and oddball at first, but like several films I have seen over the years, it could well grow on you. Essentially it is a landmark supernatural comedy as well as being a refreshingly flaky fantasy crammed with wit and invention, that I think is one of Tim Burton's better films along with Batman, Ed Wood and Edward Scissorhands. It is also a marvellously imaginative view of the afterlife as a ghoulish extension of mundane earthbound problems. The visuals once again are absolutely wonderful, with dark cinematography, imaginative sets and zany special effects. The script are filled to the brim with one-liners that are funny and somewhat demonic, the score from Danny Elfman is fun and the direction is pretty much superb. And I loved how offbeat the performances were, with Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis suitably low key as the recently deceased couple who want to rid their new home of human pests. Speaking of those human pests, Catherine O' Hara proves herself fantastically pretentious as the artist whose creations come to life in one of the film's most memorable scenes, and Jeffrey Jones and Winona Ryder are also memorable but it is Michael Keaten as Bettelgeuse, the unstable freelance exorcist who steals the show who portrays the character as unique and completely and utterly insane. Overall, unique, imaginative and lots of fun. 10/10 Bethany Cox
Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice!
awsmpgn14 November 2021
One of my favourite movies of all time. It's a Halloween classic. Spooky, funny and very rewatchable. I am waiting for that moment when I forget this movie again and get to rewatch it. Beetlejuice is a creativity booster, an inspirational, in an artistic sense, film. The sets, the wardrobe, the props - everything inspired me as a kid and made me love those dark-romance, Tim Burton motives.
Don't say it!
Pjtaylor-96-1380448 September 2020
Despite an interesting premise and several impressive, unsurprisingly strange sight-gags, 'Beetlejuice (1988)' isn't really all that engaging. It isn't bad, but it doesn't quite grip you in the way it should. It isn't particularly funny, for instance. It's also somewhat undisciplined, with a plot that seems to operate on an "and then this happens" logic. Of course, the thing has its more successful moments. Keaton is good as the eponymous creepy character, bringing a lot of unnerving energy to the role. Baldwin and Davis do a good job of playing an everyday couple forced to cope with an inconceivable situation, too. The film is at its best when Burton's signature weirdness is allowed to run wild, with stop-motion monsters and grotesque make-up galore. It can be a very visually pleasing experience. It just isn't all that entertaining as a whole, though. It's hard to say why, but it just isn't all that compelling. 5/10
Unique Characters & Story, To Say The Least
ccthemovieman-124 June 2006
This movie always was: 1 - very popular; 2 - very different; 3 - very entertaining; 4 - a very fast-moving hour-and-a-half of a film.
Several characters in here - mainly Michael Keaton's unique and sometimes- revolting title character "Beetlejuice"- are always fascinating to watch. With him - and the whole movie - you also get a lot of humor and scary special-effects..
It was odd to see Alec Baldwin in such a low-key role. In the '90s, he played very few of these type of guys. Davis looks and acts like...well, Davis, who has almost always played nice, cute people that viewers like. It took me four viewings before I finally appreciated Catharine O'Hara's comedic talents in this movie. Now, she's my favorite and someone I find absolutely hilarious as the messed-up wife/mother of a family who moves into a "haunted house" inhabited by Baldwin and Davis.
Keaton made himself a name as an actor with this whacked-out Robin Williams-type role, although he never really followed up with anything that was as popular as this film. Winona Rider is cute as the teenage daughter and we get other fun supporting roles from diverse people as talk show host Dick Cavett, singer Robert Goulet and actor Jeffrey Jones. All of them are good.
Tim Burton directed the film and so I wasn't surprised there were the typical occult themes with ghosts and the like, and no heaven or hell but some other strange existence being touted where dead people go....a ridiculous picture of the afterlife. However, I just chalk it up to someone just trying to make a fun, entertaining picture and on that, it succeeds.
Overall, a unique and entertaining film. It's different, to say the least!
Several characters in here - mainly Michael Keaton's unique and sometimes- revolting title character "Beetlejuice"- are always fascinating to watch. With him - and the whole movie - you also get a lot of humor and scary special-effects..
It was odd to see Alec Baldwin in such a low-key role. In the '90s, he played very few of these type of guys. Davis looks and acts like...well, Davis, who has almost always played nice, cute people that viewers like. It took me four viewings before I finally appreciated Catharine O'Hara's comedic talents in this movie. Now, she's my favorite and someone I find absolutely hilarious as the messed-up wife/mother of a family who moves into a "haunted house" inhabited by Baldwin and Davis.
Keaton made himself a name as an actor with this whacked-out Robin Williams-type role, although he never really followed up with anything that was as popular as this film. Winona Rider is cute as the teenage daughter and we get other fun supporting roles from diverse people as talk show host Dick Cavett, singer Robert Goulet and actor Jeffrey Jones. All of them are good.
Tim Burton directed the film and so I wasn't surprised there were the typical occult themes with ghosts and the like, and no heaven or hell but some other strange existence being touted where dead people go....a ridiculous picture of the afterlife. However, I just chalk it up to someone just trying to make a fun, entertaining picture and on that, it succeeds.
Overall, a unique and entertaining film. It's different, to say the least!
Tim Burton is awesome!
Peach-217 November 1998
Tim Burton's Beetlejuice is a great film. The director was given free reign to make his own film visually and it is great. The casting is good, but the standout is Michael Keaton. Keaton is absolutely hilarious in the title role. This movie is very funny and well done.
Keaton IS God
JT-2712 October 1998
Absolutly Hilarious!! Micheal Keaton must have had the greatest time doing that movie. It is one of his best. Watch the scene when Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis first see him on TV and he's doing the commercial. I laugh so hard every time I see that. It's a 10 for sure!
Am I missing something? Because . . .
pfgpowell-19 April 2009
Beetlejuice is one of those films you feel guilty about not liking more. Sounds daft, I know, but it's a bit like not liking as much an aunt everyone else insists is a real sweetie, but with the best will in the world you just can't see it. I mean, Beetlejuice is by Tim Burton, right, and an early masterpiece, right; and Michael Keaton in the title role, delivers a barnstorming performance, right; and it's full of examples of Tim Burton's celebrated off-the-wall, wacky humour right, with loads of imaginative special effects, right. And anyway, everyone, and I mean everyone thinks it's really, really good and really, really cool and just, you know, brilliant, I mean really, really brilliant, right. So if you disagree and, you know, you don't get it, it's your problem, man, because everyone else thinks it's really, really cool and really, really brilliant. But unfortunately I don't think it is really, really good and really, really brilliant. The real problem is that I don't think I even have a problem — I just don't think Beetlejuice is quite as good as everyone, and I mean, everyone, right, says. It's rather like Robert De Niro's performance in Mean Streets: everyone says it's pure genius, then you see it, and you think: aren't they exaggerating just a little, I mean, just a little? It's good, yes, but . . . Beetlejuice is this film I had heard so much about, which was truly original and with which Tim Burton first made his name (or something). But I had never seen it because somehow I didn't when it first came out, and then it was never in a cinema near me or else when it was shown on TV, I didn't get to hear about it until it was too late. But I also made a mental note that I simply must see it and when I found that one of our local supermarkets was selling a copy for £4, which is my sort of price, in it went into the shopping basket. In the event, I didn't get to slip it into my DVD player (i.e. my iBook) until a few weeks later, but when I did, I couldn't get rid of the niggling suspicion that I was in for something of a disappointment. Now, it would be pointless to go into chapter and verse pointing out a flaw here and a flaw there, because, quite truthfully Tim Burton does have a rather extraordinary imagination and in many respects Beetlejuice is streets ahead of the competition. You might even say that Burton re-wrote the rules for making films in a certain kind of genre, although I would be hard-pushed to give that genre a name. But let me give just one example: the Maitland's are in so many ways such caricatures that you assume such characterisation will be part of the plot. But it isn't. Then we are presented with the Deetz family and their camp interior designer and again the characterisation is so broadbrush that you wonder just at what level the whole thing is being pitched. Well, actually, it doesn't matter. This is cartoon stuff, except that it doesn't feature animation but acting. OK, fair enough. Then we get to Keaton giving an undoubted tour de force but in an odd sort of way it never really takes off. We are informed that at one point he was someone's assistant but his behaviour became so extreme that he had to be let go. Well, perhaps I'm being a little over-pernickety here, but I want some sort of back story which would help flesh out Beetlejuice. But all we are led to believe is that he should, on no account, be invoked. Naturally, he is invoked, but oddly the film finishes quite soon afterwards (in an ending which involved a deus ex machina of such obviousness that I would bet my shirt the writer simply did not know how to end his story. In fact, apart from the fact that one could dies and wants to scare another couple out of their home, what was the story. When the film came, I was even taken by surprise: was that it? I thought, for although by now Beetlejuice had already been running for 90 minutes odd, in a sense it was only just getting going. But no, that was it, like it or lump it. Perhaps, I am expecting too much. Perhaps I am being too serious. Perhaps I should just relax and get into the spirit of the film (and no silly pun intended there). The trouble is that Beetlejuice could have been so much more. We often say that so-and-so was more than just the sum of its parts, and hope to indicate that it included an x factor which raised it above the rest. Well, for me Beetlejuice is, in a sense, less the sum of its parts. It seemingly has everything, but . . . Oh well, I'll just have to firm a sub-group of those who don't think this is the best thing since sliced bread.
A Bit Dated But Still Awesome
denis88821 June 2014
Many older movies date not so gracefully, and when you watch them after awhile, crappy video effects, or bad montage and cutting are so obvious that the whole movie turns sour or very silly. Beetlejuice aged gracefully, thanks to a huge injection of healthy humor, spellbinding star cast, excellent calypso songs, awesome plot and very cynical twists in the story. You saw it, you know it. What else can be added to this great film? Winona Ryder is very cool choice here, she is dark, moody and way way out there, but her deep sense of humor helps her get through all the initial sadness. Great work by Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin also add much to the whole crazy vertigo of gags, jokes and laughs. Good camera work also helps, and even old-fashioned video effects do not spoil the party and do not steal the infectious joyousness of the story. Highly recommended
ghosts against ghosts
dbdumonteil19 November 2006
In 1988, prior to the inordinate success of "Batman" (1989) which would line his pockets, Tim Burton bequeathed this work which is from his own words: "a comical version of "the Exorcist" told from two dead people's point of view". I have never been a fan of William Friedkin's masquerade marred by extravagant, ludicrous special effects.
There are also special effects in "Beetle Juice" and they constituted the main attraction for many viewers when the film was released. But unlike Friedkin's enticing work they're much better tapped to serve as complements for the needs of the story but also to depict the beyond after death for Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin. On this point, one recognizes with pleasure Burton's trademark. The filmmaker had visibly pleasure to recreate a quirky vision of hell enhanced by extravagant scenery with rather loud colors and populated with funny monsters. This hellish universe has the look of a public services office.
Another positive thing about "Beetle Juice" is that it never really falls into the excessive or the very grim and genteel humor is also an asset for the film. The story has genuine looks in its beginning but takes a derivative direction as the film advances and certain characters verge on the space of cardboard characters. But the actors seemed to be well aware of this problem and perhaps that's why they offer subdued, enjoyable performances. But the prize for the best actor arguably goes to Michael Keaton as the grouchy, dangerous Beetle Juice, absolutely unrecognizable under his make-up.
"Beetle Juice" hasn't got really its place among Burton's seminal works like "Edward Scissorhands" (1990), "Ed Wood" (1994) or "Big Fish" (2003) but if the filmmaker's set of themes and stylish job is your cup of tea, why not give it a chance?
There are also special effects in "Beetle Juice" and they constituted the main attraction for many viewers when the film was released. But unlike Friedkin's enticing work they're much better tapped to serve as complements for the needs of the story but also to depict the beyond after death for Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin. On this point, one recognizes with pleasure Burton's trademark. The filmmaker had visibly pleasure to recreate a quirky vision of hell enhanced by extravagant scenery with rather loud colors and populated with funny monsters. This hellish universe has the look of a public services office.
Another positive thing about "Beetle Juice" is that it never really falls into the excessive or the very grim and genteel humor is also an asset for the film. The story has genuine looks in its beginning but takes a derivative direction as the film advances and certain characters verge on the space of cardboard characters. But the actors seemed to be well aware of this problem and perhaps that's why they offer subdued, enjoyable performances. But the prize for the best actor arguably goes to Michael Keaton as the grouchy, dangerous Beetle Juice, absolutely unrecognizable under his make-up.
"Beetle Juice" hasn't got really its place among Burton's seminal works like "Edward Scissorhands" (1990), "Ed Wood" (1994) or "Big Fish" (2003) but if the filmmaker's set of themes and stylish job is your cup of tea, why not give it a chance?
Beetlejuice
Coxer9916 June 1999
Keaton steals the show as the title character in this off the wall comedy from director Burton. Baldwin and Davis are two new ghosts who try to scare new occupants of their home out, with the help of "bio exorcist" Keaton. Won a much deserved Oscar for its make up effects.
Nice FU#KN' Model!!!!
clint-cole9 December 2005
This is by far Michael Keaton's best performance. Every time he comes on the screen he displays such an eccentric performance that it rivals Jim Carrey from 'The Mask', only without as much help from computers. If his role calls for gross he brings revolting; pushy he brings offensive; witty he brings hilarious sarcasm. One of my few complaints is that he doesn't get enough screen time, although he does have a large portion of it, most goes to Gena Davis and Alec Baldwin.
Tim Burton's directing is great. My favorite scene by far doesn't even have Michael Keaton in it. Anyone who has seen this will remember it as the dancing dinner scene.
This is a classic. If you haven't seen it then you must've'e grown up under a rock or born before I was.
Tim Burton's directing is great. My favorite scene by far doesn't even have Michael Keaton in it. Anyone who has seen this will remember it as the dancing dinner scene.
This is a classic. If you haven't seen it then you must've'e grown up under a rock or born before I was.
Handbook For The Recently Deceased.
seeingbystarlight29 July 2018
Warning: Spoilers
Adam and Barbara (Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis), lead the perfect life, in their house atop a quiet hill in the country.
They have decided to spend their vacation at home rather than take a trip while strenuously avoiding their real estate agent/friend (Annie McEnroe) who thinks the house is to big for them, and should be sold to a family.
Then, on their return trip from the Hardware Store in town, disaster strikes when (while trying not to hit a dog), their car goes over a bridge, and plummets into the water bellow.
Soon after, they find themselves home again, and it's not long before they realize they haven't survived the crash.
At first they panic, then they find The Handbook For The Recently Deceased (which reads like an lnstructions Manual), and they dive into it, looking for an answer to their problems.
Unable to leave the house because the exterior is a Martian-like environment filled with dangerous creatures from outer space, they languish in their dust covered house (which they can't clean properly because the vacuum cleaner is in the garage).
But things are about to take a turn for the worse, as an excentric New York family has bought the house, and is determined to make it all their own.
There's the father, Charles Deetz (Jeffrey Jones), who just wants to be left alone:
"Now remember Delia, we're here to relax and enjoy the country. NOT TO TRASH THE PLACE!"
The pampered, atrociously misguided, and blythely disregarding mother Delia (Catherine O'Hara) who has no intention of respecting her husband wishes:
"A little gasoline...blow torch...No problem."
The suicidally depressed daughter Lydia (Winona Ryder) who states simply:
"My whole life is a dark room. One BIG...DARK...ROOM!"
And the pompously arrogant, and inept interior decorator, Otho (Glenn Shandix) who's appalled by the house he can't wait to destroy:
It has absolutely no organic flow-through." He scoffs, defacing the walls with spray paint "Ugh!" he breathes, looking in the closet "Deliver me from LL Bean!"
Meanwhile, Adam and Barbara have entered the Seventh Circle of Hell, as their beautiful home is being gutted by a group of crazy yuppies.
"What are we going to do?" Barbara wails "Is this some sort of punishment?"
"We're not completely helpless Barbara." Adam says with a wicked grin "I've been looking through that book, and there's a word for people in our situation: Ghosts!"
They then put all their energy into haunting their own house. Moaning their hearts out as they parade around in sheets, and cutting each other's heads off, in order to look more terrifying.
But the impostors, far from being frightened, seem bored, and a little annoyed by their theatrics.
It is then that a mysterious bio-exorcist named Beetlegeuse (Michael Keaton) appears on T.V. offering a "free demonic possession for every exorcism."
This gives Adam and Barbara hope that they might still drive these people out.
But there are rumors going around about this bizarre new character, so much so that calling on his name three times may not be a good idea.
Tim Burton has a knack for directing these types of movies, and does a good job with this one (although it's not as spectacular as Batman or Edward Scissorhands, and this is probably due to the script which could've been better written).
Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis are really excellent, and the scenes their in are really funny.
There's one really great scene in which the family is eating dinner, and Day-O starts playing, and they all sing as if possessed.
The last scene is also very noteworthy.
Winona Ryder is terrific as the dark, and dreary Lydia.
All the other characters are perfectly cast.
And Michael Keaton is great as Beetlegeuse.
Originally, Review #65
Posted On: April 30, 2010
They have decided to spend their vacation at home rather than take a trip while strenuously avoiding their real estate agent/friend (Annie McEnroe) who thinks the house is to big for them, and should be sold to a family.
Then, on their return trip from the Hardware Store in town, disaster strikes when (while trying not to hit a dog), their car goes over a bridge, and plummets into the water bellow.
Soon after, they find themselves home again, and it's not long before they realize they haven't survived the crash.
At first they panic, then they find The Handbook For The Recently Deceased (which reads like an lnstructions Manual), and they dive into it, looking for an answer to their problems.
Unable to leave the house because the exterior is a Martian-like environment filled with dangerous creatures from outer space, they languish in their dust covered house (which they can't clean properly because the vacuum cleaner is in the garage).
But things are about to take a turn for the worse, as an excentric New York family has bought the house, and is determined to make it all their own.
There's the father, Charles Deetz (Jeffrey Jones), who just wants to be left alone:
"Now remember Delia, we're here to relax and enjoy the country. NOT TO TRASH THE PLACE!"
The pampered, atrociously misguided, and blythely disregarding mother Delia (Catherine O'Hara) who has no intention of respecting her husband wishes:
"A little gasoline...blow torch...No problem."
The suicidally depressed daughter Lydia (Winona Ryder) who states simply:
"My whole life is a dark room. One BIG...DARK...ROOM!"
And the pompously arrogant, and inept interior decorator, Otho (Glenn Shandix) who's appalled by the house he can't wait to destroy:
It has absolutely no organic flow-through." He scoffs, defacing the walls with spray paint "Ugh!" he breathes, looking in the closet "Deliver me from LL Bean!"
Meanwhile, Adam and Barbara have entered the Seventh Circle of Hell, as their beautiful home is being gutted by a group of crazy yuppies.
"What are we going to do?" Barbara wails "Is this some sort of punishment?"
"We're not completely helpless Barbara." Adam says with a wicked grin "I've been looking through that book, and there's a word for people in our situation: Ghosts!"
They then put all their energy into haunting their own house. Moaning their hearts out as they parade around in sheets, and cutting each other's heads off, in order to look more terrifying.
But the impostors, far from being frightened, seem bored, and a little annoyed by their theatrics.
It is then that a mysterious bio-exorcist named Beetlegeuse (Michael Keaton) appears on T.V. offering a "free demonic possession for every exorcism."
This gives Adam and Barbara hope that they might still drive these people out.
But there are rumors going around about this bizarre new character, so much so that calling on his name three times may not be a good idea.
Tim Burton has a knack for directing these types of movies, and does a good job with this one (although it's not as spectacular as Batman or Edward Scissorhands, and this is probably due to the script which could've been better written).
Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis are really excellent, and the scenes their in are really funny.
There's one really great scene in which the family is eating dinner, and Day-O starts playing, and they all sing as if possessed.
The last scene is also very noteworthy.
Winona Ryder is terrific as the dark, and dreary Lydia.
All the other characters are perfectly cast.
And Michael Keaton is great as Beetlegeuse.
Originally, Review #65
Posted On: April 30, 2010
It Was Good, But Not Enough Satisfaction.
Mr_Sensitive13 February 2005
I like most of Tim Burton movies or what ever he does, but this movie is more or less "nothing". There is nothing to look forward to. It should have been better especially with a pretty good concept story.
The movie base on life after dead, when two ghosts is trying to scare the new owner of the house but they were too weird and wouldn't even scared, so they tried to bring Beetle Juice to help them do so.
It was a pretty good plot but somewhere along the ways I didn't quite keep my interest with it. It was good and very much original Tim Burton style just by looking at the animation.
Overall this is worth another shot, because I don't like it in first watch.
Recommendation: It Was Good, But Not Enough Satisfaction.
Rating: 6/10 (Grade: C)
The movie base on life after dead, when two ghosts is trying to scare the new owner of the house but they were too weird and wouldn't even scared, so they tried to bring Beetle Juice to help them do so.
It was a pretty good plot but somewhere along the ways I didn't quite keep my interest with it. It was good and very much original Tim Burton style just by looking at the animation.
Overall this is worth another shot, because I don't like it in first watch.
Recommendation: It Was Good, But Not Enough Satisfaction.
Rating: 6/10 (Grade: C)
Beetlejuice
son_of_cheese_messiah9 July 2011
This starts very well with an original and interesting take on the afterlife. The prospect of two naive but likable ghosts having to learn their haunting skills on the job was delightful. As was the depiction of a monstrous bureaucracy behind the scenes, not far removed from Terry Gilliam's Brazil.
Had the second half proceeded along these lines, this would have been a true classic.
Alas, things start to go downhill with the appearance of the title character, one of the most annoy characters in cinematic history, not made any better by Michael Keaton's mannered performance. One is grateful that he does not put in much of an appearance.
The film then abandons any attempt at intelligence to instead go in for a lot of gimmickry. The reaction of the family to the dinner table haunting could have been made plausible if the haunting had not been so wildly over the top. Nor is it clear where Baldwin and Davies acquire the ability to control humans and create disembodied hands. They do not demonstrate this skill anywhere else.
More overblown (but unfunny) scenes kill any willing suspension of disbelief leading to the rushed and clunking finale.
Had the second half proceeded along these lines, this would have been a true classic.
Alas, things start to go downhill with the appearance of the title character, one of the most annoy characters in cinematic history, not made any better by Michael Keaton's mannered performance. One is grateful that he does not put in much of an appearance.
The film then abandons any attempt at intelligence to instead go in for a lot of gimmickry. The reaction of the family to the dinner table haunting could have been made plausible if the haunting had not been so wildly over the top. Nor is it clear where Baldwin and Davies acquire the ability to control humans and create disembodied hands. They do not demonstrate this skill anywhere else.
More overblown (but unfunny) scenes kill any willing suspension of disbelief leading to the rushed and clunking finale.
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