The “ghost with the most” is back, baby! The long-delayed, long-awaited legacy sequel to Beetlejuice has finally arrived, reuniting stars Winona Ryder, Catherine O’ Hara, and, yes, Michael Keaton under the stewardship of original director Tim Burton. He’s surely due for a win after a long stretch of, charitably, modest success.
When is Beetlejuice Beetlejuice being released in New Zealand?
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice will be haunting New Zealand cinemas from September 5.
What is Beetlejuice Beetlejuice about?
Following the death of family dad Charles Deetz, the now-adult Lydia, mum Delia, Lydia’s husband Rory, and their kid Astrid move back to the country town of Winter River. Here, perhaps inevitably, rebellious Astrid opens a portal to the afterlife and once again the anarchic bio-exorcist Beetlejuice is summoned to our plane. Kids, hey?
The cast of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
Returning to the fold we have Michael Keaton as Beetlejuice; Winona Ryder as Lydia; and the magnificent Catherine O’Hara as Delia. Plus there’s newcomers Justin Theroux as Rory; Burton squeeze Monica Bellucci as Delores, Betelgeuse’s ex-wife; Willem Dafoe as ghost private detective Wolf Jackson; Burn Gorman as local priest Father Damien; and Danny DeVito. And, in a piece of casting that’s either masterful or a bit too obvious, Jenna Ortega plays Lydia’s daughter, Wednes- we mean Astrid.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice trailer
Why we’re excited about Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
We are not immune to the insidious charms of nostalgia. SO while we side-eye some of the more obvious calls back to the original film (that face gag has cobwebs on it), it’s a thrill seeing these characters again. Keaton looks like he’s having a grand old time, and Burton’s gifts as a visual stylist remain intact. His gifts as a storyteller, though? Hard to say; he’s been patchy at best for years. But, you know, maybe he’s due for a win. We can but hope.
Still, the reviews coming out of the Venice International Film Festival, where Beetlejuice Beetlejuice premiered out of competition on August 28th, have been positive, if not effusive. The safe bet is that fans of the original and casual viewers will be pleased, but don’t expect a return to the idiosyncratic genius that marked ol’ Timbo’s early career.
