Goth fangirls of Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder) and her morbid reflections on life may well have imagined the kind of woman she would turn into… The creators of Netflix show Wednesday (Alfred Gough, Miles Millar) who penned the screenplay for this wonderfully silly sequel, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, have crafted an anxiety-ridden woman who hosts a paranormal TV show run by a sleazy boyfriend played hilariously by Justin Theroux.
Lydia is now a widow with a difficult relationship with her teenage daughter Astrid (Jenna Ortega who played Wednesday) who she gave birth to during a showing of Mario Bava’s Kill, Baby…Kill! Following the death of Lydia’s father, she heads back to New England with step-mum Delia (MVP Catherine O’ Hara) and Astrid to clear out the house and face some demons… namely Betelgeuse (Michael Keaton). The bio-exorcist himself is facing the scorn of ex-wife Delores (Monica Bellucci playing a live-action vengeful Corpse Bride-style creation) while she is being chased by Willem Dafoe’s b-movie actor pretending to be a hardboiled detective.
The bureaucracy of the afterlife is inventively updated by director Tim Burton who brings such visual pizazz and riotous energy to proceedings that it’s easy to forgive a screenplay that doesn’t entirely come together, mostly down to the fact that there is too much going on. The spirited turns by the ensemble cast are also a hoot to watch, with O’Hara leaning into her Marina Abramovic type-performance artist arrogance with panache, Ryder’s arched eye-brow acting endearingly weird and Ortega’s deadpan delivery making her the perfect person to play Lydia’s daughter. The witty dynamic between these three actresses is joyful and their characters are given some fantastic one-liners.
According to co-writer Larry Wilson who came up with the idea for original film released in 1988, family and love was always at the heart of the macabre comedy-horror and once again Burton and company add a delectable sweetness to all the twisted imagery through the trio of women at its gooey centre. Unhinged and truly memorable musical numbers are cross cut with homage to old-school horror and 1960s/70s style foot-chases, while there’s also satisfyingly grisly comeuppance for wicked lovers.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is out in cinemas on 6 September
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