Director Tim Burton Turns Up The Juice In The Beetlejuice Beetlejuice Trailer
Are moviegoers really clamoring for more of the ghost with the most? Tim Burton and Warner Bros. certainly think so. After dropping a disappointingly tepid teaser trailer last March, the Goth King of Hollywood (who probably single-handedly kept the ubiquitous shopping mall mainstay Hot Topic in business) has just unleashed a full theatrical trailer that, hopefully, whets fans' appetite for another ghoulish, antic-filled adventure headlined by the always game Michael Keaton.
For those of us who came of age during Burton's bizarro Hollywood auteur era (which kicked off with 1985's timeless classic "Pee Wee's Big Adventure), we're hoping one of the most visually distinct filmmakers in the history of the medium has rediscovered his macabre mojo. "Beetlejuice" (which he once described as his anti-Spielberg film), "Edward Scissorhands," and his two Batman movies looked completely unlike any other studio productions. They played like live-action Charles Addams illustrations — yes, even the Batman films! Though Burton's storytelling wasn't always as captivating as his images, the movies, up until 2001's hideous "Planet of the Apes" remake, were never boring.
Will "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice" represent a return to form for Burton? Watch the trailer posted above, and draw your own hasty conclusions!
Who unloosed the juice in Beetlejuice 2?
Catherine O'Hara and Winona Ryder are reprising their roles as Delia and Lydia Deetz, though they seem to be the only returning cast members. As for Jeffrey Jones, the scandal-plagued actor is out, as are Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin (as a matter of practicality, because they're ghosts, and in this universe, ghosts don't age, and de-aging VFX are expensive). As for Keaton, Betelgeuse is a makeup heavy role, but it doesn't seem like they're going out of their way to hide any wrinkles he's acquired over the last 36 years. Of course, Keaton has aged remarkably well over the last few decades. Then again, so has Davis, but that's a conversation for another time.
The big addition is Jenna Ortega, whose stardom went supernova with the Burton-produced Netflix series "Wednesday." She's playing Lydia's curious daughter Astrid, who plays a central role in freeing the mischievous Betelgeuse from the Afterlife. Also joining the fun are Justin Theroux, Willem Dafoe and Monica Belucci (as Betelgeuse's betrothed). Burton hatched the story years ago with Seth Grahame-Smith, but the screenplay is credited to "Wednesday" creators Alfred Gough and Miles Milar, so let's hope the inventiveness of their Addams-inspired series brings back prime Burton.
It's been a dreadfully long time since Burton made a worthwhile film (the underseen 2014 biopic "Big Eyes"), so our expectations are firmly in check. I'm not one to get too worked up over a trailer anyway, so I'll wait until "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice" hits theaters on September 6, 2024 before I decide if Burton has made my millennium.