Review of Beetlejuice (1988) by Evan C — 22 May 2015

If anyone wants a strange movie, than by God, watch Beetlejuice. The interesting thing about Beetlejuice is that while the story is so odd, and kind of weak, Tim Burton makes it work. It's mastered by Burton's skill of creating unique characters that each are different individually, and of course, they are all weird.

First off, I must say, Beetlejuice's overall production design is incredible. The masterful design, which has been created by Bo Welch, is just incredible, and I don't believe it can be topped. Burton's use of clay and stop-motion animation fits perfectly with these eerie environments.

The characters, like I said before, all have their own charm. I enjoyed the ghostly, main protagonists, Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis' characters, and believed they were played well. Jeffery Jones, (who is known for playing Ed Rooney in Ferris Bueller's Day Off), plays the husband of Catherine O' Hara, and are a New York couple who plan to purchase the classic, odd home, which is now being haunted by Baldwin and Davis, who died in a stupid accident.

Michael Keaton played the title character, Beetlejuice, and while he did indeed make me laugh out loud, he was honestly kind of annoying. His jokes and crude remarks were indeed funny, but it seemed most of the time it was unnecessary. Sure, that's the point, but no, it doesn't need to be this way. Half the time, I couldn't understand Keaton's lines.

Tim Burton gives us a world that will play with our imaginations, and while some of the aspects he delivers us isn't entirely necessary or even worth it, we still have a good time, and hope that Michael Keaton's pounds of makeup don't wear off while he's jumping around like a maniac.