October 19th, 2010 - Beetlejuice

There's nothing quite like a good Tim Burton movie. Certainly his recent films have been nothing like them. It's no secret that me and him haven't been getting along so well the past, er, 10 years. It's a shame, because his classic stuff is just that. And his modern stuff is a random grab bag of Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter and daddy issues. Which is why Beetlejuice is one of my favourites.

It had been a while since I've seen this one. Not quite as long as Creepshow 2 or The Hills Have Eyes, but a few years at least. And it holds up. At this rate, I feel like I need to go out of my way to see something terrible. Though last time I went down that route I saw The Rig. Fuck that movie.

Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis play a young couple who die in a terrible car accident in the first 5 minutes of the movie. They get home and slowly realize the predicament they are in. Annoying New Yorkers have bought their house and and are turning it into an art deco nightmare. Desperate, they turn to a professional bio-exorcist to get rid of the living and spend the next 125 years of their afterlife in peace and quiet. Naturally, bad things happen.

Michael Keaton played Beetlejuice and it's easily one of his best performances. It makes me sad that he hasn't really done anything in the past few years. Then I remember Post-Grad, and I get sadder. He's manic, rude and hilarious. Virtually everything he says is a classic line. Baldwin and Davis as the newlydeads are almost as good. Though, really, the entire cast is gold. There is a wonderful chemistry running through this film and even the bit parts are golden.

This was a perfect fit for Burton. He did not write the screenplay, which I'm sure did wonders, and the style is unique and inventive, the best of Burton without all the wankery and self indulgence of recent years. I just love the way everything looks and moves. It also has awesome stop motion, so bonus.

Beetlejuice is (yet) another fun Halloween movie. It's not scariest thing you'll see this season but it's always good to revisit an old classic. Especially one that keeps getting every time you see it.