September 14, 2024 – This movie, of course, reminded me of the original 1998 movie, also directed by Tim Burton, starring some of the same actors. I know I was supposed to feel a warm glow of nostalgia because of this, but instead I found it kind of sad.

This movie, like so many sequels and remakes, did not need to be made. It adds nothing new, and it reminded me of a time when there were more original movies and a lot less re-releases, remakes and sequels.

Walt Disney Studios, a giant among studios, has doubled down on the sequel, remake and re-release trend, with sequels like “Inside Out 2” and live action remakes of its classic cartoons, like the latest of its several Lion King (1994) remakes and sequels, “Mufasa: The Lion King.”

During the Covid Pandemic, when movie production slowed to a halt, Hollywood, and theater chains rediscovered the profit by mining the re-releases of popular movie series like the “Hobbit” and “Lord of the Rings” trilogies and the “Harry Potter” movies and many others. Following the pandemic, that trend has continued.

“Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” is more of the same. It still has that dazzling visual style that is Tim Burton's trademark, but we've seen it before, when it was fresh, not as a reheated leftover.

Michael Keaton, reprising his role as the title character, is still great at acting crazy and funny. Winona Ryder is still appealing as Lydia Deetz, the damsel in distress. Jenna Ortega (AKA Wednesday Addams) is a fresh young face if there ever was one, playing Astrid Deetz, Lydia's daughter, but she's caught in an old plot going through the motions of made by Winona Ryder long ago.

Like most remakes, the plot of this movie is a rehash of the original plot. One nice change is the addition of Jimmy Webb's classic song, “MacArthur Park” (the version sung by the late Richard Harris in 1968 is played in one long scene of the movie, followed later by the 1978 disco version of the same song by the late Donna Summer). I love that song.

Even though it is a remake, Keaton, Ryder and Ortega all give convincing performances in it and Tim Burton still knows how to make movies with a distinctive visual style that nobody else can duplicate. I did find it entertaining, even though it is sad and disappointing because it reminds me of better times, like in 1988, 1989 and 1990 when Burton made “Beetlejuice,” “Batman” and “Edward Scissorhands,” back to back to back. What a run that was, and who does that these days?

Even though it is a remake, this movie is popular, doing big business at the box office ($172 million worldwide as of this writing) which means that remakes still make good business sense for movie studios. This movie rates a C+.

Click here for links to places to buy or rent this movie in digital formats, or to buy the soundtrack, posters, books, even used videos, games, electronics and lots of other stuff (no extra charges apply). I suggest you shop at least two of these places before buying anything. Prices seem to vary continuously. For more information on this film, click on this link to The Internet Movie Database. Type in the name of the movie in the search box and press enter. You will be able to find background information on the film, the actors, and links to much more information.

Copyright © 2024 Robert Roten. All rights reserved.
Reproduced with the permission of the copyright holder.

Robert Roten can be reached via e-mail at