Batman Begins...as Beetlejuice

Rating: 7/10 (25 February 2020)

"Beetlejuice" is famous as the film that launched Michael Keaton from comedy actor to Batman and superstardom.
It's just as well, as this horror-comedy hasn't aged well. It's not particularly scary, nor is it that funny, despite Keaton's brilliance and Burton's fantastic visuals. Compare that to another eighties horror-comedy classic "Gremlins", which had moments of genuine terror amongst the laughs.
Keaton plays Beetlejuice as a mischievous bio-exorcist, with a few mild menacing moments. He's supposedly hired by the newly departed couple Adam (Alec Baldwin) and Barbara (Geena Davis) to get rid of a snooty new family from their pre-death house. Beetlejuice is an anti-hero: you're never quite sure if he's a good guy or just looking out for himself and wanting to cause mayhem.
Other highlights include Burton's fantastic array of undead beings and other monsters (the claymation technology has held up well for a late-eighties movie), showing off his love of the macabre and gruesome that would become a theme of his work, and a teenage Winona Ryder in one of her earlier roles.
Plot-wise, the film never really goes anywhere, Beetlejuice is only in it for the second half, and the ending feels rushed.
Still, it's really a vehicle for Keaton, Burton, and Ryder, so the plot doesn't really matter. The nostalgia value alone will be enough for most viewers.