LogFAQs > #980009504

6. Beetlejuice (1988 / 142 points)
Directed by: Tim Burton / Screenplay by: Michael McDowell, Warren Skaaren
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Why Its Significant - While not a straight-up horror film in the traditional sense, it took the familiar tropes of ghosts haunting a house, then injected them with slapstick humor and dark absurdity. Tim Burton's signature gothic style found full expression in Beetlejuice. The Maitland house, with its peculiar architecture and dusty interiors, was one part of the equation; Lydia Deetzs signature stark black wardrobe and snarky deadpan personality with a penchant for the macabre and fascination with the afterlife was the other. The film's mainstream success arguably helped bring Goth elements, like dark makeup and dramatic clothing, into the pop culture eye, normalizing the subculture for a wider audience. The film also has a visually unique atmosphere that was both whimsical and unsettling at the same time, which made the film a gateway horror film for a younger audience that were able to approach scares on a digestible level. This influence, along with further Goth culture, can be seen in later films like The Nightmare Before Christmas, Coraline, and The Addams Family, which all embrace a darkly whimsical aesthetic. I know it's important to acknowledge that Beetlejuice's influence isn't solely on horror. It's a landmark film in fantasy and comedy as well. However, its impact on horror is undeniable. Along with other films from the 80s, it paved the way for a lighter, more humorous take on the genre, making horror more accessible to a wider audience. Beetlejuice received a TV series, video games, musical, and is FINALLY receiving a sequel this year!

The Rankers
Inviso - 4
Rockus - 4
Fortybelowsummer - 5
Mythiot - 9
Seginustemple - 10
Plasmabeam - 11
Bitto - 12
Karo - 12
Lightning - 12
Snake - 14
Johnbobb - 15
Evilordexdeath - 17
Jcgamer107 - 17

Inviso - This is a solid horror comedy, and I love the world-building they do here by creating a scenario where our main characters have to slowly gain an understanding of the rules of how to be ghosts. I know Tim Burton has lost a step in recent years, but this movie is right up his alley with a creepy, macabre aesthetic, and it plays into all of his grimmest thoughts about life and death. Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis play beleaguered everyman (or everywoman) characters perfectly, because theyre not SPECIAL in any way. Theyre cute and charming, but theyre just as in the dark about a lot of the plot as the audience, so they make perfect audience surrogates in that regard. But additionally, theyre also kind of clueless, so we get to watch them trying to make all of these rookie mistakes about what ghosts SHOULD do and how ghosts SHOULD act, which is endearing in and of itself.

On the other side of the equation, the Deetz family is wonderfully cast. Catherine OHara is uptight, while simultaneously a free spirit who hates being confined to such a low-key lifestyle (after growing accustomed to life in the big city), while Jeffrey Jones just wants to relax in quiet and comfort. So already, you have a haunted house beset by these two polar opposites (and youd think thered be more talk about how the Maitland ghosts approve of Charles, rather than solely focusing on how much they hate Delia), but then you throw in Lydia, the goth girl who its implied lost her mom and is stuck with Delia as a stepmom, and shes the perfect conduit to guide the Maitlands, since even reading their Recently Deceased manual overwhelms them at first.

So yeah, you have this plot about a loving couple who die and get stuck haunting their house, and a city family that comes in and tries to change everything, and the Maitlands are in WAY over their headsso they call for back-up. Theyre suckered in by a ghost conman, and Michael Keaton gets to ham it up in the best possible way. The titular Beetlejuice (Betelgeuse) is crass and vulgar, but he promises to scare off the humans in exchange for assistance getting back to the realm of the living. He even manages to coerce Lydia in on this plan, holding the Maitlands hostage to do so. Hes a big and brash character, but I think it speaks volumes that, though he serves as a ghostly antagonist, this film could still stand up without him, as a story about untrained ghosts trying to get by in a world where everything they knew it upended by these New York yuppies.

On top of the plot, the aesthetic is great, Tim Burtons gothic style is on display in full force (particularly with Delias shitty, horrifying sculptures), and I LOVE the music in this movie. Its the perfect soundtrack for any sort of ghostly encounters. The Ghostbusters theme might be more iconic, but thats a song dedicated to the Ghostbusters themselves. THIS movies soundtrack is dedicated to the bizarre world of the afterlife, from the perspective of its ghoulish inhabitants. Oh! And I love the fact that the afterlife, when not haunting a house, is portrayed as a boring waiting room where the dead from all over has to take a number to talk to a bureaucrat about their situation. Its a fun twist on what could easily have been painted as a boring heaven or hell setting, and I think thats the sort of create choice that really helps sell the vision of this movie.

Rockus - Tim Burton was at his peak in the 80s and 90s and Beetlejuice is a clear example. Its choice to flip the script on the haunted house movie as we follow the ghosts trying to repel their homes new owners and its depiction of the afterlife as a bureaucratic office barely keeping things together are both brilliant choices. Keaton and Ryder are perfectly cast in some of their most iconic roles, and the film in constantly visually inventive. Tim Burton combines his admiration for German expressionism with his own candy cane gothic aesthetic to make something unique and refreshing. With its great stop motion animation, visual effects and makeup, and morbid sense of humor the film has graduated from being just a modern classic to a timeless one.

Fortybelowsummer - Beetlejuice. Beetlejuice. Beetlejuice. (Had to do it). I dont watch a lot of movies multiple times because I usually prefer to take in new stories, but Ive seen Beetlejuice numerous times. Its probably fair to say its one of my favorite movies, and although I never became goth I think it made me appreciate and admire goth sensibilities. I feel like Tim Burton kind of gets crapped on by the horror community, but I love his style. The visuals are so much fun to look at and theres always something to catch your eye, whether its the crazy Dietz interior design, or the wild Maitland transformations, or the wacky ensemble of characters, living and dead. The makeup, of course, is amazing (Academy Award winning), as are the set pieces, especially Beetlejuices model town. Michael Keaton is the best and its hard to imagine anyone else as the crude, morbid bio-exorcist. Hes the ghost with the most, babe, and totally nails it. Originally, the movie was supposed to be a lot darker and less comedic but Im glad it ended up as is because its really something special. From the trailer, the new movie looks like it will take this darker route, but fingers crossed that it doesnt disappoint.