We're celebrating the release of the new trailer for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. Director Tim Burton returns to the territory of his 1988 horror-comedy hit, the twisted and imaginative story of an undead bio-exorcist tasked by a pair of ghosts to cleanse their house of unwanted persons.
The original Beetlejuice was primarily a platform for Michael Keaton in the title role. Before he became Batman, Keaton unleashed a riotously funny and physical performance that powered Beetlejuice's irresistible mixture of creepy horror and broad comedy.
Now that Keaton and Burton are reuniting for the sequel, it's safe to say we're excited. Here are the nostalgic moments from the trailer that have us saying... You know the rest. Scroll down to find out more.
1. We say "Day-O"
A fragment of the late Harry Belafonte's 'Banana Boat' song opens the original Beetlejuice before its full recapitulation later on leads to one of the funniest scenes. (We're talking about the dinner table possession scene.)
So, imagine our joy when we hear the boy's chorister variation of Banana Boat in the trailer for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. It immediately locates us in Tim Burton's zany and madcap world and has us anticipating what maniacal, morbid delights Betelguese has in store.
2. Returning to Winter River
The original Beetlejuice opened with that divine aerial shot of the fictional town of Winter River (actually Corinth in Connecticut). We're right back there in the trailer for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice although there's no tricksy and devious transition to a model of said town. (The model does appear later in the trailer, however.)
3. The fateful covered bridge
In Beetlejuice, newlyweds Barbara and Adam Maitland (Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin) are celebrating moving into their new home. However, the success is shortlived when on a trip into Winter River their car plunges off a covered bridge, killing them instantly. This is what prompts them to return as newly undeads and hire Betelguese to remove the yuppie Deetz family from their dream home.
We see this all-important bridge in the Beetlejuice Beetlejuice trailer as Jenna Ortega's character cycles through it. Those echoes of the past are going to be important in the new film's storyline.
4. The return of the OG Beetlejuice cast
It's been established that Ortega (who stars in the Tim Burton-aligned Addams Family spin-off Wednesday) is playing Astrid Deetz, daughter of Winona Ryder's Lydia Deetz. Fans of the original will remember that Lydia was the only one who could see and talk to the undead Maitlands, and in the final act, she was almost married to Beetlejuice in a darkly comic nuptial ceremony.
Standing alongside Ortega and Ryder in the trailer's funeral scene (we're imagining it's dad Charles Deetz who has passed away) is another OG Beetlejuice cast member: the irreplaceable Catherine O'Hara who returns to the role of Lydia's mother Delia.
5. The Maitland's model
"Nice f*****g model!" We mentioned that the opening shot of Beetlejuice cleverly transitions from an aerial shot of Winter River to a model of said town. Astrid uncovers this very same model in the attic of the Maitland's old home. It was designed by Adam Maitland and unwittingly harboured the miniaturised Betelguese's grave. And on that note...
6. Betelgeuse's grave
Having been thwarted from marrying Lydia at the end of the original Beetlejuice movie, the title character may have unfinished business with her. The familiar neon arrow pointing to his gravesite results in the long-awaited emergence of Michael Keaton in his signature role as the hilariously gross bio-exorcist.
“I’ve seen it now," Keaton says of the film (via Variety). "I’m going to see it again after a couple of little tweaks in the editing room, and I confidently say this thing is great,” Keaton said. “The [original] was so fun and exciting visually. [The sequel is] all that but really beautiful and interestingly emotional here and there. I wasn’t ready for that. It’s great.”
Will we all be jumping in the line and rocking our body in time to Beetlejuice Beetlejuice? We'll find out when it's released at Cineworld on September 6th.
Can't wait that long to invoke Betelguese's return? Then click on the following link to discover 2024's must-see horror releases.
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