Director: Tim Burton
Starring: Michael Keaton
Genre: Comedy
Studio:   Release date: 1988   Rated: PG
Language (Country): ( USA )
Summary: When one thinks of the name Tim Burton, you recall such classic films as Batman, Edward Scissorhands and Ed Wood. But the film that cemented Burton into movie enthusiasts' minds as the master of Gothic comedy would have to be Beetlejuice. Audiences were merely teased by Burton's unique Gothic style in his debut, Pee-wee's Big Adventure, but in Beetlejuice the audience was fully transported to a beautiful world of darkness and artistic eeriness.

The story is thus: a wholesome, small town couple Adam and Barbara Maitland (Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis) are killed in an auto accident and their ghosts are doomed to dwell in their house for 125 years. Soon after, the obnoxious big city Deitz family moves in and takes over. Adam and Barbara's carefully decorated house (straight out of an L.L. Bean catalog) is ransacked and viciously transformed into what looks like the set from a Vincent Price horror film. Disgusted by the Deitz family, Adam and Barbara try to haunt the family out of their home, but unfortunately, their cheap parlor tricks and cavorting around in bed sheets are unsuccessful rookie efforts. They need a professional. Enter Betelgeuse (Michael Keaton), the afterlife's leading bio-exorcist. After summoning Betelgeuse, Adam and Barbara discover that he's a vile, dangerous creature that wants to escape the afterlife and raise hell in the land of the living. Now with two problems on their hands, Adam and Barbara must take care of their dilemma with the Deitzes and keep Betelgeuse bottled up in the afterlife.

If comedy mated with horror, Beetlejuice would be the result. This film is a romping riot of a good time, and Tim Burton's unique and eccentric touch makes it all the more intriguing and unusual. Michael Keaton pulls off the role of the ornery demon Betelgeuse without a hitch, and portrays the character with violent enthusiasm. The film is brimming with small cues and sight gags that demand repeat viewings. For example, a single viewing of the offices in the afterlife is not enough. If you carefully examine the backgrounds and subtle artistic nuances placed by the filmmakers, you will get more out of the movie and become even more involved in the story. Burton's films are all about the total experience, and Beetlejuice is a very, very unusual experience.

Greg Suarez (TheDigitalBits.com)