Beetlejuice

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Beetlejuice ★★★½ 1988 (PG)

The afterlife is confusing for a pair of ultranice novice ghosts Adam Maitland (Baldwin) and his wife Barbara (Davis), who are faced with chasing an obnoxious family of postmodern art lovers who move into their house. Then they hear of a poltergeist who promises to rid the house of all trespassers for a price. Things go from bad to impossible when the maniacal Keaton (as the demonic “Betelgeuse”) works his magic. The calypso scene is priceless. A cheesy, funny, surreal farce of life after death with inventive set designs popping continual surprises. Ryder is striking as the misunderstood teen with a death complex, while O'Hara is hilarious as the yuppie art poseur. 92m/C VHS, DVD . Michael Keaton, Geena Davis, Alec Baldwin, Sylvia Sidney, Catherine O'Hara, Winona Ryder, Jeffrey Jones, Dick Cavett, Glenn Shadix, Robert Goulet; D: Tim Burton; W: Michael McDowell, Warren Skaaren; C: Thomas Ackerman; M: Danny Elfman. Oscars '88: Makeup; Natl. Soc. Film Critics '88: Actor (Keaton).