Tim Burton’s “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” — starring Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, Catherine O’Hara, Justin Theroux, Monica Bellucci, with Jenna Ortega, and Willem Dafoe — is the Opening Film of the 81st Venice Film Festival.
Now, I’m jealous.
Circle August 28th for the big reveal of what happened to Winona Ryder’s Lydia Deetz and her family including mom played by O’Hara and daughter played by Jenna Ortega.
Not in this one: Jeffrey Jones, who played Winona’s dad. He’s died off screen and won’t even come back as a ghost.
This sequel is a long time coming. The original film was released in 1988. Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis starred as a young couple who died in an accident but were haunting their house. The Deetzes bought the house, but only Lydia could see them.
Since then, the movie has become a cult classic. It was turned into a hit Broadway show. The original film has only become more engaging over the three plus decades.
Will “BB” recapture the charm of the original? I’ll bet it does. Will we hear Harry Belafonte singing “Day O?” We better. Will this be a monster box office release? (Let’s hope Burton doesn’t make his “Sweeney Todd” mistake again!)
Warner Bros. releases “”BB” in the US on the Thursday following Labor Day weekend, September 5th.
Very exciting!