Early Beetlejuice 2 Reviews Are Here and the Critics Are Divided (2024)

Betelgeuse, Betelgeuse, Betelgeuse these words were heard for the first time in 1988 and brought to life a character that has generated a fandom around itself which is still going strong after more than 30 years. Beetlejuice was the movie that brought Tim Burton his current-day fame and it seems as if the demonic human exorcist is back to bring back Tim Burton’s fame. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is set to make a release on September 6. 2024 and as of now, the initial reviews are in and most of the review point that the movie is rather promising. In this article, find out all about what the initial reviews have to say about Beetlejuice 2.

Beetlejuice 2 Has Become Tim Burton’s Best Rated Movie

If you are familiar with Tim Burton’s previous works, you know that his movies, back to back, have received poor ratings and have had the same performance at the Box Office. Even Tim himself said that he was planning on retiring after his live-action Dumbo adaptation became a massive flop. However, as it turns out, the franchise that gave him his fame back in the 1980s came back to save his career.

Beetlejuice 2 reviews have been mostly positive with an IMDb rating of 8.2, the highest rating a Tim Burton movie has received in a very long time. Owen Gleiberman from Variety after watching Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, in his review stated-

“But if “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” is mostly a lark, like the current hit Broadway version of “Beetlejuice,” part of what the new movie delivers is honest nostalgia for the moment when Burton’s clown-spirit-from-hell sensibility still had the kick of shock value.”

In his review, he emphasized the fact that even though Beetlejuice 2 at its core is more of a fan service movie, it is indeed a good movie that stands true to the source material in its unhinged and weird approach.

Nicholas Barber from BBC has gone a step further, calling Beetlejuice 2 even better than the original movie and an excellent homage to the 1988 blockbuster. In his review, Barber states-

“Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is more like a freakier, gorier and altogether slimier equivalent ofTop Gun: Maverick. That is, it’s a sequel which has come along after 36 years, pays intelligent and affectionate homage to its predecessor, but surpasses that predecessor in almost every respect”

This is a massive statement to make since Beetlejuice is known to be one of the best movies of its time. The review basically tells you that if you loved Beetlejuice you are going to love Beetlejuice 2 even more courtesy of the unhinged comedy and comic gore which is elevated a notch further than the original movie.

However, Not Everyone Thinks of Beetlejuice 2 in a Good Light

While most reviews have praised Tim Hurton for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, some media houses are not really impressed with how the movie turned out to be. Xan Brooks from The Guardian gives Beetlejuice 2 a 2-star rating and in his review says-

“Beetlejuice Beetlejuice beats back to the scene of past triumphs. It’s once, twice, three times a lazily amiable horror sequel; a makeweight festival opener that provides little beyond its arrangement of chintzy American Gothic”

In his review, he bashed the movie for its underwhelming plot and called the movie a mess of previously seen elements that Tim Burton is trying too hard to get to work.

Similarly, Audrey Fox from The Looper has the same complaints from the movie. In her review, she states that Beetlejuice 2 has too many subplots and does not live up to the charm of the original Beetlejuice movie. She comments-

“Ultimately, it’s the writing that prevents “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” from living up to the eccentric charms of the original film. There are too many loose ends, too many subplots that aren’t resolved to any degree of satisfaction and probably don’t need to exist in the first place”

So. now that I have brought to light the reactions critics have had regarding Beetlejuice 2, it is pretty evident that there is a massive divide among media houses regarding the quality of this movie and now, all we have to do is wait till September 6. 2024 to know on which side we stand.