Term Paper 2: Movie Review

Movie Review: Beetlejuice Beetlejuice

Watching movies in theaters has always been an experience that I love. From the buttery smell of popcorn to the floors sticky with spilled drinks, movie-going is a familiar ordeal that almost everyone shares. On Saturday of fall break, my friend Judd and I were perusing the list of movies that are out right now and decided to go see Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, directed by Tim Burton (Link to trailer). I had heard about the movie before through Jenna Ortega, an actress who is in it, promoting it on her Instagram. We were staying at Lake Greeson during the days that we had off for school, so the closest place that there was to see a movie was Hot Springs, Arkansas. We took the hour-long drive to a theater that I had never been to before, Hot Springs 8 VIP Cinema. 

To the left, the outside of the theater. To the right, newspaper clippings from the history of the theater. 

When we pulled up to the movie theater, the building didn't really look like the typical theater with flashing signs that I normally go to. As soon as we walked up to the window to get our tickets, I was struggling to see the screening times on the televisions behind the cashier because it was so bright outside. I don't think I've ever been to the movie theater as early as 1:20 p.m., as I prefer to go at night. We got there ten minutes before the movie started, and paid $12.00 for our tickets. When selecting my seat, I noticed that other people were already scattered across the rows that I usually pick in a theater, so I had to go with an option that was closer to the screen than I normally do. We both finished selecting our seats and walked in. 

My ticket stub. 

As soon as we walked in, the nostalgic smell of movie theater popcorn hit my nose. As Judd and I were looking at the menu, he asked me if I just wanted to share a large bucket combo that came with a drink. I agreed, and we split the cost of the $22.00 bucket. We decided that we would just share the drink, since it was a large, instead of getting another one. We were handed our popcorn and Dr. Pepper before we decided to head into the screen room. 

To the left is our popcorn bucket, and to the right is Judd enjoying the Dr. Pepper. 

We had a bit of trouble finding our way to the screen room because Judd wasn't listening when the ticket-taker told us where to go. He led us to the wrong hallway each time until we finally found the one that room 7 was in. There were multiple screens throughout the hallway displaying all of the movies that were playing, and I finally found one that had Beetlejuice Beetlejuice on it so that I could take my picture with it. 

Me with an obnoxiously large bucket of popcorn in front of the movie's "poster".

Upon arriving at the screening room, I noticed that it was mostly other young adults in there, usually paired in two. There were a few kids with their parents as well. The theater was decently full, with most of the seating towards the back filled in. The theater was exceptionally clean, and I did not notice any trash on the floor. We took our seats towards the front of the middle and sat down. 

Judd immediately had to go to the bathroom as soon as we sat down, so I took some time alone to play with the reclining seat. Surprisingly, this was the first movie theater I had ever been to with reclining seats, and I thoroughly enjoyed them. The screen showed an arrangement of different movie trailers, and one that I specifically remember seeing was for a movie about Saturday Night Live called Saturday Night (Link to trailer). Judd got back before the movie started and reclined his chair in preparation for the screening. 

Us waiting for the movie to start with our feet propped up. 

As the movie played on the screen before me, I noticed many homages to the first film, Beetlejuice. Many of the original actors, such as Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, and Catherine O'Hara, came back to the second movie to play the characters that they had before. I really enjoyed the cinematics of the film. Tim Burton's style shined through the second one as it had the first one, with dramatic character features and backdrops. The set design in the "afterlife" was especially interesting to see, as it was filled with creativity and originality. The rest of the audience reacted with laughter throughout the funny parts of the movie, which happened pretty often. I don't really remember seeing any obvious hidden product placement, but I did remember seeing an ad for a Fanta x Beetlejuice Beetlejuice collaboration on TikTok. I think that the producers succeeded in being able to not only reach younger audiences who didn't grow up with the first movie, but also older audiences who did and wanted to be a part of the Beetlejuice world again. 

Overall, I think that the price of the movie ticket was worth it. I enjoyed my time in the theater, as well as the movie. I gave it three stars on my Letterboxd. The popcorn was delicious and we got a souvenir bucket out of it, but I don't know if it and the drink was worth $22. I think that Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is a fun movie that can be enjoyed by all ages, and especially if you grew up watching the first movie.