Rating: ****
Review Date: 9/15/24
Director: Tim Burton
Music: Danny Elfman
Cast: Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, Catherine O'Hara, Jenna Ortega,
Justin Theroux, Willem Dafoe, Monica Bellucci, Arthur Conti, Burn Gorman,
Danny DeVito
"Remember to keep it real!"
Still haunted by visions of ghosts, Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder) now hosts a paranormal reality show called "Ghost House." She's also a grieving widow who finds comfort and companionship in her smarmy new age manager, Rory (Justin Theroux). A family tragedy forces her to try and reconnect with her estranged teenage daughter Astrid (Jenna Ortega), which results in a family reunion at the old Deetz home in Winter River. Meanwhile, in the underworld, Betelgeuse (Michael Keaton) is still pining for Lydia while his ex-wife Delores (Monica Bellucci) launches a brutal killing spree in search of him.
Even though I wasn't particularly fond of the original, this sequel is a delightful return to form for Tim Burton and from the film's opening moments (accompanied by Danny Elfman's deliriously pounding score) you know that you're in for a fun ride. Winona Ryder does a fine job as a broken and tormented woman on the verge of a nervous breakdown, while Catherine O'Hara excels at being jarringly kooky. However, it's newcomers Jenna Ortega, Willem Dafoe, and Monica Bellucci who end up stealing the show. Ortega is utterly enchanting and gives an absolutely brilliant and heartfelt performance. She's simply stunning. The one thread that ties them all together is Michael Keaton, who looks like he's having a ball reprising his mischievous "ghost with the most."
The film is definitely comfort food for classic Burton fans and for better or worse, all of his stylistic flourishes are on display. While it plays the nostalgia card quite heavily, it has no trouble standing on its own. A sense of playfully innocent zaniness runs throughout the film, even when the stakes are high. The visual effects are delightful and weigh heavily on the practical side, which is always nice to see. A black-and-white flashback is a nice nod to classic horror cinema, although it looks like it was shot through a red filter, which downplays Monica Bellucci's allure. It also looks like Catherine O'Hara is heavily filtered or wearing a ton of makeup, which makes her difficult to look at. It seems that the film evolved out of Richard Harris's epic song "MacArthur Park," which is a theme that runs throughout the entire production. Unfortunately, the film's climax goes completely off the rails with a full-blown musical number that is more cringy than kooky, and the multiple false endings leave viewers stranded and confused, as if Burton had no idea how to wrap things up. Still, for the most part it's a fun ride and a welcomed detour into gleeful craziness for a couple of hours.