There have been many movies made that have offered dark comedy over the decades. Horror comedy is a still going and thriving market. But one movie that set and held a noted aesthetic fashion comes, unsurprisingly, from the work of Tim Burton in the 1980's. (So it's from an earlier time in his career.)
Beetlejuice
It stars...
Geena Davis as Barbara Maitland, a deceased woman and wife to Adam.
Alec Baldwin as Adam Maitland, a deceased man and husband to Barbara. ...It's from an earlier time in his life.
And then we have our eponymous character. Michael Keaton, a well known comedic actor at the time, plays Betelgeuse/Beetlejuice. He's an annoying, troublesome, and very dangerous poltergeist.
The cast offer an interesting and humorous mix. The Maitlands play as an overall innocent pair who were happily living their lives in quiet when they meet a tragic death. Confused at first, they come to accept their fate, to haunt their old home. They were ever homebodies.
But that isn't what fate has set for them. A new family moves in, and they can't stand them, particularly since they want to remake the house. They quickly begin tearing down walls, and reshaping the inside of the house.
So the Maitlands struggle with how to get them to stop, and leave. But struggling for answers, they have to consider dangerous help. But, if this help is set loose, will they be able to reign it in? And if they don't take steps, what grim eternity will await them?
And as you follow the characters around, you also can get lost in the artistry of the world that is created. The afterlife we are shown in surreal and distinct.
And did I mention the weird? Cause it's weird. Wonderfully so.
It is a film with a very unique look. Mixed with it's macabre issues and struggles, and it has a flavor to it that stands out still to this day.
And. as such a movie, it's a great choice to watch this Halloween.
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