Beetle Juice
User Score
8.4 out of 10

Universal acclaim- based on 69 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 65 out of 69
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 69
  3. Negative: 0 out of 69

Review this movie

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. RobM.
    Jun 4, 2004
    10
    A quality show of it's time for a house haunting. The truth is that it is not fictional since these events happen every day. So many funny parts that I busted out in tears. Geena Davis is the best female actress to date. She really does a great job.
  2. Michael
    Oct 29, 2005
    10
    Beetlejuice has got to be one of the most enjoyable movies I have ever seen. Tim Burton does a most excellent job both editing and playing the role of Mr. Geuse. The characters are mostly stereotypical, yet somehow human and warm.
  3. SamanthaH.
    Feb 9, 2005
    10
    I loved the movie i could watch it over and over again every day of my whole life.
  4. ChiteaA.
    Jan 11, 2007
    10
    I loved this movie. Is a not stereotipically black comedy, and I liked it.
  5. JimR.
    Jul 29, 2007
    5
    Good production values, but no story/characters of interest.
  6. Jeremy
    Oct 16, 2003
    8
    Not everything works, but that's part of the charm of this completely original and most entertaining film.
  7. BlakeJ.
    Mar 11, 2007
    8
    Hilarious. Dark. Scary. Did I mention Hilarious? Tim Burton never fails...except with "Planet of the Apes", maybe.
  8. ShaunR.
    Jul 18, 2009
    10
    Tthe first time I watched this film I was a kid, I laughed so hard at it that my lungs almost burst, I watched it yesterday, I still laugh so hard that it feels my lungs are going to burst 10 out of 10 one of those classic films that never get old.
  9. ERG1008
    Aug 19, 2010
    8
    Couple have old house, friend wants them to sell, have car crash, die, new family move in, couple haunt them without success, ask "People-Exorcist" for help.
    Tim Burton at his best with a wonderfully surreal & dark tale featuring a very strong cast.
    The effects haven't dated that well but a lot of the creations here can be seen later in the equally brilliant Nightmare Before Christmas.
    Mic    hael Keaton steals every scene he is in (although not that many) & you think he'd have been better playing the Joker rather than Batman in his next film after this performance.… Expand
  10. CritiqueGirl
    Mar 2, 2011
    10
    Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis, Michael Keaton are all great and Winona Ryder and more are all very, very good. So original and Tim Burton was fantastic with direction.
  11. TipsyMcBee
    Dec 15, 2011
    9
    With a great cast of actors and a great production value, Beetle Juice will give you laughs and even a bit of scares (especially for the little ones) in this enjoyable film. In my opinion, this is definitely one of Tim Burton's strongest films he's ever directed and I just love the odd humour and strangely dark concepts in the movie. Baldwin, Davis, Ryder and Keaton took the stage in playing such strong and memorable roles and the art direction in special effects looked unique at its time. This is a pretty entertaining flick and I recommend a audience who enjoys dark comedies and odd original storytelling should give this a go.… Expand
  12. ILHM
    Feb 2, 2013
    9
    Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, BEETLEJUICE!! 'The Ghost with the Most' is brought back from the afterlife thanks to Tim Burton's twisted imagination and the wacky writings of Michael McDowell and Warren Skaaren. In order to rid themselves of a pesky new family, a recently deceased couple hires the obnoxious ghoul Beetlejuice to perform a "bio-exorcism" and earn back their house! BEETLEJUICE is filled with oddball characters and eccentric performances from the entire cast. HOME ALONE's Catherine O'Hara is wickedly funny as the family's New Age hipster wife, who is married to Jeffrey Jones in another of his quirky character roles. A young Winona Ryder plays their morbid daughter Lydia, the one person who is able to communicate with the dead. And then, of course, there is Michael Keaton in the most unusual and unexpected performances of his career. Beetlejuice is crass, vulgar, and disgusting... And we love him! He is the undead equivalent to the classic Acme characters pushed to their fiendish extremes. The make-up and special effects are superb and highly original, combining traditional stop-motion animation with modern prosthetics to bring each of the otherworldly creatures back to life. Like GREMLINS and GHOSTBUSTERS before it, BEETLEJUICE is another classic comedy that 80's horror fans are sure to love!

    -Carl Manes
    I Like Horror Movies    … Expand
  13. kublay0880
    Dec 19, 2012
    8
    Great cast, very good performances, the characters are amazing, Keaton does a pretty good job giving life to the ghost exorcist Beetle Juice, some times the movie gets a little slow and the special effects are not the best of its time, but it has nice make up and hilarious script.
  14. Rox22
    Apr 18, 2013
    8
    This has to be my favorite Michael Keaton movie, and my favorite from Tim Burton.It is both dark and funny. Silly & serious. The effects at the time were phenomenal but are a bit dated by today's standards, but even so, hold a little. Still great to see Winona Ryder so young. Story gets a bit to goofy at points and they play the "afterlife" novelty to death (sorry, for the bad pun.)

    Ove    rall:
    Beetlejuice is a ton of fun and enjoyable fore most. I would say keep really little kids away, because I remember it freaked me out when I was little.    … Expand

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
67 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 13 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 13
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 13
  3. Negative: 1 out of 13
  1. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Rita Kempley
    90
    Not since "Ghostbusters" have the spirits been so uplifting. [30 Mar 1988]
    Read full review
  2. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Mick LaSalle
    25
    It's two hours of your life wasted, time once spent that can never be regained. Don't go. Don't do it. [30 Mar 1988]
  3. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Desson Thomson
    100
    Hilarious…The joy of Beetlejuice is its completely bizarre -- but perfectly realized -- view of the world, a la Gary Larson's "The Far Side," or "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy." [1 Apr 1988]
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »