STACK #242 December 2024

MOVIE FEATURE

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Starting out as an animator at Disney, working on films like The Fox and the Hound and Tron , it didn’t take long for Burton’s unique, gothic touch to stand out. QUIRKY VISIONS

Michael Keaton (left)

original co-stars Winona Ryder and Catherine O’Hara. Ryder plays Lydia Deetz, the former goth teenager who was almost forced to marry Betelgeuse, but now hosts her own TV show, Ghost House with Lydia Deetz . She is also now a mother of a teenage daughter Astrid, charmingly played by Wednesday star Jenna Ortega.

Jenna Ortega andTim Burton

After a couple of short films, he hit the big time with Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure in 1985, an oddball comedy that introduced his unusual approach to storytelling. His breakout moment really came with Beetlejuice (1988), its unique blending of humour with the supernatural proving to have a mass appeal. Following that, he put his handprint on the Batman franchise with Batman (1989) and Batman Returns (1992), turning Gotham City into a brooding, atmospheric world that totally redefined superhero movies. Burton’s visual style - dark, surreal, and a little twisted - became even more distinct in movies like Edward Scissorhands (1990) and The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993), the latter being directed by Henry Selick, who brought Burton’s vision to life. As his career progressed, he continued exploring stories that were both haunting and heartfelt, like Big Fish (2003) and Corpse Bride (2005). Working frequently with Johnny Depp, Christopher Lee, and Helena Bonham Carter, building a “Burton-esque” ensemble. Though his more recent films have received mixed reviews, Burton, 66, remains a true visionary - an artist who has turned his unique, quirky perspective into a genre of its own. He has always enjoyed working with his love interests, firstly with girlfriend Lisa Marie in Ed Wood , Mars Attacks! , Sleepy Hollow, and Planet of the Apes, then later with fiancée Helena Bonham Carter, whom he cast in Big Fish, Corpse Bride, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Sweeney Todd, Dark Shadows, and Alice in Wonderland .

With the threat of Betelgeuse returning to haunt her, Lydia struggles with the fallout from the end of her marriage to Justin Theroux’s Rory, while dealing with her moody daughter. “I think there was a lot of Astrid’s teen angst that happened without Lydia being fully present for it. So, she’s dealing with the guilt of that. She’s also feeling somewhat responsible for the end of her marriage and trying to love her daughter, trying to be a mother to her, says Ryder, 53. “There’s a lot going on. I really understood Astrid’s point of view, probably because I had played the daughter. But what Jenna’s done is remarkable, because she’s not Lydia. She really created her own very unique character. I still see her very much as Lydia’s daughter and she’s inherited a lot of stuff, but Jenna really created her own thing, which I really admired,” says the Stranger Things actress, who is joined by newcomers Willem Dafoe and Arthur Conti.

Tim Burton returns to the Beetlejuice universe with the much-anticipated sequel to his 1988 cult classic, resurrecting the original cast for a spooktacular, spine-tingling adventure that’s sure to raise the dead! Words Gill Pringle “I was nervous, really nervous,” says Michael Keaton, recalling his trepidation at returning to his title role in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice , a sequel to Tim Burton’s hit 1988 gothic dark comedy, Beetlejuice . “Because the choice that I made, that was a big leap. It was a risky move that happened to have worked. So then, you think, ‘Oh geez, can I pull that off again after all these years?’ I think there was way more pressure on this one - we didn’t really want to mess this up. I was very nervous about it but we hope we got there. I think we did,” argues the 73 year old. The movie has him reuniting with his

For Burton himself, he wasn’t sure about making a sequel, “There have been different ideas over the years, but nothing for me really clicked. And so, all this time goes by, 35 years, and what really got me interested and excited is... life. “It’s like, what happened to the Deetz family? You know, it’s 35 years later, what happened to Lydia, this interesting teenager? And so you start to use your own life experience: you’re an interesting teenager. What happens when you become an adult? Do you have

children? What are your relationships like? What have you become? It was quite emotional for me to revisit these characters,”

• Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is out Dec 4

Jenna Ortega and Winona Ryder

jbhifi.com.au

10 DECEMBER 2024