Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (4K UHD Blu-ray) review

[David Vaughn]

Studio: Warner
Release Date: November 19, 2024
Rating: PG-13
Film: 4/5


Plot
Beetlejuice is back! After an unexpected family tragedy, three generations of the Deetz family return home to Winter River. Still haunted by Beetlejuice, Lydia's life is turned upside down when her rebellious teenage daughter, Astrid, discovers the mysterious model of the town in the attic and the portal to the Afterlife is accidentally opened. With trouble brewing in both realms, it's only a matter of time until someone says Beetlejuice's name three times and the mischievous demon returns to unleash his very own brand of mayhem.
 
My Thoughts
I had this movie sitting on my desk for nearly a week and couldn’t get my wife to agree to watch it. She finally relented and we were able to carve out some time to give it a look and we were certainly glad we did. While the first act is a bit disjointed, it fully comes together in act two and turns out to be a very enjoyable experience. I’ve never found Wynona Ryder to be a great actress and she didn’t change that opinion here, but Keaton is his usual brilliant self in every aspect of his performance. His comedic timing is excellent and his facial expressions are LOL funny.

All I can say to the video encode is WOW—this is as visually perfect presentation that you’ll ever see. The image is so inviting that you’ll just want to crawl right into it due to the vivid realism portrayed. Of course, the sets are marvelous and the black levels are to die for. The Dolby Atmos track is just as impressive with discrete effects flying around the room, intelligible dialog, ample LFE coupled with extremely strong dynamics, and of course, Danny Elfman’s wonderful score.

Video 10/10 (AVC)

Audio 10/10 (Dolby Atmos)


Special Features:
·      Audio Commentary
·      The Juice is Loose: The Making of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
·      The Ghost with the Most: Beetlejuice Returns
·      Meet the Deetz
·      Shrinkers, Shrinkers Everywhere!
·      An Animated Afterlife: The Stop-Motion Art of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
·      The Handbook for the Recently Deceased
·      ‘Til Death Do WE Park: Beetlejuice and Lydia’s First Dance
·      Digital Code




 
 Conclusion
My wife isn’t a huge fan of the original film and wasn’t looking to watch this but in the end, she enjoyed it a lot and liked it more than the original. I find them to be equally entertaining but my give the slight edge to this one due to the outstanding A/V quality. In fact, there are some scenes in the film that will be my “go to” for demoing my theater. Highly recommended.

Reference Review System:
 JVC DLA-RS3100 4K Ultra High-Definition Front Projector
 (Calibrated with Portrait Displays CalMAN color calibration software & C6-HDR Meter from Portrait Displays)
 Stewart Filmscreen - Firehawk 110” 2.35:1 Screen
 Trinnov Altitude 16 Audio/Video Processor
 ATI AT527NC Powering Bed Channels
 ATI AT524NC Powering Atmos Speakers
Zidoo UHD8000 Media Player
 Panasonic DP-UB820 Ultra HD Blu-ray Player
 System Controller: URC MX-990
 M&K S-150 THX Ultra (R-C-L Speakers)
 M&K SS-150 x4 (Surround Speakers)
 Atlantic Technology IC6-OBA x 4 Overhead Speakers
 Dual Rythmik FV15HP2
 Mini DSP HD controlling all subwoofers
 Audioquest and Monoprice - Audio/Video/Speaker Cabling
 PureAV PF60 Power Conditioner

[bmoney]

wow a 4/5  i thought this was quite a terrible attempt at a sequel.  it  didnt even come close to matching the feel or humor of the first.  very dissapointing.

[AVSCraig]

I watched the original with some friends that wanted to see it, and my wife who had never seen it before. My wife hated it, so I'm thinking I won't be getting this sequel for her. 

[David Vaughn]

wow a 4/5  i thought this was quite a terrible attempt at a sequel.  it  didnt even come close to matching the feel or humor of the first.  very dissapointing.

I thought the first act was a bit flat but improved immensely the more Keaton was on the screen. 

[SRW1000]

My wife and I watched it last night and enjoyed it quite a bit.  Some of the expository dialogue was on the clunky sides, and it felt like Keaton has lost a beat, but there were still lots of laugh-out-loud moments

You're right on the A/V side of things.  I'll be buying the 4K disc at some point.  Our library only carried the Blu-ray version, and the colors and contrast were fantastic.  And the disc only had the 7.1 mix, and even that was immersive.  The soundstage for Elfman's opening score was hugely expansive. 

Speaking of the score, I couldn't help but be reminded of one of my all-time favorite SCTV skits:  Mel's Rock Pile featuring Richard Harris singing McArthur Park:



Fun to see the song used in the movie.

[Ralph P.]

Greetings,

I enjoyed this one as well but, the original remains my favorite. I does look great in 4K.