I Rewatched Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, And I'm Pretty Peeved One Character Felt Very Underused

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, Be-ah, ha, ha, I got you.

But yeah, today we’re talking about Beetlejuice Beetlejuice because I really need to get this off my chest.

I’m the kind of person who loves all sorts of movies, whether it’s the best rom-com films, or the best horror films, or anything else in between. But you want to know what kind of movie I love the most? Movies like Beetlejuice Beetlejuice – the ones where they teeter between a great horror comedy film, but also just a fun family flick that I think anyone would enjoy.

However, there is one aspect of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice that I have to get off my chest, and it’s probably about something that you’re going to think is ridiculous. However, I must talk about it, so here I am.

The Entire Movie Is Still Fun To Me

I want to say that overall, I really did enjoy Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.

The first movie was a film that I was practically raised on, and while I question the rating of Beetlejuice because I still don’t understand how I viewed it as a kid, it’s still a great film. The sequel was a fun one, too.

Was it going to be a classic like the original? Of course not. I feel like it’s really rare when a movie comes out that’s just as good as the first one, if not better. There have been maybe only a few examples where the sequel is just as good as the original.

But that doesn’t change the fact that Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is a fun movie. It’s enjoyable from the beginning to the end, and while the plot is pretty predictable, there’s a lot to love. The practical effects are always entertaining to witness, but there’s just something so comforting to my soul about returning to Michael Keaton as Betelgeuse.

Okay, maybe that’s speaking to some deeply-rooted issues, but either way–

I enjoyed the film, and when I decided to rewatch it, I still had the same fun. However, there’s one aspect that I’m really peeved about—one thing that I truly wish they had done.

But I’m Really Upset We Didn’t See Catherine O’Hara’s Character Much More

Why wasn’t Catherine O’Hara in here way more? Like way more?

When the first Beetlejuice came out, it was one of O’Hara’s first major movie roles back in the 1980s. I think she only had a few films before this one, but this was a major hit for her. Her role as Delia Deetz solidified her as a comedy queen in cinema, even if she had success on television for years before.

From there, we saw her plenty in movies. If you’re like me, you see her every year when you rewatch the Home Alone films and laugh whenever she screams “KEVIN!” at the top of her lungs. But to many others, she has become an icon, a legend in the flesh. To some, they know her as Sally from The Nightmare Before Christmas, a personal favorite Halloween/Christmas movie of mine. Or you might know her from the Schitt’s Creek cast, a role that earned her an Emmy. Or you might know her from her latest appearance on HBO’s The Last of Us, which I adore.

Either way, it’s Catherine O’Hara. She makes gold with anything she touches, which is why I am so confused as to why she was not used more in this film.

Regardless of the story as a whole, Delia feels like one of those characters that only O’Hara could play. While we did get some truly hilarious scenes of her in the first hour of the movie, it felt cut short tremendously when her character was—spoiler alert—killed off by her own idiocracy.

I mean, it does make sense for the character, but then we don’t really see her that much. We do see her at the end of the film, where she has a farewell with Lydia and the others before she goes into the afterlife to be with her husband, but we really don’t get many funny moments of her in the afterlife.

Aside From The Themes Of The Film, There Was So Much We Could Have Explored

If Delia were featured way more in the afterlife, we could have had some hilarious moments.

Honestly, I would have loved to see her and Betelgeuse and have those interactions a heck of a lot more than we did anywhere else. I feel like Keaton and O’Hara’s comedic chops would rub off on each other, but instead, we don’t really see them in the same scene together at all until the very end.

We could also have watched Delia explore the afterlife a bit, hilariously. I’m not sure how, but Tim Burton’s movies always have some strange way to present the unexpected, and Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is no different. I’m sure he would have figured it out.

But instead, it’s mainly her sitting in that same waiting area for most of the movie before we finally see some traction with her. And to me, that’s just sad. There’s so much that could have been explored.

And Her And Adult Winona Ryder Would Have Made A Great Pair

This is also a bigger issue – I would have loved to see both O’Hara and Ryder as adults in way more scenes together.

In the first film, Delia and Lydia were always at odds with each other, and it’s not that much of a difference when you see them as adults, just much less hostile. However, I always enjoy seeing a mother and daughter, even if it’s not the way that you would expect them to be. And I think they would have played really well off each other.

I also think that Lydia’s powers felt way more prominent this time around, which could have given us some great scenes between her and Delia, maybe some bonding moments.

The entire movie is really about mothers and daughters, with the film instead focusing on the relationship between Lydia and her daughter, Astrid, and how they mend their relationship.

However, it would have been so much better if we hadn’t just focused on that, but also focused on the healing aspect of Lydia and Delia before she went off into the afterlife.

Just a few scenes here or there would have added so much to their characters as a whole, and made Delia’s send-off that much better. But instead, we really got…nothing.

I don’t know, maybe I’m being too judgmental about this story, but I just felt O’Hara could have been better used in this. And I doubt there’s going to be a third film, so this is most likely the last time we ever see her in this role. I suppose I’ll stick to the new movies and TV shows she’s appearing in for now, or rewatch Schitt’s Creek. That’s always a good idea.