I quite enjoyed this! I wish I had seen it with a bit bigger crowd and maybe done a lil rewatchy of the original beforehand so I went in carrying those vibes with me, but it was still very fun. I love the original Beetlejuice so much, and just like for everyone it has been a comfort film to me since childhood. It's also absolutely perfect for getting into that Halloween spooky & ghoulish mood, and the Maitlands made a big emotional impact on me. That reputation gives this sequel a lot to live up to, especially after so many years and Burton trying to get multiple versions of a sequel off the ground (Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian I mourn you). And while on this initial watch I didn't find a deeply similar charm as the original, it still had a lot of those visuals and moods that suit the Halloween season. Fun Bava references! I loved the scenes where Astrid is biking through the town getting their decorations out, looking around Jeremy's room, and I love the color and vibrancy of the Neitherworld. Beetlejuice green and those b&w stripes are both so pleasing to my eye it that it makes me go rabid. It's also pretty satisfying to see how far they went with a lot of the effects on the dead and their injuries. Also the soundtrack/needledrops were GOOOOD omg!!! Danny Elfman score my BELOVED I don't care I still go nuts for that man. Still, something was missing, even if nostalgia is obscuring it a bit. A lot of the newer characters were the best parts and not fleshed out enough at all because of the very speedy pacing, but great performances all around anyway - I loved Willem Dafoe, Monica Bellucci, Justin Theroux (a director again!), and Jenna Ortega is wonderful! They all fit right into Burton's style. I will love Winona Ryder forever and always and she's wonderful to see return to Lydia as she tries to navigate motherhood. The plot between Lydia and Astrid as they both miss Astrid's late father started to hit home for me a little bit as it went on, especially watching this with my mom. And as sweet as it is, I also wished the dad moments were a little more emotional. Betelgeuse is definitely still his raunchy self, though not quite as spry maybe - and that's okay! I love Keaton and this character wouldn't be anywhere near the same without him.
I am excited to see how I feel on a rewatch - still think this will serve well as a Halloween moodpiece (I had similar feelings about Rob Zombie's The Munsters - the colors and the horror!!). I know I had a lot more thoughts about all the neat little things they did, and my negative thoughts really are mostly just "there's a feeling that is missing!" that can be chalked up to several factors. I'm still thankful we got this, though I wish we could have when Burton was at his earlier peak - growing up as a Burton obsessive, I could have used more Beetlejuice. But it's here! We have it now, and it ain't too shabby.