A pretty good time overall. This is still a fun world that Tim Burton has dreamt up, even if a lot of the wacky novelty is gone due to it being a sequel. And the cast all seem to be having a great time with it, especially Catherine O'Hara and Sir Willem Dafoe. Keaton is also still spot on as ole' BJ, but the character just isn't as interesting this time around.

The biggest problem is that the story is a mess. There are so many pointless plot threads. One of them is clearly just to make room for Burton's current girlfriend, Monica Bellucci, who, in fairness, actually fits into the universe perfectly. The problem is that she has a handful of scenes where she just does the same thing over and over until it all leads basically nowhere. And Winona Ryder as Lydia Deetz has kiiiiiiiiind of a character arc, but it's some of the most contrived shit I've ever seen through no fault of hers. There was something simpler that totally could have worked here. There are a couple of moments where it's hinted at that the relationship Lydia has with her daughter shares a similar dynamic to Delia's relationship to Lydia at that age. They could have laser focused on that instead of adding buckets of dead spouses no one cares about to the mix. A bucket that weirdly includes Jeffrey Jones even though he could have easily just be written out of the script. I understand the idea of separating an actor from a character, but the dude is a pedophile, and it felt really strange to have his Charles featured so prominently and positively in the story.

All of that to say, I think I prefer the original if only for the more streamlined narrative and purity of the ideas. BJBJ is entertaining enough, but there's no real reason to see this in theaters other than perhaps supporting the career decisions of some of our most beloved actors.