Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (12A)

Tim Burton’s long-imagined follow-up to his 1988 horror freak show revels in some gleefully silly moments, while avoiding that dated feeling.

Right from the ghostly title sequence and iconic Danny Elfman theme, you know exactly where all this is going. Formerly rebellious teen Lydia (Winona Ryder) is now the insecure, pill-popping host of a TV show about the supernatural. Her stepmother Delia (Catherine O’Hara) remains a pretentious conceptual artist. Her daughter Astrid (Jenna Ortega), meanwhile, is a schoolgirl at a posh boarding school where she is horribly bullied. Lydia is also being preyed upon by her sleazy business manager Rory (Justin Theroux), who is trying to push her into marriage.

Meanwhile, in the afterlife, Michael Keaton’s predatory Betelgeuse – think an inverse exorcist – is being relentlessly pursued by his vengeful ex-wife Delores (Monica Bellucci), who wants to steal his soul.

As Betelgeuse is called back into the land of the living once again, all hell breaks loose, and all bets are off. This is a horrific, yet horrifically fun romp with flashes of messy, B-movie brilliance. A real Halloween treat.