Tim Burton has described being “a little bit lost” as a film-maker before returning to his roots with the new, all-star sequel to his 1988 cult horror Beetlejuice.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, which opens the Venice film festival, features original cast members including Michael Keaton playing the titular ghoul, Catherine O’Hara, and Winona Ryder as Lydia – now mother to her own sullen teen, played by Jenna Ortega.
I sort of lost myself,” Burton said on Wednesday.
“I realised the only way to be a success is that I have to love doing it.
I wanted to make this for very personal reasons.” The film reunites audiences with the Deetz family.
Ryder, who was 15 when she first played Lydia, said returning to Beetlejuice was “one of the more special experiences of my life”.
“My love and trust for Tim runs so deep and there was a sense of a certain playfulness and readiness to try things,” she added.
The film is premiering out of competition at the 81st edition of the film festival, which opened to much anticipation on Wednesday.
Speaking of the event, members of the festival jury, including the chair, Isabelle Huppert, expressed concerns over the “very weak” state of contemporary cinema.
That’s why the Venice film festival is necessary.” The American filmmaker Debra Granik said she was “relieved” to hear Huppert address the “elephant in the room”.
Before going back to his roots with the brand-new, all-star Beetlejuice, Tim Burton has admitted to being “a little bit lost” in the filmmaking world.
The film Beetlejuice, which has its premiere at the Venice Film Festival, stars Michael Keaton as the title ghoul, Catherine O’Hara, and Winona Ryder as Lydia, who is now raising her own gloomy teen, played by Jenna Ortega.
I became somewhat disenchanted with the film industry during the last few years. Burton said on Wednesday, “I kind of lost myself.”. “I came to the realization that I have to love what I do in order to succeed.”. Making it was something I simply loved doing.
“My goal was not to create a massive follow-up for financial gain. I had very personal reasons for wanting to make this. “.
The Deetz family is reunited with viewers in the film. Now a campy ghost-hunting show host, Lydia returns to the eerie Winter River house with her stepmother Delia (O’Hara) and her sour daughter Astrid, who creates a portal to the afterlife.
Returning to Beetlejuice was “one of the more special experiences of my life,” according to Ryder, who was 15 when she played Lydia for the first time. She continued, “There was a sense of a certain playfulness and readiness to try things, and my love and trust for Tim runs so deep.”. You feel totally free and safe at the same time, even in absurd situations. “.
Additionally, Ryder mentioned to Keaton that her favorite part “was getting to stare into your eyes again.”.
Laughing, Keaton responded, “As suave and sensitive as [Beetlejuice] was in the first, I think he’s even more so in this one,” when asked how he approached his character’s evolution after more than three decades. Simply his all-around kindness, social conscience, and political correctness. “.
Despite having been considering a follow-up for some time, Burton claimed that creating the Netflix Addams Family spinoff on Wednesday “re-energised” him. Additionally, it goes without saying that meeting Wednesday’s star Jenna was a huge deal for me.
Working with her made me reflect on the Lydia character and what transpired in her life thirty-five years later. I also thought about my own life and what transpired in terms of relationships and having children. “.
“I looked up to a lot of this cast,” Ortega said, adding that she had to make sure she “wasn’t ripping off Winona’s work from back in the day… but still pooling aspects that make [the characters] similar.”.
Among the other newcomers to Beetlejuice are Justin Theroux, who plays Lydia’s sleazy boyfriend and manager, Willem Dafoe as a dead police officer, and Monica Bellucci as a soul-sucking demon bent on revenge against her ex, Beetlejuice.
To much excitement, the 81st edition of the film festival opened on Wednesday and is featuring the film’s world premiere outside of competition. Over the course of the next 11 days, a number of well-known celebrities are anticipated to walk the red carpet, including Lady Gaga, Brad Pitt, Joaquin Phoenix, Angelina Jolie, George Clooney, Daniel Craig, and Cate Blanchett.
Speaking about the occasion, Isabelle Huppert, the chair of the festival jury, and other members voiced concerns about the “very weak” state of modern film. “I worry about the same things that worry everyone else. Ensuring the survival of film, as it is currently in extremely poor shape, Huppert said to the media.
Making a film is a very challenging process. A film is actually something we offer to the world, not just a one-man show. I therefore worry about whether human connection will still exist in our world. The Venice Film Festival is essential because of this. “.
Debra Granik, an American filmmaker, expressed her relief at hearing Huppert address the “elephant in the room.”.
“We recognize that this [festival] is necessary to preserve the stories that this room’s combined generations don’t see in the media,” Granik said. “Festivals could now be acts of rebellion. going against the accepted wisdom. “.
Prior to accepting the festival’s esteemed Golden Lion award for lifetime achievement, Sigourney Weaver broke down in tears as she talked about how her acting has empowered women, particularly US presidential candidate Kamala Harris.
“I’m extremely happy to think for even a split second that my work would have anything to do with her rise,” Weaver remarked. “since it is accurate. I get so many thank-you notes from women. “.
The three-time Oscar nominee also discussed how Hollywood is changing how it treats aging actors. “It seems like they suddenly began to write a lot of older female characters after deciding, in some way, that older women could genuinely play interesting characters.
We became real people all of a sudden, instead of just a joke and a mother-in-law, because, well, a lot of our audience is real people. “.
