User reviews

This is by far Michael Keaton's best performance. Every time he comes on the screen he displays such an eccentric performance that it rivals Jim Carrey from 'The Mask', only without as much help from computers. If his role calls for gross he brings revolting; pushy he brings offensive; witty he brings hilarious sarcasm. One of my few complaints is that he doesn't get enough screen time, although he does have a large portion of it, most goes to Gena Davis and Alec Baldwin.

Tim Burton's directing is great. My favorite scene by far doesn't even have Michael Keaton in it. Anyone who has seen this will remember it as the dancing dinner scene.

This is a classic. If you haven't seen it then you must've'e grown up under a rock or born before I was.

One of my favourite movies of all time. It's a Halloween classic. Spooky, funny and very rewatchable. I am waiting for that moment when I forget this movie again and get to rewatch it. Beetlejuice is a creativity booster, an inspirational, in an artistic sense, film. The sets, the wardrobe, the props - everything inspired me as a kid and made me love those dark-romance, Tim Burton motives.

RELEASED IN 1988 and directed by Tim Burton, "Beetlejuice" chronicles the story of a couple (Alec Baldwin & Geena Davis) who accidently perish after moving to a quaint Connecticut town. They find themselves sentenced to "haunting" their former house where they try to scare the new wannabe swank couple out (Jeffrey Jones & Catherine O'Hara), but they find that their Goth daughter is more curious than scared (Winona Ryder). Michael Keaton plays the eponymous madcap "bio-exorcist" while Glenn Shadix is on hand as the new couple's interior designer.

This was Burton's debut on the silver screen and the first half is hilarious entertainment mixed with some interesting insights on the afterlife. The movie puts its best foot forward, but the second half isn't as compelling and I think the title character is more annoying than amusing.

THE FILM RUNS 1 hour & 32 minutes and was shot in beautiful East Corinth, Vermont, and (studio) Culver City, California. WRITERS: Michael McDowell, Larry Wilson and Warren Skaaren.

GRADE: B+

In 1988, prior to the inordinate success of "Batman" (1989) which would line his pockets, Tim Burton bequeathed this work which is from his own words: "a comical version of "the Exorcist" told from two dead people's point of view". I have never been a fan of William Friedkin's masquerade marred by extravagant, ludicrous special effects.

There are also special effects in "Beetle Juice" and they constituted the main attraction for many viewers when the film was released. But unlike Friedkin's enticing work they're much better tapped to serve as complements for the needs of the story but also to depict the beyond after death for Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin. On this point, one recognizes with pleasure Burton's trademark. The filmmaker had visibly pleasure to recreate a quirky vision of hell enhanced by extravagant scenery with rather loud colors and populated with funny monsters. This hellish universe has the look of a public services office.

Another positive thing about "Beetle Juice" is that it never really falls into the excessive or the very grim and genteel humor is also an asset for the film. The story has genuine looks in its beginning but takes a derivative direction as the film advances and certain characters verge on the space of cardboard characters. But the actors seemed to be well aware of this problem and perhaps that's why they offer subdued, enjoyable performances. But the prize for the best actor arguably goes to Michael Keaton as the grouchy, dangerous Beetle Juice, absolutely unrecognizable under his make-up.

"Beetle Juice" hasn't got really its place among Burton's seminal works like "Edward Scissorhands" (1990), "Ed Wood" (1994) or "Big Fish" (2003) but if the filmmaker's set of themes and stylish job is your cup of tea, why not give it a chance?

How can anyone who has seen this movie not like it. Michael Keaton is perfect perverted creepazoid Beetlejuice who lives in the attic of a house along with a heap of other ghosts who have difficulty adjusting to the fact that they are dead.

Beetlejuice is one of those characters in film you are either going to love or hate.

I've long been a fan of Tim Burton. His movies are almost always weird, but there is almost always something endearing about his work. His films are almost always entertaining, and Beetlejuice is probably one of the more obvious examples.

If you really think about it absolutely nothing happens in this movie. For those of you who've seen it, think about it.

If you haven't yet seen it, just watch it for Tim Burton's really weird and wonderful imagination. It really is what makes the whole movie.

This movie is a big departure for Michael Keaton. I found it really hard to believe he was actually a comic actor, but he is hilarious here and he is another thing that makes it worth watching.

Just be aware this movie's story is almost nonexistent.

Beetlejuice has a weirdly small amount of screen time in a movie called Beetlejuice. Love the Claymation and special effects. Also love the film's depiction of death as a bureaucratic hellscape with a multitude of stupid and confusing rules.

A surreal , grotesque farce with continual surprises about an ultra-nice couple (Alec Baldwin , Geena Davis) of recently deceased ghosts who contract the services of a "bio-exorcist" called Beetlejuice (Michael Keaton, the title character is named for a bright red star in the constellation of Orion, Betelgeusein) in order to remove the obnoxious new owners of their house , and they contract him to rid of all trespassers for a price . The fantastique exorcist only be contacted when his name is correctly pronounced three consecutive times . Among those who feel the need to hire are a couple of newly-dead who are confined to a living hell in their own home which is being invaded by obnoxious new inhabitants , a family of post-modern art-lovers , formed by a marriage (Jeffrey Jones and Catherine O'Hara who was a replacement for an ill Anjelica Huston as Delia, on the set she met her future husband, production designer Bo Welch who created the inventive set design) and their rare daughter named Lydia (Winona Ryder ; though also auditioned for the role Juliette Lewis , Diane Lane, Sarah Jessica Parker, Brooke Shields, Molly Ringwald and Jennifer Connelly all turned down the same role) . But the things go wrong when the maniacal BeetleJuice works his own magic .

Bemusing film plenty of humor , easy fun , cheesy scenes , special effects galore and strange situations . Michael Keaton steals the show as the repulsive and raucous Bio-exorcist , he spent only two weeks filming his part in the film , which lasts 17.5 minutes out of the 92-minute running time . The highlights of the film are the unforgettable Calypso scenes that result to be priceless images . The original script was a horror film , and featured Beetlejuice as a winged, reptilian demon who transformed into a small Middle Eastern man , subsequent script rewrites turned the film into a comedy and toned down Beetlejuice's character into the ghost of an wise cracking con-artist rather than a demon. Winona Ryder is astounding as the Gothic adolescent with a death complex and majoring in weirdness , while Catherine O'Hara and Jeffrey Jones are amusing as the yuppie marriage . The picture packs eye-popping and colorful cinematography by Thomas Ackerman . Lively and amusing musical score by Danny Elffman , Tim Burton's usual .

Not surprisingly, the movie's impressive box-office success created plans for a sequel: Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian. A script was commissioned and Michael Keaton and Winona Ryder both signed on to reprise their respective roles, but Tim Burton lost interest in the project and went on to direct Batman and Batman Returns instead. As late as 1996, Warner Bros. was still trying to get the original sequel concept into production but a finished film has yet to materialize.

The motion picture was well realized by Tim Burton , giving a quirky vision of the afterlife and showing his usual weird touches . This unstructured but habitually delightful live action cartoon will appeal to Tim Burton fans . The supernatural comedy was a huge and surprising box-office hit, which in turn led to Burton being entrusted with the reins on the hugely expensive Batman (1989). Although his least personal film, it was one of the most successful movies of all time, and gave him unprecedented power in Hollywood considering the originality and adventurousness of his work thus far. ¨Edward Scissorhands¨ (1990), another hit, saw him at the peak of his creative powers and established a fruitful working relationship with actor Johnny Depp. ¨Batman returns¨ (1992) was a far darker and quirkier film than the original, a reflection of how much creative freedom Burton had won . And although Ed Wood (1994), his loving tribute to the life and work of the legendary Worst Director of All Time, Edward D. Wood Jr., was a box-office disaster, it garnered some of the best reviews of Burton's career .

It's certainly not a movie that will please everyone, but for those who like a good black humor and want to see something different from what we're used to, it's a full plate. The jokes are great, especially the ones about the government office, and the dinner table scene where everyone starts to sing and dance is just hilarious.

The story has nothing to do with it, and even in some moments the script leaves something to be desired, as the simple fact that the meaning of the couple's "life after death" is not clarified, but that, analyzing more deeply, it can be purposeful showing that the death is meaningless. And this can be seen in the part where the joke is made where Barbara (Geena Davis) tells the social worker that she is not happy and she is told that of course she is not happy because they are dead, showing that the couple does not have to be satisfied with death, simply accept it as it is.

The look of the movie is amazing, especially all those creatures of the most varied forms. They make us wonder where they got so much idea to make "dead people". The soundtrack does its role very well with a dark and unpretentious feel at the same time, making it clear that it doesn't want to frighten you, but it doesn't want to be comical either. All the characters are great along with their portrayals, especially of course the unrecognizable Michael Keaton (Beetlejuice).

It's not a film to be taken seriously (and he doesn't take himself), but it sure is an incredible option for those who are saturated with films with that same formula as usual that doesn't risk anything for creativity. The movie doesn't hide at any time that it's bizarre, and that's what makes it so good. Tim Burton definitely knows how to make the bizarre interesting.

Film viewed on the 2nd to the 3rd of September 2021.

It was a funnier movie than I expected. M Keaton did a great job. T. Burton too.

I've seen almost every Tim Burton film. He's by far one of my favorite directors of all time. Each movie is so stylistic, gothic, and heartwarming (even Sweeney Todd). But it all started here - Beetlejuice. Right from the start, you see the different "Burtonisms" that you see in every Burton movie. Tim Burton has a unique art style that's easy to recognize. And like all his other movies, Beetlejuice really delves deep on very human issues despite the fantasy aspects. And of course it's not a true Burton movie without an enchanting score by Danny Elfman.

Good directors seem to know how to cast their films perfectly. Beetlejuice is no exception here. Catherine O'Hara is a true standout in this movie as Delia. Of course the star of the show is Michael Keaton as the demon himself, an iconic performance if there ever was one. But the only other that can be deemed as icon as Keaton and Beetlejuice is Queen Winona Ryder as the ever iconic Lydia Deetz. Winona's career truly started here, and since this movie she's been worshipped by every little strange and unusual outcast in the world. Even 30 years later she's still praised as a 90s legend and gothic icon and it's always a joy to see her portrayal of Lydia.

When people watch Beetlejuice, I feel like Adam and Barbra's storyline is overshadowed despite them being the main characters with the most screen time. Beetlejuice and Lydia just rightfully steal the show, however the dead couple's plot actually gives interesting insight to Burton's concept of death in the movie. The rules for ghosts and the afterlife are well thought through and add a great level of lore to the story that may go underappreciated.

What should not be underappreciated is the musical adaption of this film. I have to add this here at the end because Beetlejuice fans need to know - the musical is actually amazing. When I watch the movie, all I think about is the musical. When I listen to the musical, all I think about is the movie. Alex Brightman and Sophia-Anne Caruso as Beetlejuice and Lydia simply brought magic to the characters we already knew and loved, both as great tributes to the original cast while giving their own Broadway spin. The songs are fun and have already become essential to my Halloween playlists. And the musical overall is the perfect celebration to the this iconic 80s movie that continues to be symbol for every Halloween season.

Tim Burton is quite the visionary. He has a knack for the dark, strange, and off-kilter. He also has the ability to creatively combine such elements with comedy, and yet also leave behind an aura of existential reflection. His films often create some sort of deeper emotion in the viewer, making a lot of his films dramas disguised as comedies. However, put all that to the wayside because Beetle Juice is just Mr. Burton having fun. The movie is about two people who die before going on vacation. Their ghosts remain in there house, where they must live for eternity. The problem arises when a family of nutty art freaks move into their house and start to take it apart and give it their own "artistic" flare. In order to get rid of these people they call upon the undead conman Beetleguese (pronounced beetle-juice like the title of the film). Wacky and grotesque situations occur from here, taking us on a bizarre ride.

Tim Burton's true artistic form comes through most of all in this film. The design of the characters and settings in this film are very cool. Particularly the spirit world, which is set up as a busy public office, reminding me a lot of a DPS office or a post office. Of course everything has some sort of ghostly flare to it and everything is very fun to look at and admire the work put into designing these aspects of the film. Then of course the people in this spirit world are equally crazy. The rule of thumb is that the way you look in the spirit world is the way you looked when you died. So I'm sure you can guess that there are some interesting looking people in this world. There's everything from a shrunken head victim to zombified football players who evidently died in some sort of crash. All of the main characters, especially Beetleguese himself, look very strange and off the wall, giving the film its consistently morbid yet humorous feel.

That tone is one of my favorite things about the film. Obviously, the whole film deals with death. But this morbid idea is made into something very fun and different. The film is never depressing or overtly morbid, instead it's a sarcastic kind of morbid that makes you laugh at the irony of the whole situation these characters get themselves into. It also helps when the characters are the same kind of satirical oddness. All of the characters are very unique and very fun and the cast does a great job portraying it.

Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin play the two leads, Adam and Barbara. They do a great job as the quiet newlyweds who don't want a lot out of life, but end up getting mixed up in so much more than they bargain for. They open the film very well, but it really gets nutty when the new family moves into their house after they die. This new family of three consists of two bizarre parents played by Jeffrey Jones and Catherine O'Hara. Jones plays Charles, the short tempered father who wants nothing more to relax in his new country home. Catherine O'Hara is the mother of the family, Delia, who is an aspiring "artist." Her character makes a lot of fun of the artists in this world who take abstract art way to far, so much that it just looks silly and makes no sense at all. She is neurotic and high strung, making her a hilarious character throughout the film. A young and beautiful Winona Ryder plays Lydia, the Gothic daughter of the family who is very into self-expression through bizarre and overzealous clothing. Then of course there's Michael Keaton as Beetleguese who is so grotesquely entertaining from start to finish.

I can't say a whole lot about this movie other than it simply being fun. It isn't a life changing film. It is brilliant and it is far from one of the best movies ever made. But it is definitely fun and holds plenty of entertainment. I got plenty of laughs from the film which is carried very well by a funny cast playing great characters. Tim Burton creates a fun visual experience in Beetle Juice so I wouldn't recommend missing this film. It's well worth the watch.

I was a little skeptical when I started the movie, just because movies, and especially comedies from this time period don't always age so well. I was surprised to find how engaged I was through the whole film!

I had very little context for the plot or actors in the movie other than Michael Keeton played a weird guy called Beetlejuice, and even that was just from the trailers of the new "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice". Adam and Barbra are very likable and easy to root for. Lydia is a good contrast to both the couple and her parents, being moody and brooding. After Adam and Barbra make it to the weird afterlife waiting room I understood the tone and atmosphere we were going to get. I think you either engage with that kind of aesthetic and vibe or you don't; if you do then this movie is really fun, if you don't then this movie is probably pretty ridiculous.

I loved the costumes! Lydia's excessively black and dour look, the simple clothes of Adam and Barbra, the pretentious look of Delia, and all of the ghosts looking as they did when they died really injected character into each roll. Whether you like Tim Burton or not, he knows how to make an aesthetic.

The effects were charming in that corny 80s way, clearly being leaned in to throughout the movie. The sets are either really tactile or otherworldly which made the difference in the living and the dead feel real. I love when Barbra and Adam dig up Beetlejuice, you can see the layers of corkboard and fake grass that make up the "ground" in the model town. Details like that are all across the set, costume, and makeup design of the characters and locations.

Keeton is gold. All of his dialogue, punctuated by a truly wild and outlandish performance, was a delight. I also really loved Sylvia Sidney as Juno, with a cool detail that as she smokes the smoke comes from her slit throat. She is our rule-giver to the newly dead couple and adds some maturity and gravity to the world.

Of course the dancing scene was very funny. I feel lucky that I had no idea it was coming and had never seen it before so it hit in the way it was supposed to.

Plot-wise, the movie is very thin and this is where my troubles with the movie lie. We are warned multiple times about the dangers that come from summoning Beetlejuice, but nothing bad really happens when he is conjured. He tried to marry Lydia, which she clearly didn't want, but I was expecting more of an existential or deadly threat I guess. Barbra and Adam also seem to really adore Lydia which I felt wasn't completely earned. I get why they like her; Lydia treats them like people instead of props or a way to make money. Yet after their second meeting with Juno, Barbra says she can't go through with scarring the family away, their entire goal for the whole movie, because she wants to be with Lydia. It just felt a little forced to push toward a resolution.

Charles, Delia, and the rest of the cast at the dinner party and the resurrection of Adam and Barbra are very light on character. I also never quite figured out what Otho's motivation was in dealing with the ghosts.

Overall I really enjoyed it. I wish we had spent more time fleshing out the rules of the world and characterizing the secondary characters, but the visuals, dialogue, and performances add up to a new Halloween tradition for me!

1988's "Beetlejuice" is one film that is atmospheric and it skews one's view of the world with odd shaped houses and different characters everyone is in their own little world. Director Tim Burton who is a master of this method living in the clouds(Burton even borrowed some from the Pee Wee Herman movies). Still aside from the sets and graphics, the story involves a couple Adam(Alec Baldwin) and Barbara(Geena Davis) who suddenly become deceased only later haunt their dream house when a new couple move in with their future seeing like daughter who can communicate with the dead. The scenes are far out funny and silly really wild and crazy from the head demon ghost played just fine by Michael Keaton. Overall the film is a fun okay watch yet not one of Tim's blockbusters as Burton's 1989 "Batman" is his best ever.

This is one of my favorite movies. Makes me laugh every time I watch it. It's got so many great things going for it:

Acting: Winning, engaging, funny. Some really great performances from some great actors early in their film careers: Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis, Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, Catherine O'Hara, Jeffrey Jones. Add to that a side-splitting supporting performance from Sylvia Sidney, and you have an A-1 cast hitting their strides brilliantly.

Direction: Released the year before his masterpiece BATMAN, Tim Burton was clearly having a ball making this film, and it shows. Crisp, tight, fast-paced.

Story: Unique. Starts off a little slow, but picks up considerably when the Dietzes show up, and gets progressively wackier from there.

Intangibles: I will never again be able to listen to "The Banana Boat Song" without thinking of shrimp cocktail.

If you haven't yet seen this one, rent it and give it a chance. You'll love it.

`NICE ****IN' MODEL! --(Honk!)(Honk!)' -Betelgeuse (Michael Keaton)

The Maitlands are young newlyweds, happily getting by in their little New England town, that is, say, until they both get killed in a car accident. Returning as ghosts, they find the afterlife to be a surreal world, where the dead suffer the same problems as in life (just amplified to a crazy extent). Assigned to haunt their old home, the find the job more than troublesome, as the Dietzes, a disturbingly trendy couple from New York and their depressed, gothic daughter, Lydia (Winona Ryder) move in. Unable to scare these people away, and sick of seeing their home renovated (i.e.-`gutted out'), the Maitlands hire a `professional bio-exorcist' by the name of Betelgeuse (played very well by Michael Keaton), to extract them. Cartoonish mayhem ensues. This is Tim Burton's 2nd movie and it is a laugh riot. This is definitely worth seeing

Great movie, but upon rewatching this how is this PG? People die, there is a suicide victim, Micheal Keaton curses, and sexually harasses Gena Davis, the is smoking and so much grown up themes! How is this PG?

Michael Keaton and Alec Baldwin deliver oscar-winning performances. It's a shame they didn't win any. I think this was possibly the movie that launched Wyona Rider's career, and was also a strong point for Geena Davis. This was also the platform for the now famous director Tim Burton. Overall, a great starting movie for many actors/actresses/directors.

In New England, the couple Barbara (Geena Davis) and Adam Maitland (Alec Baldwin) is in love for each other and for their beautiful house. While driving back home from the town, they have a car accident, falling from a bridge into a river and dying, but becoming trapped afterlife in their home. When their house is sold to Charles Deetz (Jeffrey Jones), his wife Delia (Catherine O'Hara) decides to redecorate the place with new painting and furniture. Barbara and Adam unsuccessfully try to scare them, and they become connected to their Gothic daughter Lydia (Winona Ryder), who is able to see them. However, they decide to hire the services of the "bio-exorcist" ghost Beetle Juice (Michael Keaton) but when they see how dangerous he is, they call-off his services. But Beetle Juice wants to get married to Lydia to definitely return to the world of the living.

The first feature of Tim Burton is a delightful comedy, where he introduces a calling card of his dark style with nice characters in a very funny story, great make–up and special effects and a stunning and hilarious performance of Michael Keaton. The annoying music of Danny Elfman is the only negative point of this highly recommended movie. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Os Fantasmas se Divertem" ("The Ghosts Have Fun")

The 1988 movie "Beetlejuice" is a classic Tim Burton movie in every sense of that meaning. Not sure what I mean, well if you don't, what hole have you been living in, as Burton is very characteristic in his movie creation.

If you haven't already seen the 1988 movie "Beetlejuice", then you should definitely take the time to do so, because this is a whacky, goofy and hilarious movie from beginning to end. You have your classic Burtonesque designs in sets, scenery, costumes and creatures, and the dialogue is just to die for. You also have the typical Burton stop-motion-animation as well. And it also helps that the movie has a very entertaining storyline and an impressive cast.

To portray the various oddball characters in the movie are the likes of Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis, Catherine O'Hara, Jeffrey Jones, Glenn Shadix and not to mention Winona Ryder and Michael Keaton as Beetlegeuse himself. I have always liked Keaton in this particular role, because the character is so whacky and Keaton portrays Beetlegeuse with perfection.

"Beetlejuice" is a movie that you can watch more than once, and I think I am on my fourth viewing of it so far. The movie doesn't get old.

I am rating this classic a solid seven out of ten stars.

There's nothing new about ghost stories, or even married couples who are ghosts, but there's only one Tim Burton. Here, in 1988's "Beetle Juice," he puts his own zany, delightful spin on a ghost story, complete with ghosts who try scaring people with sheets over their heads.

Adam and Barbara (Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis) die when their car goes over a cliff, and, returning to their house, they soon realize they didn't survive the crash. One hint was no reflections in the mirror. They find a handbook for the recently deceased. They also find a family, the Deetzes, moving into their house (Jeffrey Jones, Catherine O'Hara, and the goth-foreshadowing Winona Ryder). Adam and Barbara want the people out of their house, and when they meet their counselor from the other side (Sylvia Sidney), they learn they have to stay in the house for 125 years. They realize that they have to scare the Deetzes away. Though they have been warned against contacting the zombie Betelguese (Michael Keaton), they need help, so they call upon him. If he can't help them get rid of the Deetzes, no one can.

Bizarre, crazy film with all kinds of colorful effects and Harry Belafonte music. My mother was a great fan of Belafonte and saw him in concert; we had every one of those recordings. It was great fun hearing them again in some hilarious situations! Strangely, the actual Betelgeuse character is a small role, but Keaton is so bombastic and wild, it's enough. He's excellent. The focus of the story is on Baldwin and Davis, who are attractive and very believable as a married couple. Sylvia Sidney, Dick Cavett, and Robert Goulet have small roles, and they're all great. This was a breakout film for Winona Ryder, the only Deetz who can see the ghosts. She does a standout job, and Catherine O'Hara and Jeffrey Jones are appropriately "out there" as Mr. and Mrs. Deetz.

Few people have Tim Burton's sensibility or imagination. Sometimes I'm not sure if that's a bad thing, but there's no doubt that he's never boring. In anyone else's hands, this would have been an amusing movie. In Burton's hands, it's highly unusual.

Alec Baldwin and Geena Davies play a recently deceased married couple who are living in their beautiful home as afterlives. They collaborate with a crazy ghoul named Beetlejuice to drive away any other people who come to stay there. The casting is really good and Michael Keaton was at the top at this time. Production design, as usual is the case for a Burton film is really good and darkness and morbid overtones are seeping through the frames. Tim Burton is not everyone's cup of tea and even his most accessible films aren't universally adored. So watch Beetlejuice with these things in mind.

It takes a certain kind of childlike, ghoulish glee to extract the words 'Beetle Juice' from a red supergiant located 570 light-years from Earth - and Tim Burton films are nothing if not ghoulishly gleeful.

Michael Keaton (born Michael Douglas, but someone had to move aside, and it wasn't going to be the son of Spartacus) is in career-best mode as the wiseass bio-exorcist ("I've seen The Exorcist about 167 times and it keeps getting funnier every single time I see it!!"), self-interestedly aiding dead couple Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis through the afterlife. A place that owes less to German Romanticism (with its heavenly mountains and lakes) than German Expressionism (with its angular shadows and skewed corridors straight out of The Cabinet Of Dr Caligari).

Of all Burton's early works, this must be the most fun (Pee-Wee Herman just looks increasingly dodgy and weird), and certainly contains the most imaginative use of a Harry Belafonte number, aside from the Muppets' take on 'The Banana Boat Song'. Appropriately, for a film and a character named after a star, Burton's singular take on the haunted house picture rocketed both director and Keaton into the stratosphere.