See how the original Beetlejuice hits the Save the Cat! story beats.
A fun and hilarious twist on the haunted house movie, Beetlejuice (1988) is a dark fantasy comedy horror film directed by Tim Burton, with a screenplay by Michael McDowell and Warren Skaaren, based on a story by McDowell and Larry Wilson. The film features Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis, Winona Ryder, and Michael Keaton in the title role.
The story follows a recently deceased couple trapped as ghosts in their home. To rid the house of its new human inhabitants, they enlist Betelgeuse, a mischievous “bio-exorcist.” The movie is noted for its quirky humor and use of Harry Belafonte’s calypso music.
Released by Warner Bros. on March 30, 1988, Beetlejuice became a critical and commercial hit, earning $84 million on a $15 million budget. It won the Academy Award® for Best Makeup and several Saturn Awards, including Best Horror Film. The film’s success led to an animated series, video games, and a 2018 stage musical. A sequel, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, hit theaters on September 6, 2024.
Screenplay by: Michael McDowell and Warren Skaaren
Story by: Michael McDowell & Larry Wilson
Directed by: Tim Burton
Genre: Monster in the House (Supra Natural Monster)
Cinematic cousins: The Amityville Horror, The Others, Poltergeist, The Haunting, The Conjuring, Crimson Peak, House on Haunted Hill, The Innocents, Hereditary, The Changeling, The Ring, The Evil Dead, Sleepy Hollow
Opening Image: We fly over a picturesque New England town, serene and idyllic, until we come upon a peculiar house on a hill. A spider crawls over the roof, revealing the house is a model—a small yet significant detail foreshadowing the supernatural forces that will soon invade. Unfazed by the creepy-crawly, Adam Maitland (Alec Baldwin) picks it up and tosses it out the window, showing his calm, untroubled nature. This subtle yet symbolic opening sets the tone: something is lurking under the surface of this seemingly perfect world.
Theme Stated: When Jane Butterfield (Annie McEnroe), the local real estate agent, visits Adam and Barbara, she casually comments, “This house is too big for just the two of you; it should be for a family.” This offhand remark may seem innocent, but it subtly introduces the theme of legacy, belonging, and what we leave behind. Though the couple’s life seems idyllic, Jane’s comment hints that there’s more to their story—a missing piece that will later come to the surface in the afterlife.
Set-Up: Adam and Barbara live a quiet, love-filled life, taking pride in their beautiful home on the hill. They’re content, but underneath the surface, there’s a lingering sadness—a miscarriage that casts a shadow over their dreams of starting a family. When Jane arrives, again suggesting they sell their house to city folk, it irritates Barbara. They may seem happy, but their connection to the house is rooted in something much deeper. As they head into town, we see their peaceful world disrupted, leading to the car crash that changes everything.
Catalyst: After the crash, Adam and Barbara return home, soaked and confused. Slowly, they realize the truth—they’ve died in the accident. Their discovery of The Handbook for the Recently Deceased confirms their new status as ghosts, unable to leave their beloved home. This moment shifts them into the supernatural world, forcing them to confront the reality that death has changed everything but left them physically stuck in the place they loved.
Debate: Adam, ever the optimist, sees death as a minor hiccup, a peaceful eternity in their cherished home. “Honey, we’re dead,” he says, “I don’t think we have much to worry about.” But Barbara is more restless. In their attempts to leave, they quickly realize they’re trapped—not only by their ghostly status but also by the monstrous sandworms that roam the barren, otherworldly desert just outside their house. These giant creatures make escape impossible, further heightening Barbara’s anxiety.
Meanwhile, the house grows dustier, and the question looms: can they live (or exist) like this forever? Their debate is interrupted by the arrival of the Deetz family—Charles (Jeffrey Jones), Delia (Catherine O’Hara), and Lydia (Winona Ryder)—a group of New York eccentrics who threaten to destroy the tranquility Adam and Barbara have been clinging to. What should they do now: let go or fight back?
Break into Two: With the Deetzes’ invasion, including Otho Fenlock (Glenn Shadix), the quirky interior decorator with a perchance for the supernatural, the Maitlands have no choice but to act. “There’s a word for people in our situation,” Adam tells Barbara: “Ghosts!” Answering the call of the Catalyst, they decide to scare the Deetzes out of the house. What begins as a misguided attempt to haunt them with harmless tricks quickly spirals into frustration as their ghostly efforts go unseen. This decision marks their entry into the supernatural conflict—the first natural step in confronting their new afterlife.
B Story: The emotional connection of the film emerges through Lydia Deetz, the black-clad goth daughter who immediately sees the Maitlands, unlike the rest of her family. “Live people ignore the strange and unusual,” she tells them, “I myself am strange and unusual.” Lydia, lost and disconnected from her family, begins to bond with the Maitlands, and in many ways, she becomes the daughter they never had. This relationship adds depth to the theme of family and belonging, showing a chance for connection, even in death.
Fun and Games: The Maitlands learn to go to the Netherworld, where they need to seek help. They run into the worst waiting room in the world, filled with dead souls, lounging for an eternity to be helped. They meet their caseworker, Juno (Sylvia Sidney), who tells them that if they want the Deetzes out of their house, they should scare them themselves. When they inquire about Betelgeuse, she warns them not to contact him. He was once her assistant before he went into the freelance bio-exorcism business to exploit frustrated spirits making the transition from the living to the dead.
The Maitlands’ attempts to scare the Deetzes are as sweet as ineffective. They dress up in sheets, stage haunted-house-style tricks, and even cut holes in Delia’s expensive designer linens. These innocent pranks fail to faze the brash Deetz family. The fun and games deliver on the comedic promise of the premise: ghosts trying to haunt the living but failing spectacularly.
They also bond with Lydia, who can see and reason with them, tying A and B Stories together. They tell the goth teen to talk to her parents about the ghosts living in the attic, but Delia Deetz is too self-absorbed and drugged to care.
Midpoint: Frustrated by their inability to get rid of the Deetzes, Adam and Barbara take the risky step of summoning Betelgeuse, a self-described bio-exorcist with a penchant for chaos. They dig him up from the cemetery of Adam’s scale model of the town.
The film’s tone shifts immediately when Betelgeuse—wild, unpredictable, and dangerous—arrives. What starts as a potential solution to their problem quickly spirals into a far more dangerous game, raising the stakes and starting the ticking clock. The Maitlands lose control, and Betelgeuse’s malevolent presence marks a turning point in the film’s stakes.
Bad Guys Close In: The Mailtlands attempt to scare the Deetzes with a choreographed possession of the family to Harry Belafonte’s “Day-O.” Instead, the family’s interest in the paranormal intensifies. Delia sees the ghosts as a path to success in art, while Charles dreams of turning the haunted house into a tourist attraction. Meanwhile, Betelgeuse’s influence grows, and the living and the dead threaten the Maitlands’ peaceful afterlife.
The situation becomes more chaotic as everyone, including the Deetzes, tries to exploit the supernatural forces for their gain. Otho steals The Handbook of the Recently Deceased. Beetlejuice, laughing at the Maitland’s attempt to scare the Deetzes out of their house, “turns on the juice and sees what shakes loose” as a monster snake, attacking and hurting the humans. Barbara utters the eponymous ghost’s name three times and sends him back to his realm. And Juno distracts the “ghost with the most” with a whorehouse in Adam’s model of Winter River.
The stakes rise as Maxie Dean (Robert Goulet) comes in to see the ghosts, and Otho, now in possession of the handbook, has his plan of controlling the spirited Maitlands.
All Is Lost: With Betelgeuse on the loose and the Deetz family determined to capitalize on the hauntings, the Maitlands are at their lowest point. Lydia, feeling more alone than ever, contemplates suicide to join her ghostly friends in death. Adam and Barbara realize their home, peace, and connection to Lydia are slipping away. The whiff of death moment is evident—the things they were trying to protect are now out of their control.
Dark Night of the Soul: After meeting with their caseworker Juno again, Adam and Barbara are told they need to stop playing nice and start acting like real ghosts to save their home—and steal back all the evidence, the photos of them and the handbook, as there can be no proof of life after death. Meanwhile, Lydia’s dark moment leads her to Betelgeuse, who promises to help her save the Maitlands—but only if she agrees to marry him. The stakes have never been higher. Adam and Barbara, faced with losing everything, must summon the strength to confront the chaos they’ve unleashed.
Break into Three: Determined to regain control, Adam and Barbara transform into ghoulish versions of their former selves. They return to the house for one last effort to stop Betelgeuse, protect Lydia (tying A and B stories together), and regain peace in their afterlife. This marks the beginning of their final plan to defeat the monster they’ve summoned.
Five-Point Finale:
1. Gathering the Team: Using the Handbook, Otho conducts what he believes is a séance to summon the Maitlands. He accidentally performs an exorcism, causing Adam and Barbara to decay rapidly and putting them at risk of being erased from existence. Realizing they are powerless, Lydia turns to Betelgeuse for help. The team is now essentially Lydia and Betelgeuse, with the Maitlands weakened and dependent on Lydia’s actions to survive.
2. Executing the Plan: Betelgeuse seizes control and forces Lydia into a marriage ceremony, taking advantage of her desperation to save the Maitlands. The Maitlands, despite their decaying forms, try to stop the wedding but are too weak to intervene fully. The goal here is for Lydia to avoid marrying Betelgeuse, but the situation spirals further into chaos.
3. High Tower Surprise: Just as it seems that Betelgeuse will succeed in marrying Lydia, Barbara intervenes by riding a sandworm into the house. This shocking, last-minute twist disrupts the wedding and prevents Betelgeuse from completing his plan.
4. Dig Deep Down: Barbara uses her newfound courage and cleverness to summon the sandworm, which once terrified her. She uses it to defeat Betelgeuse, showing that overcoming her fears has enabled her to protect Lydia and stop the chaos.
5. Execution of the New Plan: Peace is restored when Betelgeuse is defeated, and the sandworm devours him. The Maitlands return to their afterlife, no longer decaying, and the Deetz family and the ghosts learn to coexist in harmony within the house. The real victory is found in their ability to find a way to live together.
Final Image: The final image shows Lydia happily dancing to Harry Belafonte’s calypso music, symbolizing the restored balance between the living and the dead. The Maitlands have become parental figures to Lydia, and the house now represents a place of unity and peace rather than conflict.
