When Otho performs that spell to bring the Maitlands back to life, what happens? They come to life, start aging and deteriorating, and then they're back to being young again, only now the Deetzes can see them, but they go back to being ghosts?
shareI think it was an exorcism spell, what that janitor called "death for the dead". Beetlejuice must be powerful enough to undo the spell with a simple gesture. And the reason the Deetzes could see them is because they were fully aware of the existence of the supernatural after they were possessed at dinner by the Maitlands and then attacked by snake-Beetlejuice. That's the reason Adam and Barbara hid when they went into the attic and took the model, because by that point the Deetzes and Otho could perceive them.
shareYes. The spell brings them back into the physical state, and of course their corpses quickly decompose (it's not aging, it's decomposion).
Then when Beetlejuice flicks his head and the spell is broken, they return to ghosts BUT, the Deetz's can still see them because they now percieve ghosts just like Lydia (because they now believe in the supernatural having witnessed it first hand).
Actually quite clever.
'then, you must cut down the mightiest tree in the forrest, wiiiiiiiiiiiiith.........a HERRING!'
Couldn't they see them before the exorcism?
The plan they cook up with Juno wouldn't work if the Deetz'a couldn't see the Maitlands. Juno chastised them earlier for trying to scare them away by pulling their faces off, but she's on board with the scary faces.
Then, when the party comes up to get the model for the exorcism, the Adam and Barbara are hanging out of the window so they can't be seen. It's always bothered me that this wasn't better explained.
Yes the scary faces thing was a massive plot hole.
If that was done today the film would be severely criticized.
It wasn't a massive plot hole, it just wasn't explained very well. After the dinner party all of the Deetz family, Otho, and their guests knew that Barbara and Adam existed, so they could see them.
The handbook says that the living usually won't see the dead because the living ignores the strange and unusual. After the dinner party, there's no way they could ignore the Maitlands, so the scary faces would have worked.
The scary faces scene come before the dinner party.
Only Lydia was able to see them at this point. So that argument doesn't work.
Actuilly the scarey faces thing comes after the dinner party but before the excersisum I own the movie & am a Beetlejuice Obsessive Fanatic & lost count of how many times I wantched it.
Ace Lions
Excellent explanation! I've always had a problem with the scary face thing, but you definitely cleared that up.
shareIf I'm not mistaken, it's like a reverse exorcism and the Maitlands inhibit their detiorating corpses......when Lydia releases Beetlejuice, he is seen using his powers (in the form of a golf shot) to undo what Otho did.
shareThey could see the Maitlands from the moment they did the "Day-O" scene because after that they have accepted that there were ghosts in the house. Its just that the Maitlands dont present themselves to them until that scene. The get young again with the help of Beetlejuice. Remember Lydia asked him for help.
Hello. My name is Talia Al Ghul. You killed my father. Prepare to die.
That's the ONE thing don't understand? Is there anything about this "movie" that's meant to be understood?
share