Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
dir. Tim Burton (2024)
So determinedly kooky that it forgets to be anything else, Burton directing a bog-standard redemption arc that renders Michael Keaton dramatically anonymous and wastes Winona Ryder’s talents. Notwithstanding Jenna Ortega and Arthur Conti, who give genuine performances, only the music is worthwhile.
Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)
dir. Alejandro G. Iñárritu (2014)
A serious, layered piece of filmmaking. Director Alejandro G. Iñárritu muses on the qualitative contrast between stage and film, casting Michael Keaton as a Hollywood actor remembered only for playing Birdman in blockbuster superhero films, now trying to reinvent himself on Broadway.
Batman
dir. Tim Burton (Warner Bros., 1989)
By far the pick of the franchise pre-Nolan — albeit not as funky as Prince’s soundtrack would intimate — the original Batman soared, giving us Jack Nicholson as a whimsically understated over-the-top Joker and Michael Keaton as the most beguiling Bruce Wayne of all.