Barbara and Adam Maitland are a happy couple, looking forward to working on and staying in their New England home. However like a lot of the time just when things look like they are headed in the right direction something goes terribly wrong. During the trip back home from town Barbara and Adam get into an accident and die. At first the Maitlands don’t realize that they have actually past away and continue to live their life normally. As they continue their journey the realized through subtle hints and the discovery of the Handbook for the Recently Deceased that they actually died during the accident. Add to that the realization that they cannot leave their house and it makes for a pretty terrible time. One of the first things that the Maitlands try to do when they find out they are dead is try to leave the house; it doesn’t work out as they planned. When they open the door they are transport into another world, filled with sand and a giant snake that nearly eats them. They both manage to escape back into the house but not without the knowledge that they are now virtually trapped inside their home. To make matters even worst they are told by their social worker that they are to stay in the house for the next 125, something they are both not happy with as they were already developing cabin fever. As fate would have it there home is sold to an annoying family the Deetzes. As the story continues and the Maitlands try to get the Deetzes out of their home one thing stays the same’ the Maitlands are still stuck two places between their home and afterlife. Though not the main focus of the film after the first 30 minutes the places in which the characters are trapped continue to be important to the storyline. The house and the afterlife are the basis of the story. The house is where the Maitlands and the Deetzes reside and the afterlife is also a huge part as it is where the Maitlands try to find answers as to how to get the Deetzes and Beetlejuice out of their lifes. The mailands only seem to feel entrapped during the first part of the film, they both, especially Barbara, start to develop cabin fever and want to find a way to get out of their house but when they realize they can’t leave getting the Deetzes out becomes their main focus. Unfortunately as stated before there is no way for the Maitlands to leave their home, well there could someday be a way for them to leave but they will have to wait 125 for a possible solution. The space in which they are trapped isn’t exactly symbolic it is just the place in which they are trapped. In fact after a while it seems that being trapped is not the most important thing to the Maitlands. First they are trying to find a way to get the Deetzes out, then they want to get rid of Beetlejuice and they do so with the Deetzes help, so that in the end both families decide to share the home and live in harmony.
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AuthorIf you're going to teach your brother how to ride a bike make sure the barbecue grill isn't in his direct path. Archives
May 2015
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