Beetlejuice part 1
Added 2024-11-01 06:39:29 +0000 UTCBeetlejuice is a strange film about a strange dude. In some ways, I get it—if you have abilities, but not the right mentors or opportunities to use and develop them, that’s a lot of energy just sitting around, and it can get destructive. It can harm others and yourself in many ways.
What I love about this odd film is its gently understanding depiction of those tender years when teens who don’t fit in—who don’t have outlets for energy and abilities—are at risk of dying by suicide. Especially if they are existing in a female/femme presentation. Lydia is at once extraordinary, and completely normal, but that matters little if she feels she fits in nowhere. It scares me that we’re seeing an increase in the result of that dilemma in our very real world, with deepfake harassment, impossible social media standards, lack of bodily autonomy, and just plain old bullying reaching new, terrible heights. And yet, there’s Barbara—sweet gentle Geena Davis—telling Lydia, “Don’t do it. Don’t give up. It’s too precious. I care.” And amidst all of the creepy silly fun, I cry.
So get out there tonight and enjoy scaring the Betelgeuse outta yourselves, but then let’s all return tomorrow, ready to fight the real frightfulness away. To stop the actual scaries. To tell the ones around us who might be fraying at their tethers that they matter. That we need them here. That they’re too precious. That we care.
And if you need help, here are some resources: Suicide Prevention - National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) (https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/suicide-prevention) https://afsp.org (https://afsp.org)
-joz
