It's been far too long since I summoned Beetlejuice to my living room. But with the interest generated by the long overdue sequel -- plus the realization that our 11-year-old kids had never seen it the original film -- we decided it was time to watch it again.

This time, we had my wife's homemade crab dip and some vanilla rum cider cocktails (for us, not the kids) to enhance the experience.

The plot centers around Adam and Barbara Maitland (Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis), who are living their dream life in their dream house in an idyllic Connecticut town until a stray dog and a bridge coincide to cause their untimely demises. To their horror, they find themselves trapped eternally in their home with the new owners: New York City transplants Charles, Delia and Lydia Deetz (Jeffrey Jones, Catherine O'Hara and Winona Ryder). While Charles just wants to relax in his bucolic surroundings, Delia wants to remake the residence in her own weird artistic image, and Lydia simply wants to baste in emo misery.

When the Maitlands' amateur attempts to haunt the Deetzes out of the house -- culminating in a fancy dinner party with a bit of Harry Belafonte and some killer shrimp -- fail, they summon the demonic Betelgeuse (Michael Keaton) to exorcize the living. His over-the-top shenanigans are guaranteed to give everyone on the receiving end the willies, and he has his own ulterior motives to throw an extra wrench in the stew.

Things get wacky and weird. We'll, weirder.

More than three decades later, this movie still stands up as an awesome, fun, funny film. The cast hits every note perfectly -- besides those named before, special nods to Glenn Shadix as ruthless interior designer Otho and Sylvia Sidney as afterlife counselor Juno. The special effects -- of the stop-motion variety that would later be used to great effect in The Nightmare Before Christmas -- are a visual treat, in a garish and colorful style that prevents potentially gruesome scenes from being too offensive or scary for young viewers.

Wow, it's been 36 years since Beetlejuice was released, and it's still great. I hope the sequel, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, lives up to its standard!