"MacArthur Park" Redux: The Beetlejuice Beetlejuice Version

A brilliant cinematic reimagining of a pop classic

Some of you may remember that I posted about the song “MacArthur Park” back in April, presenting and discussing three very different versions — by actor Richard Harris in his pop debut (1968), by the “Queen of Disco” Donna Summer (1978), and by the jazz legend Maynard Ferguson (1971).

You will find my analysis of the classic four-act story structure of the Richard Harris version in that post.

You will also find excerpts from a post by fellow Substack writer Wayne Robins in which he talks about his interviews with the songwriter Jimmy Webb and gets the lowdown on those crazy lyrics and where they came from.

I’ve always loved the Richard Harris version, and it turns out that I’m not the only one.

Jimmy Webb (on left below, with Richard) loved it as well, and posted a video of Richard performing it with the London Symphony Orchestra on his Facebook page.

Someone else who claims it as their favorite song — someone you would never in a million years expect — is none other than Tim Burton, cinematic purveyor extraordinaire of gothic fantasy and horror.

Never one to ignore his inspirations and inclinations, Tim decided to reinvigorate and reimagine said song in his latest film, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. (See trailer above, which btw includes another pop hit. Also of note is Danny Elfman’s fantastic score.)

The song I described in my post as “an existential howl of despair at being denied the love we most need in life,” with its mystifying lyrics about MacArthur's Park melting in the dark and all the sweet green icing flowing down because someone left the cake out in the rain, has been resurrected as the theme song of a charming, irrepressible, and yet maddening and nonsensical character who refuses to remain in the Afterlife.

Could any song be more perfect?

Besides which, who among filmmakers could we view as more appropriate to transfer that comically tragic story and those zany lyrics to the big screen than Tim Burton?

And who among actors would be more brilliant at selling those sentiments and lyrics as abnormally normal than Michael Keaton as Betelgeuse?

Kudos also to a cast (below) and crew who were game to turn this abstract reimagining into surreal reality, including actors Winona Ryder, Catherine O'Hara, Justin Theroux, Burn Gorman, Monica Bellucci, Jenna Ortega, and Willem Dafoe.

You need to see it to ‘get’ it. This is a brilliant repurposing and reimagining of song into story. A masterclass, if you will.

Don’t worry, you don’t have to watch the entire film if you’re not a Beetlejuice fan (as I am).¹

But I do encourage you to watch the wedding song scene below to see this remarkably imaginative use of popular music to enhance the narrative of a film — on a par with the Metallica scene in Stranger Things, which is one of my all-time favorites in this regard.

Allow me to briefly set the scene so you’re not confused. Betelgeuse has conned Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder) into marrying him in exchange for saving her daughter from the Afterlife, and serenades her before the vows with the wedding song “MacArthur Park.”

Using his supernatural powers, Betelgeuse forces Lydia, the minister, and the guests to sing and dance to parts of it. Other things are going on, but that’s all you really need to know to ‘get’ the gist of the scene.

The almost five-minute sequence was filmed in only seven days and involved a lot of improvisation. For those of you who enjoy behind-the-scenes footage, Warner Brothers has kindly provided the following:

Artists never fail to surprise and inspire us with their ability to reimagine and repurpose. I hope you’ve enjoyed this example.

1. Currently available on Max.