Thought I'd start a thread for this one, as I'm sure we'll all see it within the next couple weeks.
First, I'm thrilled to see this movie doing so well. Along with Get Out's earnings earlier this year (and Annabelle: Creation on its way to crossing $100 million here in the states), the success of IT could really change the way people see and produce horror films.
I've seen the original mini-series for IT, and I'm about halfway through the book. I think this adaptation is a really solid movie with some (mostly) great acting, the standouts for me being Sophia Lillis as Beverly and Bill Skarsgard as Pennywise. Lillis is perfectly likable, effortlessly portraying Beverly's tough exterior and fragile pysche in a way that makes her both sympathetic and pitiful. Skarsgard as Pennywise is the absolute scene-stealer. When he's not being blown out of proportion with cartoony special effects, his (non)human take on the dancing clown is chilling and unforgettable. He's the reason to see the movie in the theater.
I had a few gripes about the movie:
Spoiler:
Of course they changed some of the scares from the book, which I'm totally fine with. No one in the '80s is particularly scared of the creature from the black lagoon, a giant bird, or the wolf man, so I'm not surprised they replaced these scenes for the movie. My issue is that the film treats these scares as simple set pieces and nothing more...
For example, Stan looks at a picture of a distorted woman on the wall. It's clear that the portrait scares him, and it's also clear the woman in this picture is going to become real later on. But the movie wastes zero time having the woman come out of the picture. It's not even a minute later that she's jumping out of the shadows as a real person and not a two-dimensional painting.
It feels like every "scare" is treated this way. The film spends less time establishing what scares the kids and more time assaulting them with it. And after the kids are attacked by their fears, they make no mention of what happened to them the next time they're hanging out with their friends. And not only are they not speaking up, they don't look too upset or lost in thought about opening up about any of it either.
Then there's the ending with Beverly being taken by Pennywise. I don't know if this is how it happens in the book, as I haven't read that far, but for me, it takes a character who has somewhat honed her strong, rebellious attitude and undermined all of that by treating her as the weak damsel in distress. Not cool and not true to the character.
Finally, and probably most importantly, I just didn't find any of the movie scary. And since Annabelle: Creation actually did freak me out last month, that's not a good thing to be saying about a movie that celebrates what scares you.
Overall, though, I thought it was a good movie with a lot of unrealized potential. I'll see the sequel with more reserved expectations.
I own every U.S. #1 horror movie on DVD, as recognized by the statistics on Box Office Mojo, and I've not seen the new It yet. I've also got the mini-series from 1990 which I think is far better. I remember seeing the episodes years ago. I recall the scene where there's bullies in a cinema and the kids they pick on throw their popcorn over the balcony as payback and they get followed into Pennywise's lair later on, and there's also a similar movie called 'Fear of Clowns' worth watching, but it's hard to find.
I'm thinking I might make one to keep in the trunk of the car though. Might be nice to have hot water if I ever have to watch a Matthews compound for 3-4 days hoping to get the drop on Sergio Frenchi. - Neon Bolan
I think we can all agree that Fear of Clowns is the greatest movie featuring a clown to ever exist, and that Shivers the Clown is the greatest new horror movie icon to grace the screen since Freddy Krueger debuted way back when.
