Ever since the 1990 miniseries, horror film fans have been clamoring for a big-screen adaptation of “It.” Tim Curry was brilliant as Pennywise but the story, dialogue, and visual terror had to be toned down significantly for broadcast television. A new film adaptation of the story has been in the works for many years and an eerily symbolic 27-year wait has produced the “It” that we have always craved. “Scary” is not the correct term to describe this film; rather, it needs to be categorized as “disturbing.” The story is intense and the imagery is horrific but I believe that any moviegoer could enjoy this film, even if they don’t like scary movies. The key is the film’s tone, which is more intense than it is scary. The film focuses on using storytelling to reveal the mystery of Pennywise instead of trying to terrorize us with jump scares. A strong opening sequence introduces us to the clown and associates him with a gruesome image that sticks with us every time that he appears. Throughout the film, the various forms of Pennywise are created with a brilliant visual style (particularly, the blood in Beverly’s bathroom and the realized version of Edvard Munch‘s “The Scream”). Director Andy Muschietti paces the film to give us short breaks that makes the tension even more unbearable. The sequence in the abandoned house had my heart pounding! However, the key to this film is the amazing performances by these teen actors. I was blown away by Sophia Lillis’ powerful performance and Jeremy Ray Taylor was very endearing as Ben. It is only natural that they would include one of today’s most popular child actors in the cast (Finn Wolfhard of “Stranger Things” fame) and his presence really enhances the updated 80’s setting for this story since we are so used to seeing him in this time period. It is amazing that these teens can match the intensity of Bill Skarsgard’s terrifying Pennywise. I appreciate that Skarsgard knew that nobody could ever match Tim Curry and instead reimagined the personality of the clown. My only issue with the film is the overabundance of profanity. The child actors give refined performances that don’t necessitate the use of profanity to get their emotions across. If anything, the script cheapens the efforts of the actors. Still, I’m glad that the writers chose to eliminate a few infamous pieces of the story that would have left a sour taste in the audience’s mouth. After a 27-year wait, we finally have a big-screen adaption of “It” that delivers a terrorizing experience beyond what I could have anticipated.
[Pictured: "It" just got a lot more sinister]
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