IT (2017)

I remember watching the miniseries of IT as a child and being fascinated by Tim Curry’s Pennywise. Goofy and sometimes hilarious but also terrifying. I was so fascinated that I read the book when I was about 9, which turned out to be quite a confusing experience, thanks to the sewer sex scene that’s being brought up pretty often online, but also due to the totally bizarre lore about universe-puking turtles and evil beings made out of lights crashing to Earth on asteroids. Honestly, it made me think King was a bit of a hack, even at such a tender age.

But undeniably the man created incredibly iconic imagery, and that’s as true now as it ever was. So I was pretty eager to watch IT, with the new, creepier Pennywise and the story updated to the 80s still being set long enough ago to inspire nostalgia.

Honestly, this version of IT is a little disappointing. It relies too much on sudden shocks and dodgy CG, especially when it comes to a creepy woman from a painting coming to life, and the kids never seem all that scared. Instead of having to face their fears in the knowledge that they cannot possibly hurt It, they seem empowered to just beating up whatever they see, and It for some reason doesn’t instantly tear them limb from limb despite being shown to be capable of it. There’s not enough build-up of suspense, and when it does get built well – like in the projector scene – the payoff is too abrupt. For a movie that’s wholly about fear, there’s not enough of it.

The script also changes the book’s few kids with huge problems stemming from their parents/guardians to that being the case for every single one of them (bar the underdeveloped loudmouth), to the extent it seems like ticking off angst boxes. The film also cuts the book into two parts, with none of the adult storyline present here at all. Though the timeline with the kids is way better, that decision makes this part seem very shallow overall, and makes me fear for the sequel part because the return to Derry and final showdown really isn’t very exciting.

Taking parts in isolation, IT still has some amazing images, clever ideas and strong performances from a cast of cute adolescents. But it doesn’t really stand alone as a story, as a horror or as a coming-of-age allegory.