Review of It (2017) by Chloe C — 16 Sep 2017

Really scary, funny at times. Kind of like Stranger Things the movie except instead of the upside down, insert crazy scary encounters with It. Unafraid to really go dark, but hard not to like. All the kids are great in it. It does get a little slow as it nears the end, and could have been trimmed down. The ending is also a little perfunctory, not fully wrapping up big loose ends (re: "floating") but it teases a sequel so I guess I can forgive unanswered questions. BUT there are some big ones that I wish were tied up. The female character, Beverly (they must have gotten this red headed teen character from stranger things) leaves much to be desired, often just a placeholder for the maturing lust of the preteen boys and falling prey to the damsel in distress cliches, despite some nice attempts to round her out. A never fully realized love triangle is one of the weak points of the movie. The one black kid also feels a token-y, not really part of the group. Wish they handled women and minorities better but what else is new.

Overall, I forgive the longueurs, the wobbly ending, the weak female character & tokenism of the black character because despite it all, the movie entertained me, made me laugh, it was gorgeously lensed welcoming Goonies-style/Stranger Things Style nostalgia, the kids were charming and most importantly IT scared the hell out of me. IT did its job. And did IT with style. Four stars.