Review of It (2017) by Luciusmcgibbon — 23 Dec 2017

(oooooh, 666 positives as of this review... dun dun DUUUNNN).

Look... I don't want to take anything away from Tim Curry's incredible portrayal of Pennywise... but that aspect aside, the new "It" is just a superior movie.

For me, the major improvement was the visuals. Whether you like CGI or not, there's just so much more that can be accomplished now in the area of visual horror, and I can't think of a pure horror movie that benefits more. There are a number of scares that would have been totally unfilmable in the original. In 1991, we got to see Pennywise's demonic teeth thanks to a mouthpiece you'll find today at a costume store... In 2017, we get visual effects that bring your toothiest nightmares to life. A lot more "reality warping" is possible nowadays, and this movie is a perfect example. Right from the opening where Georgie dies (that doesn't qualify as a spoiler,) you'll see the difference good visual effects can make. This story was *screaming* for a modern-day makeover with the range of effects on hand. The story itself is decently paced, the casting for the Losers Club was impeccable (not to mentioned Henry Bowers and Pennywise,) and the scares are well distributed to keep things interesting. On the minus side, they laid the soundtrack on a little thick... Sometimes, you get the feeling the producers think the audience needs help telling when the scary part kicks in..... This might be the case with many other movies, but not this one. You'll know when it's time to be scared, because it will simply be scary.

I'm actually convinced the adult chapter will be weaker, if only because the kids' chapter was so on point, and puts a lot more energy into shocking the viewer than resolving the story.