While I wouldn’t trade my time in film school for anything — other than maybe a slightly more useful degree — it has kind of ruined the genre of “horror” for me. While I still enjoy spooky stories, the veil has been lifted and I can generally pick out the filmmaking tricks necessary to make the audience jump (though Twin Peaks: The Return did scare they shit out of me, but that’s mostly because of David Lynch’s nightmarish sound design). This definitely proved true for It, Andy Muschietti’s new update of the 1990 horror TV miniseries. But it also didn’t matter — this iteration of Stephen King’s novel is wonderful as its own thing.
It is different than its predecessor in all the right ways. While the miniseries clumsily intercut between the stories of the preteen and adult versions of The Losers Club — the dogged heroes of the unbelievably fucked up burg of Derry, Maine, the new version chooses to separate into two standalone films, one with the kids and one with the grown-ups. This film focuses solely on the younger Losers Club, with the setting updated to the late 1980s.
The portrayal of the Losers Club also benefits from a lighter tone in the script’s dialogue. While more direct adaptations of Stephen King stories are generally riddled with repartee dialogue that’s full of unexplained inside jokes, the ones that use more of their director’s creative license tend to amplify the material. It’s why The Shining still stands out as the cornerstone of good King adaptations (and likely why King himself hates that film).
In fact, It views as a scarier version of The Goonies, focusing more intently on the chemistry of its young leads in the face of adventure rather than the darkness they’re chasing. And the kids’ acting is far less wooden than in the original, most notably in Stranger Things star Finn Wolfhard as class clown Richie Tozier, the role originated by Seth Green in the miniseries. Easily the best actor of the group, Wolfhard is given the film’s standout lines.
The film is pretty scary, too. The visuals are clipped and unsettling, and Bill Skarsgård’s Pennywise the Clown moves with a rubbery gait that’s almost horrifyingly cartoonish. I know this may be high heresy for fans of the original, but Skarsgård was far more frightening than Tim Curry, and it’s not even close.
And on a personal, more nitpicky note, kudos to It for not over-relying on ’80s nostalgia. Films made by grown fans have a tendency to go heavy on the nostalgia. But It uses it as more of a timekeeper, a way to mark the age of the undoubtedly older leads of Part 2, which will presumably be set 27 years later.
If you’re looking to occupy your days before Stranger Things returns in late October, checking out It would be a great way to do it. Then maybe you can help me work on my dream casting for the adults. Here are my picks:
Bill: Chris Pine
Beverley: Jessica Chastain
Ben: Ryan Reynolds
Eddie: Colin Hanks
Richie: Bill Hader
Stanley: Elijah Wood
Mike: Anthony Mackie
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