Movie review - It

This was definitely the Horror hit from last year, the movie remake of the 1990 mini-series based on the 1986 book by Horror master Stephen King. I remember liking the TV series a lot back in the day although I am sure I only watched it once. I actually thought it had been a film back in 1990 that's how long ago I watched it I didn't even remember what the format of it was. I wonder if it's the 1st instance of the killer clown trope, (see also). I know it's certainly the most well known and probably had a big influence on the killer clown hoaxing epidemic that seemed to be all over the news in 2016.

The story is as I remembered it from when I saw it back in the day, a group of kids (The Losers Club) in Derry, Maine are menaced by the local bully Henry Bowers and his gang. This is small potatoes though as they are also being plagued by a demonic ghost clown called Pennywise who steals away Georgie the little brother of Bill Denbrough. He troubles them with visions of what they fear the most, teasing Bill that his brother is floating down there in the sewers. Unable to get the assistance of adults they vow to battle It and try to recover Georgie from the evil entity's lair. They discover that Pennywise has been plaguing the community intermittently for centuries emerging every 27 years. This is the same time period as the novel but for some reason it was changed to 30 in the TV serial.

The fact that this movie comes 27 years after the TV 2-parter is quite a good touch I think and as you'd imagine with the advances in special effects over that period Bill Skarsgård's Pennywise has a whole load more nasty visual tricks up his sleeves that Tim Curry's version of the clown had back in 1990. He uses a number of nasty, bloody visions to terrorize the children as installing fear in them is akin to "salting the meat" making them more tasty I imagine. There is something more unsettling about seeing children fighting for their lives but there is also a bit of a disconnect in my mind, I kept thinking of it a children's adventure story like Goonies or something as there are no adult characters involved in the battle with the clown.

In the 1990 series it was actually a double movie length 2-parter screened over subsequent evenings, for this 2017 remake we have to wait till September 6th 2019 for the denouement. That's quite annoying if you ask me but at least it's not 27 years I suppose! It's a bit odd though as there is a quote on Wikipedia saying it is set 30 years after the original with the kids all grown up, back to kill It for good. They don't seem to have decided on their time line, is it every 27 or 30 years that It emerges from hibernation to feast?

Maybe the wounded It needed 3 more years hibernation to recover?

Maybe I am just getting my facts muddled!

I do think it's rather a long gap between parts 1 and 2 though but who knows maybe in 27 (30?) years time if I am still around I'll be reviewing a 3rd reimagining of the novel.

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