Master of Horror novels, Stephen King is back on silver screens to enthrall the audience, this time with the movie adaptation of his novel IT, which was also made as a mini-series in the 90s. Directed by Andy Muschietti, the film releases in India on September 8. Here's the first on the net exclusive review of the spine chilling horror flick from India Herald.
Set in the small town of Derry, Maine in late 1980s, IT begins with the disappearance of the 6-year-old Georgie, after he encounters the strange looking figure which calls itself Pennywise, the Dancing clown ( Bill Skarsgard). Years later, Georgie's elder brother Bill (Jaden Lieberher), who still believes Georgie is Alive, and his friends Stan, the pervert Richie (Finn Wolfhard), Beverly (Sophia Lillis), Mike , Eddie , Mike and Ben who call themselves "The Loser's club" join hands in his mission to give his little brother.
As Bill and his team struggle hard to find Georgie, they come to terms with the reality that they are in the vicinity and control of the clown Pennywise, who's a dangerous demon preying on the fears and darkest secrets of the children.As adults can't see Pennywise, the children who are in trouble now have to wage a war against the mighty evil around them and whether they won the battle or succumbed to their scares is what the super scary IT is all about.
When it comes to scary flicks, the characters ought to have the necessary detailing to enable the audience to connect with them and transfer the scares generated on screen virtually, and IT stands out with its interesting characterizations. As the confident Bill, on the lookout for his younger brother, Jaden Lieberher is impressive and complementing him perfectly is Sophia Lillis as the tomboyish Beverly (one cannot miss her striking resemblance to Amy Adams!) who has a lovely Romantic track with him.
However, Finn Wolfhard as the perverted Richie almost totally steals the show with his menacing act with loads of profanity and irreverent remarks. Bill Skarsgard presents himself as Pennywise, almost surpassing the deadly act by Tim Curry in the 90s series. Be it the chubby cute guy Ben (Jeremy Ray Taylor), or Chosen Jacobs as Mike, all the characters have a backstory perfectly establishing their fears and weaknesses, and that makes IT an entertaining and thrilling experience.
Chung-Hoon Chung's cinematography captures the dark tone of the movie with consummate ease, and Benjamin Wallfisch's background score is sure to scare you when you least expect it, and that itself is a huge asset to IT. Chase Palmer, Cary Fukunaga, and Gary Dauberman should be lauded for offering a perfect screenplay comprising only the children's part of Stephen King's novel and presenting it with loads of scares, ably supported by Jason Ballantine's crisp editing that keeps you engaged throughout the 2 hours 15 minutes runtime.
Director Andy Muschietti has made a return after Mama (2013) with It, and horror being his home turf, has a field day and scores beautifully with his interesting presentation. More than a jump scare film, Andy presents It as a movie which focuses more on real life dangers and how the kids deal it in a way adults fail to do, as Pennywise horrifies them. Besides, Andy has this unique way of comforting audience with a humorous end to even a terrorizing, dead scary sequence with one liner and jokes by the Loser's club, that makes It even more enjoyable.
Andy Muschietti establishes the fact that he's a promising maker who can make wonders with the horror genre, and reaffirms the fact that he's here to stay, especially with the way he unfolds the phase where Skarsgard as Pennywise realizes that he has lost control over the Loser's club, and the depth with which he has depicted each of the characters is sure to increase the expectations and desire to witness a sequel to this amazing scare fest. On the flip side, the movie has minor quibbles. It's a little long with 135 minutes running time.And easily the movie could be trimmed down by another 20 minutes.
Benjamin Wallfisch's musical score also goes overbearing at times as complete silence itself would be the best way to go. All said, IT is a perfect adaptation of Stephen King's novel, which is gonna break box office records, and is one thrilling hell ride with loads of genuine scares, that's sure to chill your spines and haunt you for a long time even after leaving the halls!!
Jaeden Lieberher,Bill Skarsgård,Andy Muschietti,Roy Lee,Dan Lin,Seth Grahame-Smith,David Katzenberg,Barbara Muschietti,Benjamin Wallfisch IT entertains as a devilish work of unsettling blend of horror and humor