The killer clown returns, but should It have taken its cues from Stranger Things and Twin Peaks?
The latest take on one of Stephen King’s scariest novels pulls no punches, but the movie leaves unanswered questions, writes Chris Newbould
It Director Andrés Muschietti Starring Bill Skarsgård, Jaeden Lieberher, Sophia Lillis, Chosen Jacobs, Jeremy Ray Taylor
All eyes are on Andrés Muschietti’s new adaptation of Stephen King’s classic 1986 novel It. Not only is it an adaptation of one of the best-loved books in King’s canon, but it follows a much-loved 1990 TV miniseries adaptation starring Tim Curry as the terrifying Pennywise the Clown.
It is possibly one of King’s scariest novels, and Muschietti pulls no punches with the film either. Just minutes have passed when we’re introduced to Bill Skarsgård’s new interpretation of Pennywise, brutally attacking a cute little boy from his sewer lair, and the scares come thick and fast from there on.
There is more to It than scares, though. At heart, it is a comingof-age tale. The main characters that make up the Losers’ Club are all at the point in their teenage years where fears about growing up, the opposite sex and social acceptance all peak. The children have a wide range of individual issues, too.
Bill (Jaeden Lieberher) has a stammer and is haunted by the disappearance of his brother, whom we meet briefly in the film’s opening scenes getting acquainted with Pennywise. Beverly (Sophia Lillis) is being abused by her dad. Mike (Chosen Jacobs) is tortured by the horror of working in his family’s meat hacking-and-packing business, but desperate to cut it and be loyal. All these fears and anxieties materialise in the most horrifying physical form in the shape of Pennywise.
The movie is a visual treat. Muschietti’s previous film was 2013’s Mama, a film that had its own distinct visual language. That was executive produced by Guillermo del Toro, and his influence on Muschietti’s aesthetic is clear.
It, too, features Muschietti’s fantastical visual treatment, and even horror staples such as the blood-soaked bathroom and the scary-clown take on their own distinct appearance under his direction.
If anything, the movie perhaps focuses too strongly on the visuals and not enough on the narrative. We know Pennywise is some kind of demon that manifests as a scary clown, but we don’t really find out why, where he came from or why he only visits the town of Derry, Maine, once every 27 years to prey on its children.
Perhaps these are answers that we will learn in the sequel – because this is only chapter one. Chapter two, subject to box-office success, will see our heroes return to Derry as adults, 27 years later, to face their childhood tormentor once more.
In the age of bingewatching, you can’t help wondering if the miniseries approach might have been the right one
On the whole, the movie serves King’s novel well, and solid performances from a genuinely scary Skarsgård and a talented child cast help keep things moving nicely.
In the age of bingewatching, though, you can’t help wondering if the 1990 mini-series approach might have been the right one. The movie has a lot in common with recent successes such as Stranger Things and Twin
Peaks, and Muschietti seems to be constantly straddling the line between divulging enough about Derry and its strange residents and secrets, and keeping the movie to a palatable length.
Muschietti succeeds, but you can’t help wondering what he might have achieved given a 10-hour palette.
‘It’ is in cinemas across the UAE now