It (15)
Watching TV movie It back in the early nineties was enough to put me off clowns for life.
Tim Curry’s deliciously devilish turn as Pennywise was the stuff of nightmares, but watching the three-hour two-parter back now reveals it hasn’t stood the test of time.
Ripe for a remake, then, but coming just a few weeks on from the dodgy Dark Tower, trepidation filled the air ahead of this latest Stephen King adaptation.
There was no need to worry, though, as the 2017 It not only blows its predecessor and The Dark Tower out of the water, but rates as one of the finest cinematic takes on King’s work.
That’s thanks in no small part to Swede Bill Skarsgård’s chilling performance as Pennywise. Making Curry’s clown look like an entertainer at a children’s party, this new version of the horror icon is genuinely frightening, with Skarsgård’s mannerisms, make-up and manic vocals creating an antagonist worthy of comparison with Freddy and Jason.
Crucially, we don’t get bombarded with Pennywise appearances; his screen time is kept brief and he’s all the better for it as each time he pops up it feels like an event.
One of the original television movie’s biggest flaws was the dodgy performances of the central group of bullied kids that have to band together to battle Pennywise.
No such problems here, however, as the