MOVIE REPORT CARD: IT

DATE: 9/8/17
TITLE: IT
DIRECTOR: ANDY MUSCHIETTI
STARRING: JADEN LIEBERHER, SOPHIA LILLIS, FINN WOLFHARD, BILL SKARSGARD, JEREMY RAY TAYLOR, CHOSEN JACOBS

GRADES

ACTING: 90
DIRECTING: 80
SCREENPLAY: 80
CINEMATOGRAPHY: 80
EDITING: 75
SOUNDTRACK: 80

​FINAL: 81/B-

COMMENTS

IT, never exceeds the sum of its parts, which is a shame. What's most effective in this Stephen King adaptation, are the kids. The Losers Club, is depicted so well here. All these young actors, are fantastic both in their roles, and with each other. The filmmakers are going to have a tough time come Chapter 2, finding adult actors to gel as well as the young kids. The inevitable comparisons to Tim Curry, who portrayed the evil clown Pennywise, in the 90's miniseries, to Bill Skarsgard in this version, are inevitable. Both portrayals are very solid. They are also very different. Curry's version is iconic; one may even say, the only good thing about the miniseries. Skarsgard does a great job here, making the character his own. The problem is, he never really gets a good amount of time to shine. A good portion of his performance, is peeking around corners and then ducking back into the shadows. Ultimately, outside of the Losers Club, and the few moments Skarsgard gets to flex his muscles, the rest of IT is just a run-of-the-mill, paint-by-numbers horror film. It's plagued by cheap jump scares, false scares, stringy music, a slow pace, and an abundance of forced moments. However, IT isn't bad. In fact, it is one of the stronger adaptations of a Stephen King horror novel. It has a knack of pulling itself back into focus. Most of that, is due to these wonderful young actors here. IT, is good, but it's generic shortcomings are disappointing.