Film Review: It: Chapter Two

"Something Happens When You Leave This Town. The Farther Away, The Hazier It All Gets. But Me, I Never Left. I Remember All Of It..."

With It surprising both critics and audiences alike back in 2017 as it proudly declared itself as not just one of the best films of the year but undoubtedly one of the best Stephen King cinematic adaptations of all time, this week finally brings with it the release of Chapter Two, the hotly anticipated concluding tale of the battle between Pennywise the Dancing Clown and The Loser's Club, one set twenty seven years after the events of the previous film as we see our returning heroes return to the town of Derry in order to face the fearful figure which has haunted them throughout their individual lives. Directed by the returning Andy Muschietti, Chapter Two continues the Argentine's dedicated affection for the original King novel as he brings to the big screen a three hour long, horror adventure epic which, in a similar fashion to the original source material, is thrilling, well orchestrated and thunderously entertaining, but a film which also annoyingly suffers drastically from an overlong and poorly managed runtime, bloated pacing issues and an over reliance on very repetitive set pieces, factors of which at times puts shivers down your spine in completely the wrong way as you cry out for a cold-hearted editor to cut away the deadwood in order to create a film which would have proudly stood head to head with the 2017 original but instead, is clearly the inferior chapter of the two.

With Chapter Two of course set twenty seven years after the events of the first film, the opening movement of the movie takes time to re-introduce the adult form of our beloved Losers, most of whom have managed to move away from the confines of Derry and into successful lives elsewhere until they are quickly brought back to their homeland by Isaiah Mustafa's Mike Hanlon, the only remaining member of the pack still residing in Derry, who quickly realises that the threat of Bill Skarsgård's ominous Pennywise has once again returned. With the reunion party out of the way and memories of their childhood slowly rising back to the surface, the narrative then sees each of the Losers each attempt to fully remember the reason for their return, a clever plot device which allows the story to weave in and out of time shifts as we dive deeper into the lives of the Losers' younger selves and further chance encounters with our beloved baby-headed primary antagonist, a strangely similar device to that seen within Avengers: Endgame whereby time travel was utilised in order for individual characters to revisit iconic sequences in an almost victory-lap appraisal of the events which have come before it. Whilst this most definitely worked within Endgame thanks to a buildup of characterisation over twenty films, the same cannot be said for Chapter Two, as the individual set pieces soon become incredibly repetitive, resulting in a sense of unease not caused by horror but by a willingness for the narrative to actually get on with it, particularly when most of the scenes do seem direct re-treads of those seen within the first film, but even with that in mind, certain set pieces do evoke a chilling sense of knowingly ridiculous, overblown horror, particularly one scene lifted straight from the novel in which Jessica Chastain's (Zero Dark Thirty) Beverly Marsh takes a haunting trip back to her childhood home address.  

With the original King novel itself suffering from a sense that certain aspects within the story go so out there in terms of the sublime ridiculousness that to transfer them onto the big screen would be nigh-on impossible, the first part of Muschietti's vision did well to bend particular set pieces in order to cater to a more mainstream audience with alarming success, and as Chapter Two finally arrives at its' final act, all memories of the cringey, low budget depiction of Pennywise's true form from the 1990 television miniseries are completely expelled thanks to a final confrontation which is probably the best big screen depiction of the source material as you possibly could get. As per the overall sensibility of the film, the final act manages to blend supernatural horror elements with laugh out loud moments of comedy, where although not every pun manages to quite stick the landing, carries on the coming-of-age feel which the first chapter clearly evoked so well, as we see the Losers continue the charming character conversations and witty banter shared all the way through the first film and now almost effortlessly once again as they reunite as adults. With Chastain, James McAvoy (Dark Phoenix) and Bill Hader (Saturday Night Live) the clear standout performers, with Chastain particularly being well and truly put through the wringer thanks to THAT bathroom scene alone which evoked the look of Shauna Macdonald in The Descent, and a sheer fondness for the central characters, Chapter Two works excellently as a two hour horror adventure, but thanks to an unholy decision to add on an extra hour just for the memories, Muschietti's approach to King's novel is undoubtedly the best adaptation fans could have hoped for thanks to characters and a Pennywise for the ages, but as a standalone picture by itself, Chapter Two is baggy, but is still very, very good. 

Overall Score: 7/10

Film Review: It

"You'll Float Too..."

Following in the footsteps of The Dark Tower earlier this year, the release of It is of course yet another cinematic adaptation of a novel from horror aficionado Stephen King and similarly is a story of which I have read from top to bottom, a particular strain when considering its' mammoth 1400 plus page count, and whilst many regard the 1990 miniseries starring Tim Curry with high esteem, there is no doubting its' staggered weariness since its' release, particularly in regards to the cheap effects and corny dialogue which encompassed much of television serials for that particular period in time. With Mama director Andy Muschietti steadying the ship and King's blessings showered over its' production, the time for a contemporary adaptation of arguably King's most iconic novel has been highly anticipated since the first murmurings of its' release were afoot, and with the film following the natural course of a plain sailing narrative by focusing primarily on the story of the children and leaving the elder's tales until the sequel, It has the capacity to be up there with the best King adaptations to date. With a script which is as faithful to the source material as perhaps practically possible, Muschetti has effectively managed to craft a crowd-pleasing modern day horror classic, one which combines the fearlessness of youth with rib-tickling comedy and of course, the underlying element of utmost terror, one which is amalgamated within the form of a simply terrifying incarnation of King's most disturbing creation thus far. 

Switching the 1950's era of the novel to the late 1980's, a period of time consisting of cinemas showing A Nightmare on Elm Street 5 and sounds of The Cult and The Cure, It begins in the horrific, iconic fashion of the source material, using the death of Georgie Denbrough as effective characterisation for both brother Bill and Bill Skarsgård's portrayal of Pennywise, and whilst the death of a minor is always difficult to portray upon the big screen, Muschietti's decision to act strictly within the confines of the film's highly deserved 15 rating is both shocking and ballsy, but too a decision which ultimately benefits the sadistic and murderous nature of the film's titular villain, and with Skarsgård's portrayal of Pennywise carrying the fearful threat which made the character so powerful within the novel, each and every time his character appears on-screen either in clown form or the many other disguises depicted, the fundamental uncertainty of clowns which I believe resonates in almost everyone is absolutely and undeniably terrifying. With minimalistic, subverted facial twitches, surrealist voice cues and the bonus of added digital effects, the world has finally found the definitive portrayal of Pennywise, and although Tim Curry's performance will always be admired by many of a certain ilk, Skarsgård's interpretation is the character I totally envisioned when reading the novel and from a person who tends not to fall under the spell of jump scares, Skarsgård's Pennywise managed to both fill me with terror and make me check my pants after a collection of effectively maneuvered horror set pieces. 

In regards to both members and enemies of the Losers Club, casting director Rich Delia is arguably the real hero of the movie, accumulating an ensemble cast of primarily youth-inflicted, un-established talent which transcribes on-screen as pretty much perfect in terms of each respective character's transition from paper to screen, and whilst the depth of characterisation prevalent in the novel was always impossible to fit into a two hour movie, Muschietti manages to direct each individual with enough vigour and charm to establish themselves as wholly believable and empathetic. Whether it be the sadistic parenting of both Beverly Marsh and lead bully Henry Bowers or the overbearing figure of Eddie Kaspbrak's anxious mother, the development of the characters has the desired effect whenever they are placed in a position of peril, and even though from reading the novel I was aware of where each of the character's narrative threads was heading, the channeling of the brilliantly constructed cast makes the horror elements much more effective. In a sentence, you'll scare because you care. Whilst the threat of Pennywise does lesser slightly come the concluding battle between forces both good and evil in the surroundings of Derry's less than attractive sewering system and the CGI construction of particular monsters not being as effective as the titular leading character, Muschietti's movie is a masterclass of how to transition a story from page to screen, and whilst It is only part one of the story to come, the culmination of a superbly intertwined genre-swapping narrative, a perfectly moulded cast and an unparallelled faithfulness to the novel, Muschietti's film is not only a marvel of modern horror cinema, but it redefines how Hollywood should be treating its' horror-loving audience. See you in 27 years. 

Overall Score: 9/10