Horror Stephen King's "IT" Part I and Part II

[Pennywise]

The IT Chapter Two Cast And Director Took Some Amazing Items Home From The Set

Together, IT and IT Chapter Two are leaving an indelible stamp on pop culture, and everyone involved in the making of them will long remember the experience. Some of the folks, however, will have more than just memories to reflect upon, as I learned during the recent Los Angeles press day for the forthcoming sequel. As I learned during interviews with the director and members of the cast, there are a few items from set that ended up being taken home instead of being put in some warehouse somewhere:

Going from interview room to interview room during the IT Chapter Two press day, I tried to ask all of the actors and filmmakers if they kept anything from the production as a keepsake. Some, like producer Barbara Muschietti, didn’t feel like any of the on-set props or bits of costuming were hers to take, but director Andy Muschietti, and stars Jack Dylan Grazer, Sophia Lillis, Jaeden Martell, and Chosen Jacobs apparently didn’t exactly feel the same way.

Pennywise's Teeth
First up we have Andy Muschietti’s kept item from set, which he didn’t exactly surreptitiously take because it was presented to him as a gift. According to the director, his experience filming his final take with Bill Skarsgard as Pennywise The Dancing Clown was marked by the actor approaching him and giving him the fake buckteeth that are so prominently shown in the image above. And while Muschietti didn’t say exactly what he has done with the evil clown teeth, he apparently keeps them “very safe.”

Silver, Shoes, Fake Cigarettes, And An Inhaler
Even though they were on the set for two movies instead of just one, not every younger member of the Loser’s Club wound up keeping an item from the making of IT or IT Chapter 2, but those that did ended up with some pretty amazing keepsakes. The big mindblower that came as a shock to everyone in the room is that Jaeden Martell, who plays Bill Denbrough, got to keep his character’s bike, nicknamed Silver. Jack Dylan Grazer held on to the inhaler that Eddie uses for his fake asthma, and Sophia Lillis still has a pair of Beverly’s shoes – though she more took them by accident than anything. As for Chosen Jacobs, he went a different route with his memento, as he took home fake cigarettes made of tea leaves so that he could prank his mom.

Losers Club Boxes
When I asked Jessica Chastain and Jay Ryan if they kept anything from set, the former gave me a different answer than most – revealing that she made sure that every adult member of the Losers Club left the set of IT Chapter Two with something special. She had custom wooden boxes made for all of them, and each not only had their character names, but also specific items from the movie that are meant to represent them (explaining more gets a bit too into spoiler territory for a pre-release article). They sound pretty incredible.

The saga making IT and IT Chapter Two is over, but only starting this weekend will audiences be able to see how the big screen story comes to a conclusion. Be sure to check it out, and stay tuned here on CinemaBlend for more from my interviews with the cast and filmmakers!

 

[Spider-Fan]

My overall verdict on chapter 2 is that yes it is indeed not as good as chapter one. But, part of that I think just stems from the fact that the adult portion of the story just is not as compelling as the kids are. The movie itself is still good, and has many of the same strengths that chapter one had. I don't think this one has as many scenes that I feel will be iconic down the road, but still was a solid movie

I think it just stems from the fact that in chapter one, we have already established that it can be defeated. So, now that we've already established that fact, watching them effectively just go the extra mile this time is not as compelling a struggle as that initial defeat is.

 

[Ninjablade]

Just got back from seeing this, and I absolutely love the film. Front to back this movie had me engrossed. I adore the first film as well, but I think this surpassed it. Chapter 2 is going right to the top of my 10 films of this year and is probably sitting at around 9/10.

I'll put more in-depth and mild-spoiler thoughts bellow.

Spoiler

So right off the bat, I'll just voice that my two biggest concerns going into the film were: it being too long for its own good and that some of the flashbacks to the kids would feel repetitive. Luckily neither of those were an issue with the actual film. While the structure of the second act is sort of repetitive the pacing kept everything moving. The only time I felt the movie might've dragged is the ending, as there were a few places that felt like it could've been the ending before the actual end.

As for the kids, they were in it quite a bit, but for some reason, it felt quite sparse. Not sure how that comment will hold up upon second viewings (I'm seeing it again tomorrow so I guess I'll find out sooner than later), but I was kind of surprised by how reserved it felt. The de-aging was pretty well done for the most part for most of the kids, probably wouldn't have noticed if I didn't already know. Jack Dylan Grazer's was a little off, mostly in his voice. The effect looked fine for Jeremy Taylor (Ben), but they didn't seem like they added some of the weight he lost after filming the first movie, so he seemed too skinny when compared to the reused footage. Other than that, I loved seeing some of the things we missed during that small time jump. Only wish we got to see more of young Mike. Chosen Jacobs really got the short end of the straw.

Not that I find either film scary, but Chapter 2's horror came across as far more effective. There was less hiding what was happening behind quick cutting. Everything was clearly visible. I also liked the more psychological approach to some of the scares. You could feel Pennywise's anger and hatred. There was less "I just want to f around with these kids because I enjoy it" and more "yeah I want to f these people up for life like they did to me". Skarsgard is fantastic once again. He definitely got way more to do, so I was happy to see that. The scene under the bleachers with the little girl was exactly what I wanted more of in the first film.

The adult Losers were all great. Whoever was in charge of casting struck again, the characters truly felt like friends and older variations of the kids. Performance-wise everyone was pretty damn good. Jay Ryan's Ben was probably the weakest link of the bunch. Not that he was bad, I just felt everyone else was a more natural progression. Hader and Mustafa were my favorites. Richie didn't do anything for me in the first movie, but here I felt for him. I've always found Hader funny, but he showed some serious dramatic chops here. It's a little scary how much James Ransone came across as an older Grazer in his performance. My only issue with him was that at times the writing didn't feel like an older version of Eddie. Maybe I need to watch IT again, but Eddie felt more aggressive here. For the book readers, is he like that in the novel or am I misremembering?

I wish they did more with Henry Bowers. Much like the last film he felt like kind of an afterthought here. The actor was really good, but I just wish he got more to work with. He kind of just shows up and disappears just as quickly a few times.

Some other random comments would be: the CGI was a little wonky at times, especially towards the beginning. The final act looked really good thankfully. The cinematography was amazing, a lot of great looking shots and beautiful camera movements. The movie also had some of my favorite transitions between scenes. It all felt so seamless. The humor was great, lot of funny bits. I loved the jokes about how King can never write an ending. King's cameo was great as well.

I'm sure I'm probably forgetting some other things, but that's all the main stuff I had some thoughts on. I'm very excited to see this again, and now even more intrigued by a possible supercut of the two movies.

 

[Marvolo]

The score is on spotify.

 

[Marvolo]

Do we get to see

Spoiler

the werewolf chase Bill and Richie on Silver in any of the flashbacks?

 

[DarkKnight88]

You have no evidence that the studio released a free version of the film as a part of their marketing. Downloading a leaked film or paying money for a leaked film is piracy and a federal crime.

What are you talking about? We were talking about a 40 seconds Birds of Prey teaser!

 

[Ninjablade]

Do we get to see

Spoiler

the werewolf chase Bill and Richie on Silver in any of the flashbacks?

Spoiler

No.

 

[The Chris]

I loved this damn thing! I'm just not used to horror being done in such a grand and epic way. They just went for it guys. I laughed, I cried, I jumped out of my seat. I can't for Andy to do his 6 hour cut. It: The Whole Bloody Affair! I hope Stephen King is proud.

 

[terry78]

It: Chapter Two’s Gay-Bashing Scene Exploits a Real-Life Killing for a Cheap Shock

Well, we did say this would be coming.

 

[kguillou]

I had a really good time with this movie. Its not as good as the first and its got flaws up the wazoo but on a whole it works and is a very enjoyable ride. The cast makes it work and they work well together. Hader steals the show. The movie’s not scary but there were some parts that were unnerving and made me jump and genuinely thrilling. This isnt a horror movie so much as a dark sci film with sci fi logic. I did feel the jump scares got a little old after a while though.

I think this movie’s gonna be a big ol hit judging from how my audience reacted during the film.

 

[Art Vandelay]

Just got back from seeing this, and I absolutely love the film. Front to back this movie had me engrossed. I adore the first film as well, but I think this surpassed it. Chapter 2 is going right to the top of my 10 films of this year and is probably sitting at around 9/10.

I'll put more in-depth and mild-spoiler thoughts bellow.

Spoiler

So right off the bat, I'll just voice that my two biggest concerns going into the film were: it being too long for its own good and that some of the flashbacks to the kids would feel repetitive. Luckily neither of those were an issue with the actual film. While the structure of the second act is sort of repetitive the pacing kept everything moving. The only time I felt the movie might've dragged is the ending, as there were a few places that felt like it could've been the ending before the actual end.

As for the kids, they were in it quite a bit, but for some reason, it felt quite sparse. Not sure how that comment will hold up upon second viewings (I'm seeing it again tomorrow so I guess I'll find out sooner than later), but I was kind of surprised by how reserved it felt. The de-aging was pretty well done for the most part for most of the kids, probably wouldn't have noticed if I didn't already know. Jack Dylan Grazer's was a little off, mostly in his voice. The effect looked fine for Jeremy Taylor (Ben), but they didn't seem like they added some of the weight he lost after filming the first movie, so he seemed too skinny when compared to the reused footage. Other than that, I loved seeing some of the things we missed during that small time jump. Only wish we got to see more of young Mike. Chosen Jacobs really got the short end of the straw.

Not that I find either film scary, but Chapter 2's horror came across as far more effective. There was less hiding what was happening behind quick cutting. Everything was clearly visible. I also liked the more psychological approach to some of the scares. You could feel Pennywise's anger and hatred. There was less "I just want to f around with these kids because I enjoy it" and more "yeah I want to f these people up for life like they did to me". Skarsgard is fantastic once again. He definitely got way more to do, so I was happy to see that. The scene under the bleachers with the little girl was exactly what I wanted more of in the first film.

The adult Losers were all great. Whoever was in charge of casting struck again, the characters truly felt like friends and older variations of the kids. Performance-wise everyone was pretty damn good. Jay Ryan's Ben was probably the weakest link of the bunch. Not that he was bad, I just felt everyone else was a more natural progression. Hader and Mustafa were my favorites. Richie didn't do anything for me in the first movie, but here I felt for him. I've always found Hader funny, but he showed some serious dramatic chops here. It's a little scary how much James Ransone came across as an older Grazer in his performance. My only issue with him was that at times the writing didn't feel like an older version of Eddie. Maybe I need to watch IT again, but Eddie felt more aggressive here. For the book readers, is he like that in the novel or am I misremembering?

I wish they did more with Henry Bowers. Much like the last film he felt like kind of an afterthought here. The actor was really good, but I just wish he got more to work with. He kind of just shows up and disappears just as quickly a few times.

Some other random comments would be: the CGI was a little wonky at times, especially towards the beginning. The final act looked really good thankfully. The cinematography was amazing, a lot of great looking shots and beautiful camera movements. The movie also had some of my favorite transitions between scenes. It all felt so seamless. The humor was great, lot of funny bits. I loved the jokes about how King can never write an ending. King's cameo was great as well.

I'm sure I'm probably forgetting some other things, but that's all the main stuff I had some thoughts on. I'm very excited to see this again, and now even more intrigued by a possible supercut of the two movies.

Regarding Eddie, I guess it depends on what you mean by "aggressive". He speaks his mind, and he's sort of set in his ways, if that makes sense. I don't recall his feelings towards the others as an adult, maybe because the start of the adult section is told through Bill's eyes.

What did you think of adult Mike? I know you praised the actor, but seeing things from this movie makes me worried about how they're portraying the character.

 

[Art Vandelay]

It: Chapter Two’s Gay-Bashing Scene Exploits a Real-Life Killing for a Cheap Shock

Well, we did say this would be coming.

Honestly, that seemed like a pretty well reasoned article, to me.

 

[Marvolo]

What are you talking about? We were talking about a 40 seconds Birds of Prey teaser!

Oh I thought you were talking about this film.

 

[Marvolo]

It: Chapter Two’s Gay-Bashing Scene Exploits a Real-Life Killing for a Cheap Shock

Well, we did say this would be coming.

Breaking news: The horror genre uses exploitation, manipulation, and real world events to cause fear!

Next at 12: Water is wet and ice is cold, but is fire truly hot or just spicy?

 

[Schlosser85]

I’m gay and the scene isn’t offensive or exploitative, and you don’t get to speak for people the scene actually pertains to for your BS clickbait headlines.

 

[Heretic]

Just got back from seeing it. Not very scary...didn't draw me into the story nearly as much as the first one...but it was pretty fun and overall not bad...maybe a little cheesy.

 

[terry78]

You can't really go into it expecting to be jump scared like most people feel a horror movie should be. It's more of a disturbing horror.

 

[Heretic]

I didn't find it that disturbing...aside from some of the stuff that is inherently disturbing like child abuse and homophobic assault.

 

[Ninjablade]

Regarding Eddie, I guess it depends on what you mean by "aggressive". He speaks his mind, and he's sort of set in his ways, if that makes sense. I don't recall his feelings towards the others as an adult, maybe because the start of the adult section is told through Bill's eyes.

I should've probably specified a bit more, as I found the aggressiveness to only be present during his banter with Richie. In the first film, they were constantly trading remarks and Richie would annoy the crap out of Eddie, but it always seemed to be in good faith in one another and never overly personal. Here it felt like Eddie was maybe taking things way too seriously, almost as if he and Richie weren't friends. Granted, this was all pretty early on and was probably done on purpose to highlight the differences as they got older, I just personally found it a little jarring as it seemed everyone else slipped into their original relationships/friendly banter. It definitely got better as the film went on though.

What did you think of adult Mike? I know you praised the actor, but seeing things from this movie makes me worried about how they're portraying the character.

As for adult Mike, I thought he was fine. Shortchanging him in the first movie definitely hurt the character in the long run. He gets more to do this time around, but not that much. Going to spoiler tag some stuff just in case:

Spoiler

They definitely should've delved more into his time in Derry during the 27 year gap. I mean we learn all the important stuff he did and how he's been spending his time, but the lack of characterization and motivation was a bit strange. I might've missed a quick mention, but I don't remember them even addressing why he of all people stayed in Derry, just that he did.

 

[Art Vandelay]

With Eddie, there are moments in the book when, as an adult, he gets seriously pissed at Richie for messing with him. But it makes sense in the context of the scene, since there is a shift in tone over dinner. My take on Eddie is he's become the most fastidious of the Losers in his old age, and thus isn't really all that eager to engage in the old verbal repartee with Richie. Although, this kind of flies in the face of what some fans of these characters feel is attraction, as there isn't much warmth between the character's adult counterparts.

What bugs me about what I'm seeing from Mike is

Spoiler: spoiler

how it looks like the others treat him with hostility and distrust. I've seen the diner scene, and they initially suspect him of tampering with the fortune cookies. I've seen parts of the ending fight with It, and Bill and Richie yell at Mike because they think he lied again about something, and he just comes off as rather weak and pathetic. There's probably some set up for this, but that ain't the Mike I know from the book, and it seems really late in the movie to have the characters still second guessing him.

I think that's the main reason I can't get on board with this version of the Loser's Club. I don't buy them as being really close friends.

 

[Ninjablade]

Spoiler: Major Final Act Spoiler

A piece of bad writing that stands out to me after some thinking about the film. What the heck is the point of treating the Losers finding out the Ritual didn’t work the first time like a big deal? Obviously it didn’t work, It is still alive. They all should know that. Why have Mike hide that information? They explain it being a battle of wills, that’s all you needed. Have him explain that they need to have a stronger will than the natives to win and just not have it work because they’re missing Stan. It’s unnecessary to have it not work because simply because the ritual would never work and Mike needing to lie to everyone. What a stupid writing decision.

 

[The Shape]

I liked the film, but definitely felt that several of the kids flashbacks were repetitive and ultimately unnecessary, as they rehashed similar or identical beats from Chapter I. The film seriously drags for awhile before the finale ramps up.

I didn’t mind the film being as long as it is, but would have rather had them come up with a few new scenes or plot threads for the adults.

 

[Nardz937]

I liked it a lot.

Not a spoiler because it's in the trailer, but the scene with Pennywise and the little girl under the baseball rafters may be my favorite work from Skarsgard as the character.

 

[Luigi]

Loved it. Actually prefer the movie's ending over the book's ending.

 

[Lasirius]

I’m gay and the scene isn’t offensive or exploitative, and you don’t get to speak for people the scene actually pertains to for your BS clickbait headlines.

I'd agree with this. The sequence depicted how horrifying attacks that start by name-calling like this one are.