Stephen King's "IT" remake has found a writer - Part 3

[Blitzkrieg]

https://www.apnews.com/05193fd73a904c349a2c1f829fea2223/Review:-A-few-good-scares-can't-hold-'It'-together?utm_campaign=SocialFlow&utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=APEntertainment

But unlike, say, “Stranger Things,” or horror films that lull you in with familiar circumstances before introducing the insane, there is nothing remotely relatable or realistic about this setting. This makes it especially hard to connect or engage with the tormented kids. Both the parents and bullies are like fun-home distortions of recognizably cruel humans.

With three credited screenwriters (Chase Palmer, Gary Dauberman and Cary Fukunaga, who was originally set to direct) the story is an unforgivable mess. Instead of building tension and suspense, “It” just jumps from scene to scares with no connection or coherence to thread them together other than the mere fact that they’ve been placed on top of one-another, like toys mixed up from different sets.

And yet “It” does have a few tricks up its Victorian ruff. The largely unknown kids of the losers club are good, with standout performances from Lieberher (“Midnight Special”), Taylor and Lillis with her perfectly ’80s Kerri Green-vibe. And there are a few guaranteed jump-out-of-your-seat moments, including the flawlessly rendered opening with Frankie, the toy boat and the sewer that has continued to haunt generations of kids who either read King’s book or caught the now cheesy looking miniseries on TV too young.

With the R-rating, you do have to wonder who this “It” is really for — the now-grown kids of the ’80s and ’90s who were traumatized the first time around and can’t get enough of their own nostalgia? Or is it just a dare for the under-17 crowd, who are more likely to forgive the story flaws and just submit to the scares?

Like so many movies now, “It” is an intentionally incomplete tale — a story-setting teaser for what’s to come in Part Two. Maybe by the time that comes out the kids who snuck in to this “It” will be old enough to harbor their own wistfulness for the first they saw Pennywise. And then there’s the scarier thought: Will the cycle just continue until we’re all floating endlessly in our own nostalgia?

http://nerdist.com/it-stephen-king-film-review/

Horror films are always hit and miss… horror adaptations even more so. But It not only made me fall in love with The Losers Club all over again, it made me excited for a sequel! Who would play these kids as adults? Can we get another installment with the kids before their grown-up selves reunite in Derry? Yes, I crawled out of my skin and yes, Pennywise is still scary as all get-out, but the real strength of this film lies in The Losers Club and that incredible cast. If you’re looking for a ton of frightening fun after a long summer movie drought, just lean into the nightmare and go see IT.

 

[The Endless]

Who is Frankie?

 

[The Joker]

The original Richie Tozier loved IT;

 

[Blitzkrieg]

http://www.ign.com/articles/2017/09/06/stephen-kings-it-review

There have been so many Stephen King adaptations over the last four decades - many of them bad - that it’s easy to take them for granted. But there is something undeniably appealing about the sensibilities of this prolific author, a visual quality that translates effectively to the screen, and it’s something that director Andy Muschietti captures disturbingly well in his adaptation of IT… or at least, in this first half of the two-part film.

IT may not be the best Stephen King movie (even though it comes impressively close), but it’s probably the MOST Stephen King movie. Director Andy Muschietti evokes the horror author’s effortless melodrama and in-your-face psychological torments simultaneously, because he seems to understand that these sensibilities bring out the best and, by definition, the worst in one another. Nightmares are scarier when they emerge from happy dreams, and happy endings mean a heck of a lot more when unthinkable horror precedes them.

And of course, everything is creepier with a scary clown in it.

http://theplaylist.net/it-review-stephen-king-20170906/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

The craftsmanship is impeccable, the performances incredibly strong (there are none of the telltale signs of poor child acting that bogged down things like the early “Harry Potter” films), and the fidelity to the source material, in spirit more than specificity, is admirable and appreciated. Had the story given even more time to breathe, it would have been one of the greatest Stephen King adaptations ever. As it stands, it’s simply a very good one. But who knows, when the second half of the movie is released and a new set of actors are able to inhabit these characters, maybe it will take on a larger, more important dimension. But make no mistake – you’ll float too with “It.” [B+]

https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/movies/2017/09/06/review-freaky-it-does-justice-to-stephen-king-novel/622597001/?utm_source=feedblitz&utm_medium=FeedBlitzRss&utm_campaign=usatoday-lifetopstories

With plenty of gallows humor, as well as kid banter and inside jokes, It boasts a clever sense of humor throughout its 2¼ hours. The film suffers from a couple of unneeded subplots that derail momentum, but the ending is filled with tension and satisfaction, the result of investing in the teenage protagonists.

You don’t root for the Losers' Club just because you’re supposed to — each kid has a complete arc and time to shine as well as mess things up. The cast of mostly unknowns is spectacular from top to bottom; Taylor and Lillis are especially effective with performances that touch the soul.

Enjoy them while you can. One slightly unfortunate bit is that the next chapter of It —Muschietti wisely isn’t shoehorning a 1,138-page tome into one movie — focuses on the Losers' Club as adults. At least we’ll still have the clown, who totally floats our boat.

 

[The Joker]

Promising start;

 

[Crosswind Ghost]

Saw it for the second time tonight. Enjoyed it even more. Got my tickets for thursday for a three peat.

 

[Blitzkrieg]

http://metro.co.uk/2017/09/06/it-movie-review-a-bloody-creepy-and-brilliantly-terrifying-horror-film-6906250/

Perhaps the biggest surprise of It is the depth and journey Skarsgard takes Pennywise on especially in the final act when the demon realises that his hold on the children is no longer there – now It has a past, and experiences, and feelings… even though he is still a demon.

http://www.denofgeek.com/us/movies/it/267417/it-review

Truly memorable film adaptations of Stephen King’s work, as longtime fans know, are few and far between. Of the dozens of movies and TV projects based on his novels, novellas, short stories and other material, one can probably name five or perhaps 10 that stand out and can be called great: among those are Carrie (1976), The Shining (1980), The Dead Zone (1983), Misery (1990) and The Shawshank Redemption (1994). And now you can add It -- director Andy Muschietti’s (Mama) take on King’s 1,100-page 1986 doorstop of a book -- to that list.

I’m pleased to say that the small flaws in It don’t take away from a remarkable genre accomplishment. A tale that both works as an adaptation and stands firmly on its own, It is one of the best horror films of the year -- and might make more than a few general best-of-2017 lists. It’s a chilling, emotional, gripping and heartfelt experience. Move over Carrie and Jack Torrance, Pennywise is prancing over with his awful red balloons and child-eating grin to sit proudly next to you near the top of the King cinematic tower.

 

[Blitzkrieg]

Can't post the vid here but Chris Stuckmann loved the movie and gave 'IT' an 'A-'.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

Looking good. t:

 

[Blitzkrieg]

Jaden Lieberher, Finn Wolfhard and Sophia Lillis are getting raved by almost everyone. This is great.

 

[Kane52630]

 

[Broseph44]

Gonna try and buy my ticket today for a showing Saturday afternoon or evening. I am beyond excited, as a massive horror fan we don't always get many great films often. This seems like it is really gonna be something special and potential classic with a new classic horror villain/icon. So so ready to see this.

 

[Nardz937]

Currently at 100% on RT with 29 reviews.

Nice!

 

[BH/HHH]

Gonna try and buy my ticket today for a showing Saturday afternoon or evening. I am beyond excited, as a massive horror fan we don't always get many great films often. This seems like it is really gonna be something special and potential classic with a new classic horror villain/icon. So so ready to see this.

Yeah it feels like an event film and for horror that is rare.

 

[The Endless]

Seeing this Friday on IMAX woohoo!

 

[DaRkVeNgeanCe]

So glad to see this doing as well critically as it is. I knew it would do at least well after I saw the film. I can't wait to see it again!

 

[Blitzkrieg]

Irish Times with the first rotten review. He gave the movie 3 out of 5 but was quite scathing in his review.

It seems that one of the common complaint is the callback to nostalgia in the movie and also the movie not being able to re-invent the wheel within the genre.

 

[rashad]

WB with another 2017 smash hit.

 

[Blitzkrieg]

http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/movies/sc-mov-it-review-0906-story,amp.html

King knows what he’s doing: Back in 1986, the year “Stand by Me” came out in theaters, “It” put the whammy on millions. He couldn’t lose. Sinister red balloons. The geyser of blood gushing up from the bathroom sink. Coulrophobia, the fear of clowns, is money in the bank, as well as a tiring cliche, one the World Clown Association takes seriously. From their recent, sternly worded protest letter: “People dressed as horror clowns are not ‘real clowns.’ They are taking something innocent and wholesome and perverting it to create fear in their audience.”

King was hardly the first to exploit that fear factor. The movie won’t be the last. While Pennywise has been given a fabulous costume (thanks to designer Janie Bryant), and cinematographer Chung-hoon Chung’s smudged interiors and not-quite-blue skies (until the final scene) do their part, what do we have here, really? We have a story that feels not so much freshly imagined as dutifully recounted.

 

[Dyson]

Oh, man! As a massive fan of the novel, these reviews are fantastic and encourgaing!

I'm so stoked for this! I'm seeing this tomorrow night at my local cinema with some buddies.

And the RT score so far is shockingly great! Looks like it will end up somewhere around 90%.

 

[terry78]

I don't know what detractors are *****ing about. Stuff like Stranger Things and what not got their inspiration from stuff King and Spielberg made so it's not redundant, it's the O.G.

 

[DaRkVeNgeanCe]

I've already prepared myself for comments from the unknowing like "IT is a Stranger Things ripoff". I know it's a stretch, but believe me you'll hear it.

 

[Broseph44]

I don't know what detractors are *****ing about. Stuff like Stranger Things and what not got their inspiration from stuff King and Spielberg made so it's not redundant, it's the O.G.

Exactly I don't get it either. Stranger Things was awesome and it paid homage to a lot of Spielberg and King's work.

 

[Broseph44]

I've already prepared myself for comments from the unknowing like "IT is a Stranger Things ripoff". I know it's a stretch, but believe me you'll hear it.

Sadly we will and those people need to educate themselves and get their **** straight.

 

[Mysteryman]

Irish Times with the first rotten review. He gave the movie 3 out of 5 but was quite scathing in his review.

It seems that one of the common complaint is the callback to nostalgia in the movie and also the movie not being able to re-invent the wheel within the genre.

How do you reinvent the wheel for a genre?