After exactly twenty-seven years (the same amount of time IT is said to lie dormant) the infamous killer clown, Pennywise, has returned to theaters – as a terrifying but greatly CGI’d monster.
And I do mean greatly.
But let’s put it into perspective.

2017’s It had a heck of a lot to live up to. Its 1990 predecessor was a staple of its time, but even so, Stephen King’s novel had yet to be given a filmatic equivalent. By the time 2017 rolled around, the entire It fandom was squirming with anticipation, putting pressure on Director Anthony Muschietti to make a film worthy of their praise.

Did he deliver?

Sort of. Muschietti’s It remains true to Hollywood’s brand of horror – jump scares, teenage love, and stupid decisions – but in the realm of visual effects and execution, this standard turned out to be more detrimental than iconic.

It’s not something you would notice had you not seen the first It (after all, this is the age of computers) but the difference is startling. 1990’s It was scary, but it was scary in that long-gone classic, creepy way – strange noises, scary basements, a weird eye-glow every now and then. It didn’t use freaky computer-conjured imagery to frighten its viewers, and it couldn’t considering the time it was made. But here’s the catch: it didn’t need to. The screenplay’s concept was terrifying enough on its own. Kids having hallucinations no one else can see, then catching glimpses of an elusive clown; it’s the ethereal and untouchable quality of Pennywise and his powers that made the old It so scary!

Muschietti’s It, unfortunately, has done the opposite, fleshing out every single implied sighting and replacing them with computer-animated, exorcist-esque jump-scares. Mid-movie, I found myself growing exhausted; they showed Pennywise in the flesh so many times that its magnificence waned, leaving me with nothing but dull anticipation for the next scare.

In other facets, however, the new It did hold some admirable qualities. The acting was great (how could it not, with Stranger Thing’s Finn Wolfhard as part of the crew?) as were the very nostalgic, very intricate sets. The music was chilling and extremely well composed, and the imagery of the balloon was (thankfully) not overused. Towards the end of the film, Muschietti made a very brave creative decision – and let me tell you, it worked out.

In conclusion, the new It isn’t the old one – not by any stretch of the imagination – but that was to be expected. To enjoy the new It, one must view it as a separate film and cease to compare it to the first, and even to King’s book itself. 2017 Hollywood has given us their version of Pennywise – an in-your-face, spider-walking, demented killer clown – and whether you like him or not, he will not easily be forgotten.