The TL: DR is that I'm pleased.
First, some non-spoiler bullet points:
The basic plot of kids finding each other then fighting it is there, but of course condensed. Gone are the smoke hole and Chud (though the directed wanted them in, apparently). The bonding scenes with Mike are cut waaaaaay back, which does his character a disservice. He feels tacked on, something no member of the losers should be. But that's my only big complaint.
Yeah, yeah. The few scenes he did have were well done, and even with the changes (his parents are dead, and he saw them burn to dead as opposed to the strong relationship they had in the novel) he still feels like Mike.
Pennywise is good. Not Curry, but he's not trying to be. The effects are good, with a heady mix of practical and CGI: just the way I like my horror stories. The actor is clearly trying, and the scene with Georgie is good.
Even knowing the book as I do, there were surprises. For example, Pennywise doesn't just take Georgie's arm, he drags the whole kid into the sewers.
Bill, certain he washed up in the Barrens (and also painfully certain Georgie survived when everyone else knows the truth) now takes his friends down there to look for him as opposed to just playig and hiding from bullies. Brr. That's a change I find appropriate.
The forms Pennywise takes are all updated, but there are plenty of homages to things he appeared as in the book. I especially enjoyed the leper, even without the setup of offering to blow Eddie (which was probably not needed). The effects were properly horrifying.
The painting lady that was after Stan looked...okay, but not great.
This was not Henry with a gun, as I erroneously posted previously. This is Patrick with a can of hairspray and a lighter, screaming as dead kids come at him and kill him. While Patrick was dialed wwwwaaaaaay back from his psychotic book self, there are hints. He sets off some fireballs while stating they'll light Ben up "Like Michael Jackson." Nice touch.
There were a lot of elements that went from 0-60, since they were condensing so much. Mike's friendship is a bit forced. Bev's dad is never shown as the loving father Bev remembered him as prior to her puberty (erroneously remembered, but still). Like the mini-series, Bev's mother seems to be dead. Henry just starts carving Ben up, no classroom hijinks necessary. Butch Bowers fires a gun at his son's feet, and that's the only interaction we see before Henry kills him.
The condensing mostly made sense, and unlike the mini-series they only jammed in a single montage, not multiple ones.
The tone of the film is obviously very nostalgic for the 80s, as the original novel was for the 50s. There's a feel of Stranger Things, especially with Finn Wolfheard as Ritchie (my fav loser).
The reason behind this is simple: The Duffer brothers wanted to direct IT, and were turned down, so they created stranger things which drew from IT, and now IT is drawing from that. It's awesome.
With both The Turtle and the ritual of the Chud cut, the ending is of course different. Bev is kidnapped by it (replacing the bully impetus for the journey into the sewers) and the boys follow. What ensues is them just beating the hell out of IT, declaring they're not afraid, and robbing IT of IT's power. Perhaps a but cruder than the book, but following the same idea. And it is gratifying to see the losers just wail on Pennywise.
The feel of the novel is here. I felt more sad than scared watching the losers, knowing what would happen (even if it wasn't beat by beat) and what they would become. Watching Stan leave the circle first, knowing about his end, was heartbreaking. I hope the adult actors will have the same respect and skill for this.
I'll have to wait for a re-watch and DVD ownership to dissect everything point by point, but the main points are the same: the changes were mostly good, and made sense in the context of changed medias. I'm concerned for the second film, but only time will tell how they'll handle things.
Oh, and yes, Tim Curry approved of the new Pennywise. Score!
First, some non-spoiler bullet points:
- The child actors are all great, and they left in the casual cursing.
- The changes all make sense, even if I didn't love all of them.
- I have a few questions about how this is going to work in setting up the sequel, but I'm eager to find out, as opposed to dismal.
- I was freaked out at a few moments, but not really 'scared' as I knew the story by heart.
The basic plot of kids finding each other then fighting it is there, but of course condensed. Gone are the smoke hole and Chud (though the directed wanted them in, apparently). The bonding scenes with Mike are cut waaaaaay back, which does his character a disservice. He feels tacked on, something no member of the losers should be. But that's my only big complaint.
Yeah, yeah. The few scenes he did have were well done, and even with the changes (his parents are dead, and he saw them burn to dead as opposed to the strong relationship they had in the novel) he still feels like Mike.
Pennywise is good. Not Curry, but he's not trying to be. The effects are good, with a heady mix of practical and CGI: just the way I like my horror stories. The actor is clearly trying, and the scene with Georgie is good.
Even knowing the book as I do, there were surprises. For example, Pennywise doesn't just take Georgie's arm, he drags the whole kid into the sewers.
Bill, certain he washed up in the Barrens (and also painfully certain Georgie survived when everyone else knows the truth) now takes his friends down there to look for him as opposed to just playig and hiding from bullies. Brr. That's a change I find appropriate.
The forms Pennywise takes are all updated, but there are plenty of homages to things he appeared as in the book. I especially enjoyed the leper, even without the setup of offering to blow Eddie (which was probably not needed). The effects were properly horrifying.
The painting lady that was after Stan looked...okay, but not great.
This was not Henry with a gun, as I erroneously posted previously. This is Patrick with a can of hairspray and a lighter, screaming as dead kids come at him and kill him. While Patrick was dialed wwwwaaaaaay back from his psychotic book self, there are hints. He sets off some fireballs while stating they'll light Ben up "Like Michael Jackson." Nice touch.
There were a lot of elements that went from 0-60, since they were condensing so much. Mike's friendship is a bit forced. Bev's dad is never shown as the loving father Bev remembered him as prior to her puberty (erroneously remembered, but still). Like the mini-series, Bev's mother seems to be dead. Henry just starts carving Ben up, no classroom hijinks necessary. Butch Bowers fires a gun at his son's feet, and that's the only interaction we see before Henry kills him.
The condensing mostly made sense, and unlike the mini-series they only jammed in a single montage, not multiple ones.
The tone of the film is obviously very nostalgic for the 80s, as the original novel was for the 50s. There's a feel of Stranger Things, especially with Finn Wolfheard as Ritchie (my fav loser).
The reason behind this is simple: The Duffer brothers wanted to direct IT, and were turned down, so they created stranger things which drew from IT, and now IT is drawing from that. It's awesome.
With both The Turtle and the ritual of the Chud cut, the ending is of course different. Bev is kidnapped by it (replacing the bully impetus for the journey into the sewers) and the boys follow. What ensues is them just beating the hell out of IT, declaring they're not afraid, and robbing IT of IT's power. Perhaps a but cruder than the book, but following the same idea. And it is gratifying to see the losers just wail on Pennywise.
The feel of the novel is here. I felt more sad than scared watching the losers, knowing what would happen (even if it wasn't beat by beat) and what they would become. Watching Stan leave the circle first, knowing about his end, was heartbreaking. I hope the adult actors will have the same respect and skill for this.
And if not, at least we have this.
I'll have to wait for a re-watch and DVD ownership to dissect everything point by point, but the main points are the same: the changes were mostly good, and made sense in the context of changed medias. I'm concerned for the second film, but only time will tell how they'll handle things.
Oh, and yes, Tim Curry approved of the new Pennywise. Score!
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