Finally, Stephen King

Rating: 9/10 (5 October 2017)

After years of disappointing adaptations of almost all of his novels, IT is the movie Stephen King deserves.
IT tells the story of a group of kids who join forces against an evil presence that is taking children away in their home town. The story is well built (come on, King wrote it) and the movie is able to capture and develop the main plot points successfully. I read the book a few years ago and watching the movie was definitely a way to go back to Derry and share those moments with the characters again, identify with some of them, simpathyse with others, fear and hate a few others.
The 80's atmosphere is well portrayed, the soundtrack is great and I'm sure everyone who grew up on that time will enjoy following along the kids' adventures. If you've watched Stranger Things you'll feel this has a similar atmosphere and that maybe the movie was inspired by it, but it really was the other way around. Stranger Things is reminiscent of Stephen King's universe and you can clearly see it on IT (also on Stand By Me, but IT is way better in my opinion).
Now for the scare factor. The book had some REALLY gruesome scenes that the movie mercifully left out, specially the kind involving animal cruelty and child sex. Other than that, the scares and shocking images are there, from the beginning. I think people aren't used to seeing children suffer on screen, and that is something the movie isn't afraid to throw in our faces from the very start.
Also, some scenes have genuinely creepy details (pay attention when Ben is in the library for instance) and I literally felt shivers down my spine when revisiting ALL of IT's manifestations. They are really, really well done. The CGI can be a little over the top at times, but nothing too blunt, nor that it does any true harm to the overall movie experience.
The cast is wonderful. I mean the kids do a really great job, they look, talk and act natural, unlike (forgive me) the kids on the first installment. And Pennywise, for once, is a freakin scary clown. No offense for Tim Curry's fans, but this clown is WAY scarier than the first, specially the way he moves onto his victims.
IT leaves us with a sense of dread and nostalgia, I felt for those kids and the horrors (human and non-human) they had to endure. I literally cannot wait to see the final chapter and see who they will cast for the roles. The whole crew has some serious work on their hands if they want to make the second movie as good as the first and whomever they choose to play the grown-ups on the Losers Club has some seriously big shoes to fill.
IT was the best modern horror movie I've seen in years. Go see it. 9/10