Its not a horror film.

Rating: 6/10 (11 September 2017)

OK just lets get one thing out of the way. I have not seen the original TV series or any other production of this story. I also have not read the book so this is not one of those "its not as good as the book or original moans". Having just watched the movie I can say its definitely worth watching. Its a well enough made film with some great effects and acting. However I did find some of the kids dialogue inaudible and it seemed to be difficult to pick out what they were saying sometimes with too many voices at once. Another issue with the sound was the odd choice of music which did not seem to sit right with the actual scenes. There were a few comedic parts which did not really seem to hit the mark either. However what I will say is that the film just is not scary. There's no tension before any of the supposed frights, they are set up in a way that you see them coming a mile off and when they do you basically find yourself thinking, OK so the clowns here and its doing its cgi thing but no that was not a surprise and I did not get a fright. In the screening I was I did not see a single person react to any of the scares. That is the main problem with this movie. The posters and trailers sell the film as a scary horror, which it is not. Its like a mix of The Lost Boys and Stand By Me. I could see this movie having a PG rating if one or two scenes were removed, but these scenes do not involve the clown. If you are expecting a real horror film or something closer to the book you may be disappointed. But go in with an open mind and you will probably enjoy it. Its an adventure movie not a horror.