I prefer the Tim Curry version from the 90's

Rating: 6/10 (6 September 2019)

It was solid with a strong first half, but the CGI at times took me out of it (wonky choices, unintentionally funny). Although, there were some stand-out stylistic choices with a real mark for creating its own world. Overall it's about what was expected by staying faithful to the tone of the first film. The horror stems more from the themes than any suspenseful tension. The chemistry of the cast was a bit off too, almost as though during production something went awry, or maybe it was simply weak points in the script. The "romance" between Ben and Beverly, totally flat. The dialogue among them was just rehash of the poem and a forced connection. Jessica Chastain I felt was one of the weakest characters. Her performance came off as kinda just being there and at no point did I truly buy she was her younger self from the first film. That's not to say she completely bombed, but it is what it is. Can't say there's much replay value but yea... 5 - 6.5/10 depending (there might be a director's cut though, first cut was 4 hours long reportedly).