An Intense and Long Sequel to a New Horror Classic!

Rating: 8/10 (6 September 2019)

Pennywise (played in another Oscar-worthy performance by Bill Skarsgård) returns to Derry, Maine after 27 years to feast on more kids (and adults?) in IT: CHAPTER 2. The Grown Up versions of the teen characters from IT reunite to battle him again. They are expertly cast and the best that we've seen of a set of child to adult Actors next to THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT.
We were pleasantly surprised by the amount of screen time that the teens got. It may even be up to a third of what the adults get. They look exactly like the same age as they were from the original, even after 2 years of maturation. That's because they were digitally de-aged and you cannot tell at all.
This is one of the better Sequels in a while that lives up to its predecessor. The story is a bit more complex and the adults all do a marvelous job of echoing their younger selves. We get to see more of what Pennywise can do as he pulls off more creepy illusions. The best part of these Movies is the dazzling visuals that the Director conveys. There's plenty of symbolism and this time around, we were very impressed with the sheer amount of incredible transitions. He uses these as effortless ways to show past events or put us in the shoes of the characters.
One of the cons here is its near 3 hour run time. Most of the scares and plot points work, but there definitely could have been some edits to bring it closer to the original remake at 2 hours 15 minutes. Scenes in the 1st and 3rd Act drag some and that does damper down some of the enjoyment.
This is still one of the best Horror Movies of 2019, in a year with many many disappointment genre pieces. And seeing what the Filmmakers have done with the characters that have grown in 27 years is worth watching alone. That and Bill Skarsgard's jaw-dropping performance of course.
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