It (2017)

***It*** (or retroactively known as ***It: Chapter One***), (or stylized as ***IT***), is a 2017 American coming-of-age supernatural horror film directed by Andy Muschietti, written by Chase Palmer, Cary Fukunaga and Gary Dauberman and produced by New Line Cinema, RatPac Entertainment, KatzSmith Productions, Lin Pictures, and Vertigo Entertainment. The screenplay is written by Chase Palmer, Cary Fukunaga and Gary Dauberman. It is the first of a two-part adaptation of the 1986 novel of the same name by Stephen King, primarily covering the first half of the book. The film tells the story of seven children in Derry, Maine, who are terrorized by the eponymous being, only to face their own personal demons in the process. It is the first film in the It film series. The novel was previously adapted into a 1990 miniseries, but it can be also interpreted a remake or reboot for some people. The film is also known as *It: Part 1 – The Losers' Club*. *IT* premiered in Los Angeles on September 5, 2017, and was released in the United States on September 8, 2017, in 2D and IMAX.

*It* is also the highest-grossing horror film of 2017, the highest-grossing R-rated film of 2017 and the 9th highest-grossing film overall of 2017. It received positive reviews, with critics praising the performances, direction, cinematography and musical score, and many calling it one of the best Stephen King adaptations. The sequel/second half, *It Chapter Two*, was released on September 6, 2019.

## Plot

In the summer of 1989, a group of seven bullied kids in Derry, Maine, are about to face their biggest worse nightmare -- an ancient, shape-shifting evil that emerges from the sewer every 27 years to prey on the town's children. Banding together over the course of one horrifying summer, the friends must overcome their own personal fears to battle the murderous, bloodthirsty clown known as Pennywise.

## Why **IT**'ll Float Too (No Pun Intended)

1. While It may not be 100% faithful to Stephen King's novel, it does stay faithful to the spirit of the book.
2. Bill Skarsgård does a fantastic choice for playing as Pennywise the Dancing Clown where It was very mature.
3. Well-done character and story development.
4. The child actors really did an excellent job. Mostly Finn Wolfhard as Richie Tozier and Jack Dylan Grazer as Eddie Kaspbrak.
5. Very intense and scary moments that managed to keeps the charm of 1990 miniseries and the books.
	* Such as one terrifying scene in the film where Stanley (one of the members of the Loser’s Club) has his first encounter with IT in the synagogue in the form of a hideous, creepy flute playing woman (Judith) that came from a painting in his father’s office.
	* Another terrifying scene is when Henry Bowers kills his father Oscar by using his knife while the woman and children encourage him from the television.
	* Another terrifying scene is when Patrick finds the Losers Club in the sewer by using flamethrower, only to discover that he saw the dead zombies kids, promoting run away and than he says the red balloon that pops to be Pennywise that walks and eats him.
	* Probably the most infamous intense and scariest is in the beginning, while controversy, where the entire encounter between Georgie and Pennywise.
		+ After Georgie and Pennywise have a laugh over their mutual love for popcorn, Pennywise abruptly stops laughing and just stares at Georgie, mouth agape and drooling. Georgie is a bit creeped out and says he should be going. But we all know how this scene ends up...
		+ This shot makes it look like Pennywise is looking at Georgie with one eye and looking directly at you with the other.
		+ And it's not just that shot, either; its eyes are like that for the entire movie. Yes, IT can see you.
		+ One eagle-eyed fan noticed that Pennywise lets Georgie reach for the paper boat before pulling it away when Georgie almost has it in his grasp. The simple act of Pennywise toying with his prey really gives some good insight to its feral, animalistic nature. You can hear the eagerness in its voice when IT almost has Georgie in its grasp...
		+ While the scene roughly follows the one in the book, its ending goes much, much farther than King's version and 1990 miniseries. Not only do we see Georgie's arm getting ripped off **ONSCREEN**, we also see him crawling away, sobbing and crying for Bill, just before Pennywise's arm stretches out of the drain and drags him down to his death.
		+ On a psychological level, this scene is especially frightening if the viewer is a parent and/or has a much younger sibling. The thought of a child about Georgie's age being harmed when their older family member is unable to protect them is enough to make anyone feel terrified.
6. The Losers Club members are very likable and relatable, as they each have something that makes them victims of bullying, such as race, disability, and parental incest.
7. The cinematography is awesome that is very similar to other films based on Stephen King's novel.
8. Awesome and funny lines, such as "YOU'LL FLOAT TOO!", "Beep beep, Richie.", and Eddie’s best-known line “They’re gazebos!”.
9. Much like *Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1* and *Part 2*, the movie's idea and success has led to many other novels franchises make their split into two movies for the first installment (as well as standalone) instead of finale, such as *Dune*, another popular novel of the same name.
	* It also leads Hollywood to adapt more Stephen King's works to the feature film and series as well as fans hopes to re-adapted, like *Salem's Lot* and *Doctor Sleep*, after the success of this movie. Previously, they didn't make more movie adaptations of Stephen King's work as they make poorly received movies, like *Carrie* and *Cell*. But now, they deserve the chance to bring the adaptations to the big screens, as many fans of Stephen King will wonder what will find out.
10. Most of the other scenes are very memorable.
	* Mainly the unforgettable and hilarious Pennywise Dancing Scene.
11. Henry Bowers and his gang of bullies are very entertaining and sadistic in their own ways. Also, Henry Bowers went into less crazy and never said the n-word.
12. The ending is heartwarming, cool and emotional all at the same time, which leads the second half film.
13. Amazing and creepy musical score by Benjamin Wallfisch.
	* "Every 27 Years" plays over the logos of Warner Bros., New Line Cinema and RatPac and opening credits and sets the tone for this movie. And what better tone for It than Creepy Children Singing, immediately followed by a beautiful piano and string piece?
	* "Paper Boat" plays when Bill makes the paper boat and when Georgie sails said boat across the neighborhood, and it is beautiful. It starts off softly, but then the swelling orchestral score kicks in, and it fits the beautiful lighting, atmosphere, and cinematography perfectly; it also sounds adventurous, almost as if the movie itself is asking us, "You wanna go on an epic adventure? Who knows what might happen along the way?" But then the paper boat falls down the storm drain...
	* "Georgie, Meet Pennywise" plays during Georgie's encounter with Pennywise and his tragic demise at the hands of the latter. It has a mysterious, creepy feel to it, which is the perfect orchestral introduction to the one and only Pennywise the Dancing Clown.
	* Anthrax's cover of Trust's "Antisocial" accompanied the rock war between the Loser's Club and Bower's Gang. People were headbanging in the theater.
	* "Deadlights" is one of It's most well-crafted pieces as it plays during the scene when Pennywise opens his mouth and reveals the Deadlights to Bev, complete with a pulsating overtone to start.
	* "The Pennywise Dance" hilariously sets the mood for the movie's funniest moment, as a door crashes open and Pennywise stares down menacingly at Bev, captive in his lair...and starts dancing.
	* If you want soft pieces, look no further than "Beverly" and "January Embers", which echo a bit of Thomas Newman.
	* "Egg Boy", for being one helluva creepy track.
	* "Shape Shifter". Stanley puts the creepy painting back on the wall and the chilling music starts, he realizes the woman from the painting isn't there. The door opens and a beautiful flute song starts playing. We think it's a part of the soundtrack. Then the flute drops...
	* "Blood Oath" is a beautiful, melancholy track that plays during the last scene of the Losers Club all together, adding to the general bittersweetness of their goodbyes.
	* "Kiss" is a lovely track that closes out the film.
14. Even though its meant to be a horror film, it takes a break and has a nice, very realistic *Stand by Me*-esque vibe to it.
15. A brief but touching story arc about a love triangle around Beverly, Ben, and Bill.
16. The Loser’s Club share a very realistic, loving bond.
17. Much like *Mama*, it shows Andy Muschietti has amazing skills as a director.
18. The film contains references of the 1990 miniseries. For example; a doll replica of Tim Curry's Pennywise is seen in this film for the scene where Richie encounters a room of clown dolls in the house on Neibolt Street.
19. The costumes describes what '80s fashion looks like.
20. The final battle with kids was so intense and awesome.
21. Beverly's dresses reminds everyone else of '90s floral dresses.
22. Like the 1990 miniseries, the scene where Beverly has sex with all the boys after Pennywise retreated is never adapted, which is good since the author, Stephen King hates it so much that he doesn't want to include the scene in his novel.

## Bad Qualities

1. While the CGI is terrifying and impressive, it can at times be very unconvincing.
2. Mike Hanlon (played by Chosen Jacobs) doesn’t really have that much screentime or character development compared to other The Loser Club members, despite being very likable.
	* Fortunately, this was fixed for Chapter Two.
3. From time to time, it feels more like a teen-comedy rather than a horror film, even if its still faithful to the Stephen King's horror novel.
4. Even though Pennywise is portrayed perfectly, its design looks a little too scary to be viewed as a good convincing clown that could trick its victims with its clownish behavior. Like the scene where it meets Georgie. Nobody, especially somebody Georgie's age, would ever be attracted to somebody that scary looking.
	* Even that, depending on your opinion, the scene where Georgie is killed by Pennywise spawned controversy. While it is still very intense and scariest and was necessary to show the danger of Pennywise, some viewers felt that Pennywise ripping a child's arm off and watching Georgie attempt to crawl away was seen by some as being "downright disturbing" and "too graphic".
5. Forgotten plot-holes like the real relationship between Mr Keene and her daughter Greta.
	* Speaking of Mr Keene, one of the most notable changes from the novel is where Greta Bowie's name is changed to Keene to relate to her father Mr Keene, who bullies Beverly for being a slut and we don't learn how she would encounter her again. Then, Henry Bowers do encounter the Losers while climbing down the well. And lastly, Alvin Marsh is knocked to the head with a dish by Beverly.
6. Mediocre villains found from the book like Henry Bowers, and Alvin Marsh, depending on your opinion.
7. Some horror tropes in the film may later become cliched and predictable.
8. It is implied that IT wasn't malevolent by nature, but rather just looking for its favorite foods, which contradicts the lore of King's novel and the fact that it is confirmed to be pure evil by Bill Skårsgard himself.

## Reception

### Critical response

***IT*** received positive reviews by critics, audiences and fans alike, with praising the performances, direction, cinematography and musical score, and many calling it one of the best Stephen King adaptations. On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 86% based on 386 reviews, with an average rating of 7.30/10 and audience approval rating of 84% based on over 50,000 ratings, with an average rating of 4.1/5. The site's critical consensus reads, "Well-acted and fiendishly frightening with an emotionally affecting story at its core, *It* amplifies the horror in Stephen King's classic story without losing touch with its heart." Metacritic, another review aggregator, assigned the film a weighted average score of 70 out of 100, based on 48 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale.

### Box office

*It* was a huge box office success. The film set numerous box office records and grossed $328.8 million in the United States and Canada, and $373 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $701.8 million, against a production budget of $35 million, becoming the fifth-highest-grossing R-rated film of all time. Unadjusted for inflation, it became the highest-grossing horror film of all time. It is also the highest-grossing horror film of 2017 and the highest-grossing R-rated film of 2017.

## Trivia

* David Kajganich and Cary Fukunaga were originally going to direct the movie.
* Roy Lee and Dan Lin, the producers of *It*, also produced *The Lego Movie* series.
* A variety of different actors were considered for the role of Pennywise. Mark Rylance, Ben Mendelsohn, Richard Armitage, Kirk Acevedo, Jim Carrey, Willem Dafoe, Johnny Depp, Paul Giamatti, Jackie Earle Haley, Tom Hiddleston, Doug Jones, Channing Tatum, Hugo Weaving and Will Poulter.
* Just a few days before its release, Variety reported the film broke Fandango's pre-sales record to become the top horror pre-seller of all-time, eclipsing Paranormal Activity 3 (2011), as well as setting the record as the site's top pre-seller among September releases, beating Sully (2016). Variety also reported that MovieTickets.com stated that It accounted for 54.4% of all tickets sold through September 6, with It selling 8x as many tickets as Annabelle: Creation (2017) did through two days prior to opening, 6x The Conjuring 2's (2016) totals with two days to opening, and 15x that of The Purge: Election Year (2016) at the same point in the sales cycle. TheWrap reported the film broke Fandango's sales record to become the top horror second-week-seller of all-time, eclipsing Get Out (2017) by 2x as much.
* There is the deleted alternate opening gag scene where Georgie escape his death, meaning he would've alive at first.
* This film is the fifth highest grossing horror film of all time, and unadjusted for inflation, the highest grossing horror film of all time.
* The film was originally going to be released by Warner Bros. Pictures, but it have been moved to New Line Cinema division. Despite this, Warner Bros. is still distributing the film, even when New Line Cinema was merged with Warner Bros. Pictures in 2008.

## External links

* Template:IMDb
* Template:Rotten Tomatoes

## Comments

1. ↑ The official title of Andrés Muschietti's *It* was confirmed by Stephen King on March 7, 2017, and has been corroborated by various other sources such as The Guardian, NME, The Telegraph, and Digital Spy.