Evil resurfaces in Derry as director Andy Muschietti reunites the Losers Club—young and adult—in a return to where it all began with IT: Chapter Two. Because every 27 years evil revisits the town of Derry, Maine, “It Chapter Two” brings the characters—who’ve long since gone their separate ways—back together as adults, nearly three decades after the events of the first film.
Review
Photo Courtesy of: Warner Bros
Stephen King’s IT has a long history in the horror genre and has been scaring young kids since the 80s. In this sequel to the 2017 modern retelling of the story, we venture back to Derry after 27 years. Pennywise is back with a vengeance and it wants the members of the Loser’s club back so it can devour them.
The second chapter spends a large portion of the first half of the film catching us up on the lives of each of the members of the Loser’s club. At times the back and forth can be a little distracting from the suspense and horror the film also tries to weave in. These constant flashbacks are meant to continue pointing out to us who James McAvoy’s character is by flashing back to his younger self. As if we needed constant reminders that these are the same kids.
Adults do stupid sh*t all the time, and the film doesn’t shy away from that. Yet it ends up feeling like some of the reactions are forced. Childish reactions versus what you would expect a grown adult to do. Sure they are mentally scared from their childhood experiences, but at least 1 of them should be a bit more focused. That brings in the comedy. Yep, comedy in a horror film.
Photo Courtesy of: Warner Bros
IT: Chapter Two has several moments that bring laughter to the audience right in the middle of a suspenseful scene which is very jarring and pulls your attention away from the tension. One particular scene that is the most glaring happens near the end when they are fighting Pennywise and throwing rocks. I wont say more than that. You could argue that the comedy is a typical adult way to brush off the fear of death, to “laugh in the face of death”. In most of the scenes they do it in, it does manage to work.
We also delve into the mythology surrounding Pennywise and what the creature actually is. At first I was annoyed with where it went, but after reading up a little more on the background surrounding Pennywise (having only watched the films) It followed the source mythology close enough to justify the approach. Visually the scenes where that is brought up are some of the more visually pleasing scenes.
Verdict
I recommend going and seeing it.
Overall IT: Chapter Two comes across not as scary as the first. There are plenty of jump scares and Pennywise killing to make any horror fan happy. However, the childlike wonder and horror we got with the younger cast and the attempts at innocence by Pennywise are lost in the sequel. Instead the film spends too much time trying to reminisce on the past. Reminding us that the first film was the horror genre at its best.
