Lazy Film Critic Movie Reviews
IT
For a long time, it seemed like the horror genre was completely doomed and beyond saving. Every year we'd get the same mountain of jump scare, paranormal activity haunting movies with only one or two films standing out and not really getting the attention they deserved. However, now it seems like Hollywood is on the right track, horror movies are scarier, more violent, and best of all - those unrecognized horror directors are finally getting the attention they deserve, the latest example is Andres Muschietti and his adaptation of Stephen Kings 'It', and it's by far one of the best horror movies to come out in years.
I don't use the term 'waking nightmare' lightly because I feel like it's a bit of an overstatement so know that when I say that this movie is a constant waking nightmare I really mean it. Most of the time in a horror movie, where it starts to fall apart is near the end when we actually see the monster/killer/demon for the first time in full. And this is true for horror movies since decades ago, this isn't a new trait, even Jaws and Alien had this effect. However, surprisingly, this movie almost never uses this effect. At a first glance, this could be cause for alarm but the truth is it's not really necessary to hide the monsters and make the audience fear the unknown, instead making them constantly petrified that we'll have to see Pennywise's horrific grin, or his blood-curdling laugh, or other scenes I won't dare spoil for you, they need to be seen on their own. And it makes for one hell of a horror movie, as it never really feels like it's giving you a break. Any scene you feel like it could immediately take a turn into a horror scene without any warning, and that anxiety is only doubled by the intense fear of whatever horrific nightmarish imagery you're about to see.
However, something I've said a lot before is that a horror movie is only as good as the characters occupying it. If we don't feel any empathy for the characters, we don't get scared when they get scared, and we won't feel anxious in a scene where they're in danger. Which is why it's great that the main cast of this movie knocks it out of the park. Finn Wolfhard especially, after this and Stranger Things I think he could have a great career ahead of him. Of course, I wouldn't be talking about scene stealing performances if I didn't bring up Bill Skarsgard as Pennywise himself. His performance is devilish, deeply frightening and entertaining at the same time, and it isn't just in how he talks. It's hard to describe, but the way he moves around as Pennywise is in itself frightening, involving a few scenes where he has to move like a marionette. Even if you ignore his already scary expressions and line deliveries, his contortionist-like movements give his character a kind of body horror effect as well.
As I said earlier, a lot of what makes 'It' so terrifying isn't as much the suspense and the fear of the unknown, but the barrage of horrific, nightmare fuel imagery that haunts the screen. This type of horror is really difficult to execute, as for a lot of horror buffs it takes a lot more than a simple frightening image to be scary. The images themselves have to be creatively thought out in how they'll appear, down to the smallest detail. And as far as this movie is concerned, it's the small details that will really jump out at you as terrifying. A great example is Pennywise's eyes, a lot of the time Pennywise is in a dark lit scene with most of his body cast in shadow, and I'm not sure what exactly they did, but in post-production his eyes were enhanced, they're often not under the same lighting as the rest of his body, and a lot of the time it's just really uneasy to look at. It gives the optical illusion that his eyes aren't actually a part of his actual body, and looking at them is enough to bring great unease to anyone watching.
Final Rating
Muschietti's adaptation of IT is by far one of the best movies of 2017, and it feels great to see something this good after the horrible summer movie season this year. It's frightening, haunting, and will most definitely stick with you long after the credits roll. Even if you're not typically a fan of horror, I give this movie a glowing recommendation, it's a movie absolutely everyone should try to see.
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