I had high hopes for my favorite clown. But his silly antics did not really live up to my expectations. The kid group from the previous chapter had great dynamics and fun banter. The attempt to bring that back in adult form just fell flat and here’s why!
Pennywise, the horrifyingly scary clown from outer space. Now a hundred times scarier if we are to believe the heavy marketing around this film. Granted Pennywise was scarier than ever in this chapter, but he was also sillier than ever. It Chapter 2 is like having an identity crisis. Do I want to be the creepy uncle that gets too drunk and vomits in the dogs food-bowl, or the “fun let him babysit our kids” uncle? You cannot choose both Pennywise!
In the first chapter, I was a sceptic to the Scooby esque nature of the kid group dynamic. But it worked and I would even say it worked very well. The interactions felt witty, funny and most importantly natural. But then Chapter 2 happened. Gone were the funny group and replaced with adult versions that felt rushed and forced. They did do a good job at getting actors that felt like an adult version of the group, I’ll give them that.
Now I am not dismissing It Chapter 2 entirely. There is one redeeming factor. Like Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark, this movie had some great monster designs! Pennywise took the contorting scary clown formula up to 1000% and some of the designs even made a horror veteran such as myself jump.
The jury is divided. No clear yay or nay has been made about It Chapter 2. If you are to see this be reminded of one thing. Do not try take it seriously, the movie itself establishes this very early. Take it as a weird fantasy comedy, with some scary visuals and unnecessary jumpscares thrown in. Then you might be able to properly enjoy the weird antics of our pal Pennywise.
