Movie Review: It (NC16)
IT (NC16)
About 15 minutes into the new It - based on Stephen King's 1986 novel which was turned into an iconic 1990 TV movie - I thought I was going to have a heart attack.
But like a great roller-coaster ride, the terror always cuts quickly to giggles, courtesy of the story's ragtag bunch of inhaler-toting, stuttering, foul-mouthed teen heroes.
On a quest to find out why so many children are disappearing, the kids come across some disturbing facts about their small town.
They also individually encounter It, the creepy, drooly clown of your childhood nightmares, who pops up early, quickly and often in full teeth-baring glory.
Classic scenes, like It's first appearance in the drain returning a paper boat to an unwitting victim, remain mostly unchanged but are also writ terrifyingly new.
This is in no small part thanks to Bill Skarsgard's performance as It, which while heavily influenced by CGI-heavy Asian horror ghouls, is also a masterclass in close-up horror.
The movie's set-up will be familiar to fans of popular Netflix series Stranger Things, which was inspired by King's original.
Whether you're acquainted with previous iterations, or are new to the It mythology, this retelling will leave you breathless - and probably sleepless, too.
- JULIANA JUNE RASUL
Rating: 4/5
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