You'll float too.

This review contains spoilers. 

 "It" is directed by Andy Muschietti (Mama), based on the world famous novel written by Stephen King and has been adapted to the big screen by Chase Palmer, Cary Fukunaga (Beasts of No Nation) and Gary Dauberman (Annabelle: Creation). The film stars Bill Skarsgård (Atomic Blonde) as the infamous Pennywise. Making up 'The Losers' Club' are Jaeden Lieberher (Midnight Special), Sophia Lillis, Finn Wolfhard (Stranger Things), Jeremy Ray Taylor, Jack Dylan Grazer,Chosen Jacobs and Wyatt Oleff. "A group of bullied kids band together when a monster, taking the appearance of a clown, begins hunting children".  "It" currently holds the record for the trailer with the most views in 24 hours. This film has a huge amount of buzz surrounding it and the bar is set high. Can "It" meet expectations? 

"It" is one of my favourite films of the year. The only other Stephen King adaptation I have seen is "The Dark Tower" so in my books, it's is also the best Stephen King adaptation. There's just so much more to this film than a scary clown and that is what elevates it. Yes, it's scary but it gives plenty of time to breathe but there's always a knowing sense of terror from start to finish. Thanks to "It", the stereotype of child actors being awful has been defeated as each young cast member shines. This film is up there with "The Conjuring" flicks...it is that good. Usually, high-brow horror lacks the traditional scares and makes up for it with a dark story but this is a high-brow horror film that is just as scary as its narrative is detailed. A masterclass in horror filmmaking. 

Regardless of if you're scared of clowns or not, there's bound to be at least one moment in this film that will terrify you. As soon as the opening credits begin, I got a chill down my back and a sense of discomfort. I was surprised by how quickly "It" jumped into the scares. The audience are thrown in at the deep end with a prologue that sets the story off on a strong note. As soon as Georgie sends his boat sailing, there is a sense of dread felt by the entire audience knowing what is about to happen.  Georgie's interaction with Pennywise is very unsettling as everybody knows Georgie's fate. That moment though where Georgie's arm is literally bitten off by Pennywise was unexpectedly graphic. This is one daring film with the graphic imagery it shows of children. This reminds the audience what they are in for and that "It" will take no prisoners. To begin with, I wasn't a fan of less Pennywise and more other reincarnations of fearful creatures. However, it clicked later on the film what was actually going on and I fell in love with it (in both senses of the word). There are plenty of effective jump scares. The two that really caught me off guard were the one during the projection scene and the one after Beverly has just killed her father. "It" didn't just use generic jump scares to be frightening, I genuinely feared for the lives of these children as the stakes were high and I'd developed connections with each of them. Even after Pennywise had suddenly popped up, I was on edge for the remainder of his screen time in each scene as nobody knows what he is capable of. "It" also portrays humanity in quite a scary light. The bullies in this film were almost as scary as Pennywise. The scene where Henry (Nicholas Hamilton) cuts his initial into Ben's (Jeremy Ray Taylor) belly was horrific. It was scary and brutally honest about how intense and harmful bullying can be. 

Pennywise's appearance was scary enough, even if Skarsgård's performance was awful, the character probably would have been tolerable based on his makeup and appearance alone. I don't think there's been a scarier face to grace the big screen than Pennywise. What a terrifying character. However, my main complaint about the character (and film) is that Pennywise wasn't fleshed out very well as a character. I want to know who he is, some backstory, if he's human or some supernatural monster, what his motivations are and why he picks certain victims. I think I can answer some of those questions myself but I feel like they should have been clarified. For instance, he's got to be supernatural as he can transform into so many different things, he picks children because they are the most vulnerable and he does what he does to survive- the children are stored as food. I just wish the character had been better realised. However, "It" will be getting a sequel with adults and adult characters are more likely to ask those questions and be more confident interrogating the dancing clown so I will accept that this is an unfinished piece and will wait for closure until the second film. I suppose it's good for a film with a sequel to leave some unanswered questions and a sense of mystery? Bill Skarsgård is brilliant though and has truly become Pennywise. He doesn't go over the top (a la Jared Leto in "Suicide Squad") but he doesn't let the makeup consume him. He adds some life to the character and delivers all of his lines in a creepy and chilling way. His facial expressions and movements are also terrifying. 

"The Conjuring" films are well written but "It" manages to top them in that regard. At its core, this is a story-based film with some horror elements thrown in for good measure. It is certainly clear that it is based on a piece written by an acclaimed author as the story is almost perfect with no major holes. I thought the town of Derry was set up well and the film had layers- not everything had to be told to you by the script, some of the visuals also aided in giving a better scope of the area. It would also have been easy for this film to feel crowded with essentially 8 leads. However, besides Pennywise, each lead gets some development, enough for you to feel connected to and route for them. The main protagonist is Bill (Lieberher) who's main motivation is to find his missing brother, Georgie. Bill is friends with Eddie (Grazer) who has a germaphobe mother, Richie (Wolfhard), the comedian of the group who we actually know not too much about and Stanley (Oleff), who is part of a heavily religious family. The boys are all bullied and during their search in the sewers, they save Ben, the new kid, who is being chased by the same bullies. They then bump into Beverly (Lillis), who has an abusive father, in the pharmacy and as a group they spot Mike (Jacobs), the outsider, being bullied by the same bullies. The Losers' group grows. I felt like enough time was spent with the characters before sh*t hit the fan. The kids also take their time working out the mystery. They are all experiencing the tormenting separately but finally release it's happening to each and every one of them. They bring their knowledge and thoughts together to come up with a plan. "It" really utilises it's 135 minute running time with story development, character development and consequently fear development. "It" isn't just terrifying, there are some really funny moments that lighten the tone briefly and work really well. It's that awkward laugh you get when you're scared and don't know what else to do. 

Having spoken briefly about 'The Losers' club', I think it's time to go into a bit more detail about this talented bunch of young actors. Firstly, Jaeden Lieberher who is exceptional. This film rests on his shoulders and he really holds everything together. His character, Bill, has quite a few speeches that he makes and Lieberher delivers them very well. Every line had the punch that was intended. Bill came across as a true leader and a really great character. His motivations were the most clear, he wanted closure on the disappearance of his little brother who he likely feels a sense of guilt about. Next we have Sophia Lillis who was brilliant as Beverly. The only thing that annoyed me about the character was the obviously fake hair-piece that acted as a ponytail until she cut it off. However, the troubles that were going on in Beverly's life at home were quite horrific. Not only is she socially at outcast but she has an abusive father. This made the scene where she finally stands up to him all the more satisfying. Potentially the most interesting character in the film. Lillis did a superb job and I would probably award her MVP. Her performance was nuanced and just felt real. I see a great future for this incredibly talented actress. Richie  is played by Finn Wolfhard. Talk about a scene stealer! I've seen a few episodes of "Stranger Things" and thought the acting was strong across the board, in a very similar story, Wolfhard manages to give a different performance and he is pretty hilarious! Wolfhard gets the biggest laughs and is an effective comic relief. My only complaint with the character of Richie is that we don't know too much about him. Let's hope we get some development in the sequel. Jeremy Ray Taylor plays Ben. Taylor does a nice job with the role and his affection for Beverly was cute. Aside from Wolfhard, Jack Dylan Grazer as Eddie was also able to elicit some laughs. Once again, another strong performance. I've seen some articles online critiquing the adaption for cutting out a big part of Mike's backstory and to be fair, I thought the character was still given a reasonably detailed backstory. We find out why Mike lives with his grandfather and that he is an outsider in the town. However, I can understand why fans of the book would be irritated by the change. As a whole, The Losers' club have a realistic chemistry which makes them feel like an actual friendship group. The love triangle also works as a subplot but doesn't distract from the main story a la "Twilight". 

The third act is where "It" transforms from a horror film into a full on action flick. It was unfortunate to see Beverly become a damsel in distress when she is also the solo female lead but I suppose that was a popular character trope when King first wrote the novel. Throughout the film, I had an issue with the line 'you'll float too' as I just couldn't get my head around what it meant. However, it all made sense during the third act where the bodies of the missing children are literally floating in Pennywise's lair. I also found it slightly awkward when Pennywise did a little dance, it was really odd. However, the mini action scene was fun, tense and you were definitely routing for the children. Pennywise's last word 'fear' was also a nice touch as he fell further into the sewers. I also thought the end scene was very powerful where the children shared blood and stood in a circle resembling their strength and power when united. It's an important and moving message.