User reviews

The book is deservedly regarded as one of Stephen King's best and one of the best of the horror genre. First reading it, this reviewer was put off by some of way the characters talked and the language.

But reading it several more times and getting more familiar with King's style it really grew on me, while character development is always intriguing and attention to detail, while bloated at times with the whole history of Derry, and how he depicts horror is unparalleled.

'It', the mini-series, has garnered mixed reactions. Some remember it fondly for the nostalgia (not me though, I was 14 and 15 when first viewed), others have considered it an uneven adaptation with a great first half and a disappointing second half (personally fall into this camp) and others have maligned it for its wild lack of fidelity to the book. As an adaptation, being stripped down and not as complex, it is disappointing, with terrifying and juicy bits understandably not making it into the adaptation as quite a lot of the content is unfilmable. Standing on its own, 'It' while uneven to me is much better than given credit for.

While the second half is nowhere near as good, though this reviewer still doesn't consider it awful, the first half is far superior and is pretty great. It's not flawless. Some of the adult acting is less than great, even on first viewing Richard Thomas to me was woefully miscast, with a rather cringe-worthy attempt at a stutter, and it is still a sentiment I share a decade later. Also due to budget constraints the special effects are less than special, pretty basic and slightly cheap in fact, though there have been far worse.

However, there is much that is good. The best thing about the mini-series is Tim Curry in a perhaps career-best turn as Pennywise. Virtually unrecognisable, Curry literally sinks his teeth into the role and brings the character to absolutely terrifying life. Richard Bellis' justifiably Emmy-winning score is incredibly atmospheric and haunting, with a creepy but also poignant main theme and a twisted jaunty circus theme.

Acting-wise, Curry is not the only good actor. The child actors did a great job, with a genuine sense of anxiety, horror and vulnerability, the mini-series taking time to develop their characters and back-stories very well. Particularly good are Jonathan Brandis and Seth Green. Their chemistry is genuinely affecting and nostalgic, fondly recalling 'Stand By Me'. The performance of the bully Henry Bowers is chillingly psychotic. While the low budget shows in the effects, the mini-series is quite nicely shot, the scenery is lovely and the Derry setting is beautifully evoked.

Dialogue-wise, the first half does a better job at recreating the spirit of the writing of the book, though with the language toned down. In terms of scares, some may criticise for being predictable and cheap and others will feel that the mini-series has a creepy ambiance. While there is nothing horrifying, parts did and still do make me jump and do have a real creepiness, especially Georgie's death, the photo album (the second time especially), the encounter with the sink and the werewolf. The climactic scene has some good tension too.

Overall, while the mini-series of 'It' is uneven it is better than given credit for despite being vastly inferior to the source material. Given the limitations, it could have been far worse. 8/10 for the very strong first half. 8/10 Bethany Cox

I recently finished the novel of IT, and had never seen the miniseries, so decided it was as good a time as any. I liked the duology from the late 2010s well enough, but thought the first part was better than the second part. It was a bit disappointing then to realise that the 1990 miniseries did a similar thing structurally. Things in part 1 start with the adults, and then pivot to the kids for most of the 90-minute episode, which I guess separates it from the 2019 film, where the adults aren't seen (not until part 2). I loved the structure in the novel, and the way it puts the climaxes side by side near the end.

You have to deal with some made for tv cheese throughout the first episode, but it was a bit better than I was expecting. It scratches the same itch as I remember The Stand miniseries hitting. Of course, both pale in comparison to the source material. I kind of love the tangents and excessive detail to countless characters and immense world-building in those epic novels, and that stuff's always cut when it comes to movies or miniseries I guess.

It Part 1 (1990)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

Part one of this two-part series starts off with an introduction to Pennywise (Tim Curry), an evil clown who lives in the sewers. We're then introduced to six adults who get a phone call saying that It is back. Then, via flashbacks, we see what that person's experience was with the clown leading up to the kids trying to kill it.

It seems like this film became a legendary event leading up to its first showing and throughout the years its legend has grown. Everyone knows the look of It and the film has sent many people into downright terror. What's most overlooked is the fact that the film itself is quite good and certainly worth watching.

What I enjoyed so much in this first part is the fact that the story balances quite well as we're introduced to the adult and then we see their memory of the clown and how they first encountered it. DIrector Tommy Lee Wallace has an almost Robert Altman like approach to the material and the film never loses you as the layout is quite good even with it bounces back and forth between stories.

Another major plus is that the performances are excellent. Without such excellent performances you might have a hard time buying into the material but that's never the case. The adult actors perfectly show you the fear that they have towards this clown and that perfectly sets you up for the horror that follows with the children. There's really not a weak performance to be found here and that includes Curry in the role of Pennywise.

The film certainly manages to work as a horror film and there are some effective and creepy moments throughout this first part. What I also enjoyed is the relationship between the kids and how they formed this bond that would allow them to go up against this evil force. There's a certain STAND BY ME approach to their relationship and it works very well.

"IT" from 1990, feels strange saying that, but this first part was well-made. It felt like the 2017 remake, and also the Flashbacks that taunted the Loosers Club memories, which was also in part from the second film.

The Music is great, and has a creepy vibe to it, just like other Clown media, like Mr. Nightmare used the exact music. And it seems to be very Iconic, and I actually like the eerily creepy essence of the music that is played, it's very taunting for the viewer too, and would strike fear into anyone's eyes. I loved the soundtrack and it still holds up to day, even after all these years.

Tim Curry, whilst having little to do, does it brilliantly as the crazy and sadistic Clown, he's charming and charismatic in most roles he plays, and it's no different here. Whenever he pops up, your always intrigued as to what Pennywise might do or has in stall for the poor victims that cross his path.

I like all the Flashbacks, but it did need to be more subtle. Every character had a flashback and it was Flashbacks for most of the film, I enjoyed the characters and cared for them enough, but it's still too long in the duration that it ends up not doing much for me. And leaves Derry with little characterisation or atleast for me not enough.

I do Like how the Loosers club is brought up, I think they did it better here. As the Bully is actually mocking them and then coming up with a few lines, then he calls them the "Loosers Club" so it did come in more naturally. They too didn't really care or mind, they seemed to fit each other and that's what worked in this film. And I like how they are working as a team, and none of them want to split into groups. So it does make their friendship seem more believable.

Pennywise the dancing Clowns backstory gets a slight mention, as in the book it's seen as he was their in the frame of the book, in the 1930's. The scary part was him popping out to scare the group of kids, and it played out as a nice scene that would then gradually build to the scary moment.

The Ending had a clever twist, as it did show the group as their grown up selves from time to time. And it showed one of the members fear and angst as the Clown posed it on him. The scene with the Bath, as it shows him lying down in the bath tub dead. To then lead beautifully into the second part. It did a great job of leading the audience member wanting more. Decent Start, 6.5/10.

Good shots of Pennywise, and great child acting. The bullying scenes were classically Stephen King, as in they're unrealistic. Brandon Crane (Ben Hanscom) and Emily Perkins (Beverly Marsh) were the stars of the first part in the series. Each scene was predictable and clichè which is not an excuse for a film from 1990.