It: 5 Things Chapter One Got Right (& 5 It Got Wrong) – Screen Rant

The 2017 remake of Stephen King's IT was a smash success. But even with the terrifying Pennywise, the horror movie wasn't without its problems.

Andy Muschiettis two-part movie adaptation of Stephen Kings 1,000-page doorstop It got off to a great start in 2017 with its 80s-set first chapter. A talented cast of child actors, a string of well-crafted jump scares, and above all, Bill Skarsgrds chilling portrayal of Pennywise made It a must-see horror movie. In fact, it became the genres highest-grossing entry of all time by far.

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Although the first It movie, retroactively dubbed Chapter One, was much better-made than its sequel, which disappointed just about everyone, it wasnt quite perfect. Despite the widespread acclaim the movie received, it wasnt without some just criticism.

The MVP of It is, without a doubt, Bill Skarsgrds chilling performance as Pennywise the Dancing Clown. From his wandering eyes to his sinister laugh to his dizzying dances, Skarsgrd played Pennywise perfectly blowing Tim Curry out of the water, against all odds and made him a horror movie villain for the ages.

Although he took initial inspiration from Heath Ledgers portrayal of the Joker in The Dark Knight, Skarsgrd did plenty to differentiate his own performance. He took the haunting reality of Ledgers Joker and added an out-of-this-world supernatural element.

Like so many of todays horror movies, It relies far too much on jump scares. Most of them are literal jump scares, too; every few minutes, Pennywise jumps out at one of the Losers Club.

Andy Muschietti manages to create a creepy atmosphere in each scene, but more often than not, that atmosphere only exists to set up another jump scare.

Although the creepy atmosphere in It often serves to establish a jump scare, that atmosphere is there nonetheless. When Ben follows a balloon into the basement of the library, the suspense is more than palpable.

Creating this kind of atmosphere requires a special tandem between the blocking, camerawork, and editing thatstricky to pull off, so its quite an accomplishment.

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It: 5 Things Chapter One Got Right (& 5 It Got Wrong) - Screen Rant

Reviewed and Recommended by Erik Baquero