I’ve been waiting for this pretty much since the second the credits started rolling on part one. Going to see it tonight after work. Anyone else excited / planning on seeing it this weekend? I’ve read a few mixed reviews but even if they said it was utter shite, I’d still see it. I also read that Stephen King has a cameo that is definitely lengthy enough that you can’t miss him and that there are some other “special appearances” so I’ll have to watch carefully (between the fingers of my hands which will be over my eyes:o )
I am going on Sunday and really looking forward to this movie - It was my favourite SK for a long time.
I’ll be wanting to catch it when I’m back home in NY.
(I think there may be theatres out here in the boondocks but I visualize them playing reruns of Sentimental Journey and midnight showings of Passion of the Christ in perpetuity)
I’ve heard from a handful of talk radio people who’ve seen it and they all seem to have similar thoughts. It’s was way longer than it needs to be, some of the f/x look dated or cheap, it wasn’t really that scary.
I’ve read some reviews like that and others that say the opposite, so it could go either way or be a mixed bag. One thing that I found promising is that it was mentioned that unlike many films these days, the previews don’t give away the best / scariest parts and the trailers I’ve seen so far are pretty good so that makes me hopeful.
I’m definitely seeing it this weekend. Been waiting for it for too long!
I’ll see it today I hope. I’m looking forward to it. (heh)
Taking SimFamily to see It 2 Sunday…
A few quick remarks:
It was a fast 2:48
The original Stephen King material was excellent
The material changed by the filmmakers wasnt
The Eddie Kasperak character was really poorly written imo and not anything like the book Eddie
Again, I didnt agree nor necessarily liked the unneeded plot and character ark questions
There were only 16 people in the large theater (in Westwood, Ca) usually packed for openings
There are a few moments of very loud sound so if you use earplugs bring em
It is still awaiting a proper treatment; time for one of the long form entertainment providers to step up
I saw it today. Random thoughts in no particular order:
Enjoyed it. The casting was good. The jump scares were predictable enough that they didn’t bother me, but a couple of them did freak me out a bit (especially the one with Beverly visiting her old home).
I did think it was a bit long. I called a certain character’s reveal halfway through the film and kept waiting for the shoe to drop.
Was kind of bummed that they didn’t have Audra or Beverly’s husband come to Derry.
The scene in the Chinese restaurant was great. I loved that in the original miniseries, and they managed to top it.
The scene with
Adrian getting killed while his boyfriend looked on
was very hard to watch.
Also, I was surprised that
Bill wasn’t able to save the little boy. I thought his death was an illusion, but apparently not.
The Stephen King cameo was fun.
Saw it Friday, and my theater was fairly empty also, though I went to the 4:50 showing because I hoped there would be few people there (I have long since given up going when it’s liable to be crowded. Thanks, dumbasses who don’t know how to conduct yourselves:rolleyes: ).
Overall, it was good scary fun, and I’m glad I saw it. The casting was perfect, as far as matching the adults to the young actors. I must admit that I don’t recall how each of them was depicted in the book, looks wise. madsircool, if you mean that Eddie in the movie seemed too cynical / tough, I would have to agree. I think he matched how he was portrayed in the first movie but even watching the 1980s version over the weekend, Eddie seemed to be much meeker.
The jump scares were annoying and always come across as lazy and weak, no matter how good the rest of a film is.
I could have lived without the upshot of Bill Hader spewing. And then we get to see him puke again later? Was Ritchie particularly pukey in the book? :dubious:
Mr. King’s scene was a treat. I loved the running joke about the writer not being able to write a decent ending.
I agree with Infovore about the opening scene. It was sad and brutal
Bill Skarsgard was again, an excellent Pennywise. Sure, the makeup and CGI play a part, but he really creates a scary creature (have you seen the interviews where he demonstrates how he moves his eyes independently from one another? Also, that thing with his bottom lip).
I’m glad they included the scene with the Paul Bunyon statue. I was looking forward to that and it didn’t disappoint. That was a really effective scene in the book
The Chinese restaurant scene was really good; the um, contents, of the fortune cookes were even better than in the tv movie especially the spider with the baby’s head :eek: Great forshadowing of the final battle
I think the whole Ritual of Chud/ final battle/giant spider thing was handled just about as well as it could have been. I was curious (and semi dreading) what they were going to do about the giant spider part, and the solution was actually pretty good
I’m not sure how someone who isn’t an SK fan or at least a fan of the tv movie would rate this. I had a great time with it but I’m unabashedly biased :o
Oops, sorry for the double post; I forgot a couple of things. . .
Infovore, what character’s reveal are you referring to?
Also, I think it was an odd / not a great choice to have it appear that certain things actually happened (as opposed to them being in the character’s mind). Such as the Chinese restaurant. Did I not pay close enough attention, or after Mike(?) trashes the table with a chair the hostess comes in and the room is indeed trashed. In the tv version everything was normal by the time she somes in. Ditto the scene where Eddie gets attacked by the leper (?) He runs out of the pharmacy and shows up back at the hotel covered in blood. IMO that should have been all in his mind.
I agree with everything else you wrote. I think I am so hard on the film because I loved the book and would have liked to see the general structure of it kept intact. I would have liked them to keep the original timeframe (1958 and 1985) because the separation in time from today would have made it scarier for younger viewers who tend to believe that everything old is scary.
[spoiler]I believe that Infovore was referring to Richie being gay.
About Eddie…in the book and the first movie he was much meeker. Him dropping eff bombs in his first few lines was a little shocking given the way King had written him. And it was annoying that his profession (and a couple of others) was changed for no logical reason.
It struck me as weird that Mike was almost forgotten in the first film (iirc it was Ban who became the keeper of Derry lore. In the 2nd film he was overpowered (Bowers had stabbed him in the library and he was in hospital when they killed IT) at the expense of the real and spiritual leader of The Losers, Bill. Again, I do not understand why the filmmakers had to change such an integral plot device.
Totally agree about the jump scares and the sound editing in general. When Adrian was being beaten in the opening moments of the film the enhanced punches were distracting. It would have been much more powerful imo to simply hear the sound of fist to flesh and bone.
As far as the Ritual of Chud, in the book, because it happened in a different plane of existence, maybe they could have used an animated cut scene to pull it off.
And they really missed the boat on the town of Derry itself. In the book the town had become a character itself. It was dark and brooding and held ugly secrets. it had been deeply scared by the decades of murder and violence. In the film, Derry seemed like a bright and cheerful place. I got no sense whatsoever that there were unspoken evil secrets. WE has a doc airing No One Saw A Thing about a town coming together to kill a violent a dangerous man and the effect that murder had on the town itself. In the book IT, the townspeople of Derry guns down a 1930s gangster crew. Im hoping that this part of the book along with the burning of the Black Spot will turn up in special features on the DVD. [/spoiler]
I think you’re confusing the film with the miniseries:
Mike was absolutely there when they killed IT in the film. He led the whole Chud ritual. In the new movie, Bowers really had no point at all since he did not put anyone in the hospital.
Re the character reveal . . . :smack:
Thanks, madsircool. I had considered coming in here and asking if there was some reason the Ritchie character ended up being gay. Then I wasn’t sure I read it right. I mean, there’s the scene at the end where he recarves the R + E (I forget; was that originally put there by Henry Bowers?)but I wasn’t sure if we’re meant to take that literally. Also, the voiceover when that part is shown seems to be saying something about being free to love or something along those lines. So now I’m still wondering why that choice was made. Ritchie in the tv movie was a womanizer, and I can’t remember a thing about Ritchies sexuality in the book.
I too hope there’s some great extras on the DVD. I don’t think I’ll feel the need to watch the film again for awhile, but I do love extras!
In the book…
Henry Bowers attacks Mike in the Library and they are both terribly wounded. Mike is in the hospital when the remaining Losers finish off IT. I reread the novel before It Chapter 1 was released.
Me neither unless they reedit the two films into one long film ala The Godfather Saga with deleted scenes reintroduced.
Im sure its weird, but over the years Ive come to feel like I know Derry and The Losers. I really hope someone gives IT the longform and true to the book treatment it deserves. It was a pleasure getting to know you Losers.
Andy Muschietti hints at more Pennywise to come
I’d like to see Pennywise back in the early days of Derry so we can see the mayhem of the Easter egg hunt and all his other bad deeds. And, even though he’s got a sort of (sick) sense of humor, I definitely wouldn’t want to see the character turn into some kind of Freddy Krueger. He has to remain dark.
I don’t need to see more of Pennywise - except maybe as a ‘background’ thing that we know is contributing to the mayhem that is Derry.
I would like to see more of Derry and it’s stories - While it had a few issues - the Castle Rock show was quite interestingly done.
As for IT2 - I found myself kinda bored about midway thru - the jumps were not that good, the resolution sucked and I am reminded why I dislike much of SK’s work.
THere were some legitimately well done bits - but… I’ll never feel the need to watch IT again.
And yes - the opening was overly gruesome and violient to my knowledge iterved no purpose that I can see for the rest of movie other than to set the stage that 'bad things happen in Derry" - someone please correct me that it somehow fitted in OTHER than showing the return of PennyWise to the audience.