STARRING: JAMES MCAVOY, JESSICA CHASTAIN, BILL HADER, ISAIAH MUSTAFA, JAMES RANSONE, JAY RYAN, ANDY BEAN, AND BILL SKARSGARD
DIRECTOR: ANDRES MUSCHIETTI
DATE: SEPTEMBER 6, 2019
Warner Bros. Pictures has delivered yet another hit with its most highly anticipated horror movie of the year, IT: Chapter 2. After the first IT triumphed both critically and financially at the Box Office in 2017, the fitting conclusion of the two film saga had high expectations and it does not disappoint. The film works by being faithful to the source material of the popular Stephen King book while also catering to its own dynamic for the modern movie audiences. If the film does well for its opening weekend, a possible Chapter 3 could be in the works.
IT: Chapter 2 begins 27 years after the events of the first film with everything seeming peaceful back in Derry, Maine. The opening scene shows all of the townsfolk participating in a local carnival when the scene cuts to two men being attacked by a gang due to their romantic relationship. Both men were badly beaten from this hate crime resulting in one of them being tossed into a river and being left for dead. The beaten man is drowning with fear hoping to be rescued, but when help seemingly comes his way, he is devoured alive by the monster known as Pennywise (Bill Skarsgard), the Dancing Clown.
Mike Hanlon (Isaiah Mustafa), the town’s librarian, goes to the scene of the crime and discovers a sign that the victim was murdered by the same monster that he and his friends thought that they had defeated 27 years ago. Mike and the rest of his childhood friends, known as The Losers Club, all went their separate ways after the event. Now aware that Pennywise has returned, Mike contacts all of his old friends to reunite with them once again to destroy the evil clown once and for all.
Each of the other members of The Losers Club left Derry to pursue successful careers. Bill Denbrough (James McAvoy) became a famous author with his series of books, Beverly Marsh (Jessica Chastain) became a successful fashion designer, Richie Tozier (Bill Hader) became a mainstream stand-up comedian, Eddie Kaspbrak (James Ransone) found success as a risk analyst, Ben Hanscom (Jay Ryan) became a successful architect, and Stanley Uris (Andy Bean) became an accountant. The Losers Club has to ban back together to face their greatest fears if they want to stop Pennywise from devouring more victims from the town of Derry.
IT: Chapter 2 is an adrenaline rush from beginning to end. The film manages to balance both horror and comedy. The casting was spectacular which mirrored the adult’s version with the kid’s version. The storytelling is a great follow-up to the original and its R rating allows it to go above and beyond in terms of how graphic it is. It’s a worthy sequel that’s warranted as being the best horror movie of the year.
IT: Chapter 2 receives 8 stars out of 10 stars.