IT: Chapter One

Cast: Bill Skarsgard, Jaeden Lieberher, Jeremy Ray Taylor, Sophia Lillis, Finn Wolfhard, Jack Dylan Grazer and Chosen Jacobs.

Director: Andy Muschietti

Release Date: 2017

Running Time: 2hrs 9 minutes

Genre: Horror/Thriller

Rating: 15

Synopsis:

A group of bullied kids come together when a shape-shifting creature, taking the appearance of a clown, begins hunting children.

Thirty-two years ago, author Stephen King released one of the most terrifying novels to ever enter bookstores! Unexpectedly making it a worldwide phenomenon success. The story begins in 1988, on a cold and stormy afternoon, little George Denbrough is killed by an insidious creature lurking in the sewers of Derry, Maine. Haunted by the death of his brother Bill is determined to find out who or what killed him. The creature presents itself differently to each individual. The first chapter is primarily about six friends Bill, Mike, Richie, Eddie, Stanley and Ben, who are determined once and for all to kill the malevolent creature.

The novel is incredibly hard to follow mainly due to the fantastic intricate details that Stephen King put into place to describe each character. It's unfortunate that many of these details were left out of the film. Understandably a film is never going to live up to the standards of a novel, as a filmmaker you are stuck with the challenge of interpreting someone's imagination on screen. What can be described in written work, cannot always be interpreted the same on screen. Director Andy Muschietti chose to modernise the story, choosing to set the story in 1988-1989 instead of 1957-1958 that was originally described in the book.

Terrifying in appearance and in character, Bill Skarsgard delivers a terrific performance as IT. It's unfortunate however that his character in the film is not quite as described in the book. His appearance has been slightly altered. The six main leads deliver very good performances, particularly "Stranger Things" star Finn Wolfhard. The characters are very accurately portrayed as they are described in the novel. It was however, a disappointment to see that certain characters have been removed from the story. This is was most likely put into place due to the length of the film. Although the film works well without these characters, it also meant a lot of suspense was removed from the storyline.

Hair-raising and electrifying, the setting and the special effects really meet the expectations of a successful horror film. The stunning landscape of Canada works excellently for the description of the town in which the story is set. Entertaining and thrilling, director Andy Muschietti has created a fantastic first chapter to this terrifying film. One of the best adaptations of Stephen King's frightening novel "IT", a story about fear, discovery and friendship. Audiences are anticipated in seeing what Muschietti has next in store for us in the second chapter later next year! Excellent.

4/5 stars