REVIEW: IT Chapter Two and the Red Balloon Escapade

By: Brandon Drick

IT Chapter Two follows up on 2017’s IT with director Andy Muschietti back in the saddle. This time, our main characters, now adults, venture back to the Stephen King spooktown of Derry once again. It has been 27 years since The Loser’s Club of Eddie, Beverly, Bill, Richie, Ben and Mike tried to stop Pennywise the Clown from harassing the youth with his sinister shenanigans. Now it has returned again and it’s up to The Loser’s Club to ultimately stop Pennywise and its red balloon escapade. What follows is a film struggling to stay afloat through its boring scares, inconsistent tone and weak writing.

To preface — this movie is not scary. The score and atmosphere are tactful and the opening scene, among others, shows some capability at unnerving an audience. However, the movie sinks with each Pennywise encounter. Nearly an hour of the movie forces the same monotonous scare setups: character arrives at place, Pennywise pulls a trickery by disguising itself, Pennywise chases character, sometimes shaking its head like a bobble head for good measure and character escapes.

Pennywise the Dancing Clown, played again by Bill Skarsgård, returns again with many old and new tricks up its sleeve. Pennywise is an ancient cosmic being capable of transforming itself into the spookiest of creatures out there. This enables it to prey on its victims, frightening them before ravenously devouring them. Naturally, it is proficient in its approach and uses creatures including a zombie Pomeranian, a tall naked grandma and Paul Bunyan like something out of a Scooby Doo special. Pennywise is also masterful at coaxing children despite its frightening appearance.

Gary Dauberman is the only returning writer for this film (the previous film had three) and there are constant leaps between thoughtful and goofy. There are great moments, such as Pennywise coaxing his child victims or when the main cast is sharing each other’s company. Then you hear lines like “cut your mullet, it’s been 30 years” following an attempted murder and the unforgettable zinger “it’s time to sink!” during the climax. There are forced homages to 80’s horror films. One of which includes a shot-for-shot recreation of the infamous “head crab” scene from John Carpenter’s “The Thing.” Later, “here’s Johnny!” is thrown in for good measure. What is being proven through such homages? Does Pennywise the Clown have background as a film connoisseur?

I really sympathize with Bill Skarsgård as he brings everything he can to his performance. He shines during scenes where he is in his clown form. One particularly chilling scene occurs at a baseball game where Pennywise lures a young girl into a trap. It’s very well-executed and Skarsgård emphasizes Pennywise’s eerie expressions. He adds subtle details to his facial expressions, animating his performance by independently moving each eye and bringing a wicked ravenous look to his infamous smile. However, it’s hard to be scary when your arsenal of terror also includes singing, fat-shaming and homophobic remarks.

The rest of the cast is also superb with the now-adult members of The Loser’s Club being spot-on. Bill Hader as Richie and James McAvoy as Bill are particularly impressive, replicating the personalities of their younger characters from the previous film. However, the writing again falters the strength of their performances. Sometimes characters act a little too young for their age with the occasional awkward childish line. The chemistry seems genuine albeit a forced love triangle and poorly delivered character sexuality arc.

“IT Chapter Two” tries to be a lot. It tries to be scary. It tries to be funny. It flipflops between being campy and wanting to be taken seriously. It’s a misguided film, inconsistent with the previous film’s tone and overstaying it’s welcome at nearly three hours in length. Even with its incredible cast, poor pacing and lack of direction ultimately leave “IT Chapter Two” sinking.