The film is a 5 - 6 out of 10.
The good -
Pretty scenery, they did a decent job of imagining what a 1980's New England small town would look like.
Good sound track, although not used perfectly (e.g. The syrupy sweet rock fight for those that have seen the film).
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The bad -
The cast is very ho-hum. It pains me to say it, because they are child actors, but they just aren't that good. With an exception being made for the girl that plays Beverly, and maybe the fat kid, they all come off boring, and lack depth. They aren't the young River Phoenixes, Corey Haims, etc.... of their generation. If you compare this to something like "Stand By Me" or other teen buddy films of the 70's - 80's, you'll see it. Those younger actors just seem a million times more worldly. Not much to say about the few adults in the film.
This Pennywise is nowhere near the level of Curry. Curry is a much finer physical and emotional actor than this guy. Also the presentation of It physically is much better costume wise in the old Tv film. The old Tv version is a much more atmospheric horror, while this one is more of a typical mainstream 2000's era film. To make an analogy, Curry's Pennywise is that slick pimp that slowly leads you into the horror, with only flashes of what's to come. While this other Pennywise is the drunk at the bar, that just letting it all hang out.
The script is alright, although the Tv version was a much darker, meaner, and more human film. My main problem is that it is a very soft horror at its core. Aside from some cursing, this entire film could be played on TBS, Fx, or any of the cable networks uncut. It could probably be played on regular Tv too without much interruption. It's an R, that plays like a PG - 13.
Also like many films, they made sure not to offend or be too gritty. There was a fag joke, couple of fat jokes, a couple of Jew jokes on the part of the teenage gang, but that was it. There wasn't any anti-black racism at all by them, and that just didn't ring true. You mean a 1980's gang of white 14 and 15 year olds isn't going to let the N bomb slip? Get the fuck out of here. Both the source material, and the old Tv film are rougher and more authentic in this regard.
It's a shame if this goes down as being the final version of It, it deserves a better send off. Something like a cable season like they did with 11-22-63, probably would've been much finer.
