IT Chapter Two

Twenty-seven years after the events of the first film, the murders have restarted in Derry, Maine, and Mike Hanlon (Isaiah Mustafa) must reconvene the Losers Club to dispatch the evil once again. The kids are all grown up now, but immediately drop everything to return to the town that they had all but forgotten. Bill Denbrough (James McAvoy) is now a horror writer who apparently writes movies and books with really crappy endings, a nod to the notorious compliant about the IT novel and one of many clever jokes that are woven into this chapter of the film series. The cast is pretty damn great, with Bill Hader stealing the show as Richie. Even Stephen King’s cameo is well done. The film wins more often on laughs than it does on scares; the special effects are really great, but they don’t really deliver screams. Even the jump scares seem a bit off on timing and sound design, like they are just shy of the target. The creepiest scene in the movie was already shared in the trailer, so you can probably wait to catch this one at home on your couch. I did like the way they wrapped up the ending, and it was certainly less crappy than the original miniseries, but clocking in at 169 minutes, it is just too long for this kind of horror movie. Despite not living up to the promise made with the 2017 film, it’s still fun and bloody.

[R]