I Avoided A Fear Of Clowns My Entire Life…Until Now – IT (The Original) Movie Thoughts**Spoilers**

Back in the day, I remember how my friends would express their solemn fear of clowns. I never could relate to this fear because I was always indifferent to the thought of them. I had a teacher in elementary school who had a business where he would dress up and perform at kid’s parties. Sometimes he would dress up as a clown, and other times he would dress up as a super hero. He would come to school and make us fancy balloons while doing tricks that would completely wow us. I was never really into clowns growing up, but I always thought he was pretty cool (shout-out to Mr. G).

I finally got to see IT (The Original) for the first time last night, and I immediately understood what scared my friends and so many others. I went into IT with an open mind because I genuinely didn’t know what it was about. Well, let me first get something off of my chest. I just want to let you all know that I wasn’t really scared while watching the movie. I was just a little anxious, you know? Just a little startled. A little shaken, you know? But I was good though. Pennywise only showed up in my dreams like once last night. No big deal.

I’ve been trying to decide what exactly would have scared me if I had watched this movie as a child. Pennywise is the most obvious answer. Tim Curry did a FANTASTIC job as Pennywise. He was personable, funny, and inviting. He always knew your name, and he knew the one thing you loved so much that would make you break the “golden rule” of children: Don’t talk to strangers! I would’ve been super dead if I came across him. All he would’ve had to say was “Hey Phil, what’s up? You look lost. I know you’ve wanted a Nintendo for a long time. Well, I got one for ya. All you have to do is come down here and float.” I would’ve thought about it for a quick second or two like Well, he knows my name, so he must be family or something (Knowing good and well he not family). Man, A Nintendo would be nice right now (Knowing good and well I wasn’t about to get one). You know, my dad just taught me how to float yesterday. It must be a sign!

I’m always intrigued when creatures masquerade as humans, which is why Invasion of the Body Snatchers is one of my favorite horror movies of all time. I love other classics such as the Thing as well. Something about wearing someone’s skin completely freaks me out. However, It’s not just wearing someone’s skin; you also have to be able to perfectly imitate them. How long did Pennywise study the human species before enacting its successful plan? I have many questions about Pennywise the creature, but I’ll get back to that later.

Another thing that peaks my interests pertaining to horror movies (WARNING! This might sound REALLY messed up, but stick with me. I promise I am not weird.) is when the director isn’t afraid to kill children. I feel like killing children on film is such a taboo in America that you don’t really see it often, so it is always interesting when a director decides to go that route. IT took it a step further, though. Although they never showed the actual murders happen, kids were getting dismembered and disfigured. Pennywise destroyed these kids, and the movie never hesitated to let you know. This resonated with me because I have a kid now, so it was definitely tough knowing the gruesome details on how the bodies were being found.

I got all the time in the world

Geeeeeez this movie is long. I’ve heard that the movie was originally split up into parts. I watched the version that fused all of the parts into a full three-hour film. However, I am happy to report that the three hours flew by for me. The film had great pacing, and I never felt bored or wanted to hurry and get through it. The first half of the movie features a group of kids while the second half consists of the adult versions of themselves. I loved how the story took its time to unfold as we were shown each kid and their personal interactions with Pennywise. I imagine this has opened up some great dialogue about which kid in the “Losers Club” had the scariest encounter with it. I plan to read the book really soon, but it, too, is long as all hell with a strong 1,184 pages. Well, I guess it’s time to grab a six-pack and have at it.

What I didn’t like

The main reason I would like to read the book is because at times the movie just made no logical sense. I have faith that the book version does a better job of clearing some things up. There was a glaring lack of information regarding Pennywise that seemed to be cut from the movie. And again, I’m hoping that these things are explained more in-depth in the book. I would like to know what is Pennywise exactly and where did it come from? I would like a better understanding of its abilities and how it knows the personal information it does. I believe the town is aware of the existence of Pennywise, so what is the history of the town in relation to it? There are tons of questions like these regarding the plot that just don’t get explained in the movie. Then, there are the completely illogical actions of the main characters that baffled me. It was kind of acceptable as children to attempt to fight Pennywise with a slingshot, but all of you are extra grown with careers and husbands now. Who thought it would be ok to show up with another slingshot?

You all just don’t plan on defending yourselves at all huh? Why did you even choose to show up in the first place? And don’t get me started on the final showdown between Pennywise and the adults. Who thought this was ok? So, the plan that everyone agreed on was to just jump the monster? Jump the monster with uncoordinated flailing punches & kicks?

With all your powers combined huh?

Seriously?

Final Thoughts

Besides the trash ending, I really enjoyed watching IT. I enjoy a good horror movie and this one was definitely disturbing. I believe it lived up to all of the hype and for the most part, it withstood the test of time. I cannot wait to see the latest version of IT to see Bill Skarsgard and his portrayal of this iconic character.

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