IT Chapter Two Review

The much-anticipated sequel to 2017’s massive box office success IT by director Andrés Muschietti shows that needlessly upscaling what worked the first time can lead to a messy and exhausting result. The remarkably bloated IT Chapter Two struggles to find a structure that’s not overdosing on tone shattering pieces of comedic relief that make the movie feel ambivalent and lost. The needlessly verbose narrative becomes aimless and repetitive, with a solid beginning that unfortunately becomes squandered by the film's lack of substance. Although it does conjure some eerie and atmospheric moments throughout its swollen runtime, IT Chapter Two labors to find indulgent ways to stay afloat.

IT Chapter 2 is the finale to the cinematic remake of Stephen King’s famous novel of the same name. Following the Losers Club twenty-seven years after the events of the first film, chapter two finds the now-adult members of the group reuniting in their hometown of Derry to face the returning Pennywise for the last time. Broken by the experiences of their past and the ruts of their present, the group must overcome their fears and problems and remind themselves what made their comradery strong enough to defeat Pennywise the first time.

There are character arcs and horror elements that IT Chapter Two builds on that become both functional and intriguing. Some amazing editing moments create incredible and inventive scene transitions that keep the flow of the film steady. But the boring and ludicrous subplots throughout end up being weightless, appending nothing to the story other than a few cheap laughs and uncreative jump scares, scattering the effective scenes between cheap horror that feels completely unnecessary.

Distracting CGI due to a lack of consistency in quality becomes far too apparent long before the film reaches its oddly executed final act. Producing a finale that becomes a computer-generated action scene that feels way too long. Traversing slowly to an ending that’s fulfilling in very few ways and a missed attempt at any sort of sentimental moment.

The creepy imagery and the amazing cast attached give dispersed moments of genuine intrigue and suspense, but the second chapter to the highly successful horror film is much less captivating, struggling to find creative purposes for each character while failing to come up with fitting horror set-pieces. Overall, IT Chapter Two fails in its attempt to create a sequel that’s bolder than its first part, leaving a predictable and indecisive film that ends up having more memorable moments of humor than horror.

Unnecessarily burdened by its bloated length and repetitive elements, IT Chapter Two struggles to produce anything more than a few moments of unsettling imagery and creative editing.

Produced By: New Line Cinema
Runtime: 170 minutes
Rating: R