YMMV / It (2017)

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• Alternative Character Interpretation
  • During the scene between Georgie and Pennywise, there's a brief point after the "popcorn" bit where Pennywise stares blankly at Georgie when the latter joins in on its "popping". Instead of it invoking Mood Whiplash to scare Georgie in his last moments, it's possible that the fear-feasting Pennywise realized that it was accidentally making Georgie happy and was at a loss at this development.
  • Is Stan's complaint that the other kids are not his friends only the result of what he has just endured because of It? Being the responsible one in a group can become very frustrating, especially when you are upset for something but your role makes it difficult for you to tell your friends about it. Also, Stan's problems are (although understandably) overshadowed by his friends' ones to the point that he's often left in the background and nobody gives his skepticism a chance.
  • Henry Bowers, Jerkass Woobie or just a Jerkass? How much of his bad behavior is a product of his upbringing? How much is due to Pennywise's influence?
  • Additionally, did Henry give Bill a "free pass" from bullying after Georgie disappeared because he was actually sympathetic, or were the normally more apathetic teachers actively looking out for Bill because they were sympathetic, leading Henry to back off until summer when the teachers couldn't do anything?
  • Is Eddie's mom controlling and overprotective as his final interaction with her in the film would imply, or is she someone able to resist IT's influence enough to realize that something is preying on the children of Derry, and thus will do everything she can to keep her son safe?
  • Did Officer Bowers actually disapprove of his son trying to shoot a cat, or was he just angry that Henry took his gun?
• And You Thought It Would Fail: Between the troubled pre-production it went through (the idea was conceptualized back in 2009) and the various change in writers, actors and directors due to Executive Meddling and Creative Differences, many assumed that the film was destine to fail and would become a Box Office Bomb. Much to the surprise (and relief) of its detractors, the movie grossed $700.4 million dollars worldwide and was very well received amongst both film critics and horror fans alike.
• Award Snub: Due to the tremendous amount of critical acclaim with many calling it one of the best Stephen King adaptations, topping the Academy Award-winning The Exorcist as the highest-grossing horror film, it could make some viewers wonder why it hasn't been entered in the 2018 Academy Awards for Best Visual Effects, Best Make-Up, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Picture and a Best Supporting Actor nomination for Skarsgård's chilling Creepy Awesome performance as Pennywise (much like how the late Heath Ledger posthumously won an Oscar for his performance as another infamous Monster Clown in The Dark Knight). Given that another well-known horror film released the same year Get Out (2017) was also entered into the Oscars and even won one for Best Original Screenplay, some would feel this horror film also deserved to be entered into the Academy Awards alongside other King film adaptations Carrie (1976), Stand by Me, Misery and The Green Mile.
• Catharsis Factor:
  • When the Losers' Club is investigating the run-down house, it leads up to a confrontation with Pennywise. To say that the audience gave off a loud cheer when Bev stabbed the creature in the head with a broken piece of fence would be a huge understatement since it was the first time the kids managed to land a hit on the thing that's been terrorizing them.
  • The Losers' club throwing rocks at Henry and his gang. Not only are the bullies well overdue for it, but you can see the visible confusion on Henry's face as his favorite victims are finally standing up to him.
  • Bev clobbering her creepy father in self-defense.
  • Mike shoving the psychopathic and racist Henry Bowers down a dark well.
  • Watching a Dirty Coward like Pennywise beaten into helpless-and-terrified submission by the children he'd been preying on all movie is rather satisfying.
• Complete Monster (includes Chapter Two): The titular antagonist, also known as Pennywise the Dancing Clown, is a ravenous, ancient horror that feeds on fear, and is possibly the most evil version of the character ever conceived. Having fed and butchered thousands over centuries by using their worst fears against them, Pennywise develops a particular taste for children for being easier to scare, opening the first film by tearing the seven-year-old Georgie apart before continuing to horribly torment his brother, Bill, and the members of the Losers' Club, murdering many others and even twisting Henry Bowers into killing his own father and attempting to kill the Losers' Club. A pronounced sadist, Pennywise makes a repeated point to hysterically mock Bill over his failure to protect Georgie and even forces him to watch as he devours another child Bill tries to protect in a mirror house; collects a mountain of thousands of trophies from its most favored victims; saves Adrian, a gay man beaten nearly to death, from drowning just so he can rip out his heart in front of his lover; and finally murders Eddie in the final battle, taking every chance it can to salt every wound it can find in its victims before killing them. A twisted, craven bully under its monstrous exterior that can't function without something to torment, Pennywise distinguishes itself from even the original novel version through just how far it goes to twist the nail.
• Crack Ship There are people who ship Pennywise and Beverly.
• Creepy Cute: Pennywise, to an extent. Bill Skarsgård is quite the attractive man, but alas, the creepy outweighs the cute here, because, well, he's Pennywise.
• Crosses the Line Twice:
  • Pennywise appearing in a photo over the face of a woman? Creepy. The last frame revealing Pennywise biting his lip suggestively under long, flowing hair like some kind of L'Oreal ad? Hilarious! (But still creepy.)
  • Pennywise appearing on a children's television program and leading a chorus of enthusiastic children to scream "Kill them all!" It's some prime Black Comedy for the audience. The exact context of the scene in the film itself, where Henry kills his father with that in the background, really makes it disturbing.
  • Georgie getting his arm ripped off is tragic and horrifying, but then comes Pennywise showing up later and using that same severed arm to wave hello at Mike (provided that it is Georgie's hand).
  • The doors in Pennywise's lair reading "Scary", "Very Scary", and "Not Scary at All" probably wouldn't be nearly as funny if all three of the messages, including "not scary at all", weren't written in dried blood.
  • Pennywise telling Bill in faux-outrage "This isn't real enough for you, Billy? I'm not real enough for you? IT WAS REAL ENOUGH FOR GEORGIE!" is mean and sadistic, and it wouldn't be funny except for the fact that Pennywise sounds so genuinely indignant and prissy about it, like an actress on a soap opera in the midst of a spurned lover's argument.
  • Marketing for this movie was mostly standard, but then they went the guerrila-ad route by tying red balloons to city sewer grates with a note about the film. Hilarious and terrifying.
  • Patrick bullying Stan is terrible. Him acing a trick shot toss of a yarmulke into a moving school bus was perhaps a little funnier than intended, and has gotten a lot of attention on Tumblr.
• Crossover Ship: There are (or were) quite a few people — jokingly or seriously — shipping Pennywise with the Babadook.
• Draco in Leather Pants:
  • Pennywise, the man-eating, child-torturing, pedophilically-toned shapeshifting Monster Clown has some enthusiastic fans.
  • Henry Bowers too, specially for those who see him as a Jerkass Woobie.
• Ensemble Dark Horse: Georgie. While already a popular character within the book and miniseries, many people love the Georgie of this version due to how adorably innocent he is, the scenes with Bill that show the loving brotherly relationship they have (compared to the original that was sort of non-existent), and the whole Tear Jerker fact he's killed horrifically and Bill's mourning/denial of it. Most attribute his status as this due to Jackson Robert Scott's performance when he goes from adorable sunshine ball to IT!Georgie, which is a surprise considering the usual criticism people have of child actors at his age.
• Evil Is Cool: While the titular It was meant to be a wholly detestable Hate Sink, there's a lot of fans who actually think he's cool, precisely because he's a genuinely terrifying, child-eating Monster Clown with a penchant for dark humor. Bill Skarsgård's amazing performance definitely helps.
• Fandom-Enraging Misconception: It's an adaptation of the novel, not a remake!^note Though interestingly enough, Stephen King himself once referred to it as a remake.
• Fandom Rivalry:
  • A very odd case, given that it's with the original miniseries. Fans of the film argue that the miniseries hasn't aged well, is chock full of narmtastic moments, and that the adult actors (save Tim Curry) weren't really that good. Fans of the miniseries insist that the film is mostly jump scares and that the film wasn't necessary. And of course, there's the debate on whether Tim Curry or Bill Skarsgård played the better Pennywise. Curry-Pennywise fans like the fact that Curry takes the role and not only runs with it, but hams it up as well. Skarsgård-Pennywise fans love how Pennywise is closer to the book and is much creepier. And besides, this is a new adaptation of the character, so he might as well have his own identity.
  • Another one between this movie and mother! (2017) released the same year, as many fans of that movie have openly criticized and mocked It for being another derivative, jumpscare riddled Hollywood horror film, believing that it didn’t deserve its universal praise. Fans of It are quick to fireback by claiming that the movie does make legitimate attempts to be both scary and entertaining with its cosmic horror themes, blasting mother! for being too artsy and pretentious to be considered fun.
• Fanon:
  • Richie and Bev going to prom together is a very common trope.
  • Richie making a habit of coming through Eddie's window, a la Romeo and Juliet, because Eddie's mom can't stand him.
  • Bev and Bill dated through high school after Ben left Derry.
• Fountain of Memes: Almost anything Eddie has said or done has become a meme at some point.
• Friendly Fandoms: With Stranger Things, due to having similar plots involving a group of youngsters fighting against an otherworldly monster in The '80s as well as the shared presence of Finn Wolfhard. Some fanfic writers even make Wolfhard's characters related to each other in order to connect the two works.
• Genius Bonus: The painting that Rabbi Uris keeps in his study, apart from being a Shout-Out to Mama and Edvard Munch, is also clearly inspired by the Jewish painter Amedeo Modigliani.
• Harsher in Hindsight:
  • This version got the producers being Mis-blamed for the odd spree of clown sightings all over the U.S., with many people believing it to be some form of Viral Marketing.
  • The joke where five of the boys are staring at Beverly until she glances up and they all look away is somewhat jarring in the context of the whole movie. She chops off her hair because her father is abusing her. The boys' innocent attraction to her is played for laughs, but the objectification of Beverly is portrayed in a much more disturbing light most of the rest of the time.
  • Richie's repeated jokes in this film about being a ladykiller become much sadder after It: Chapter Two reveals that Richie is in the closet, with the implication that the jokes are him trying to hide his sexuality.
• He Panned It, Now He Sucks!: The Amazing Atheist got a ton of flak for not liking the movie.
• He's Just Hiding: At the climax before the Losers face It, Mike defeats Henry by pushing him down the well, making it seem like he suffered a Death by Adaptation at a young age in contrast to the book and miniseries where he doesn't die until when he's an adult. However, Word of God confirmed his survival and that he would likely return for the sequel, which he did.
• Hilarious in Hindsight:
  • Mr. Kean saying Beverly looks like Lois Lane becomes a lot funnier after Sophia Lillis played the younger version of Amy Adams (the DC Extended Universe's Lois Lane) in Sharp Objects.
  • After Pennywise himself, there's also one another character who is also an antagonistic clown appearing in a 2017 work.
• Hollywood Pudgy: Henry calls Ben "tits" and his girth is often called "cottage cheese". However, he's not exactly that fat. He's a little pudgy but - as the sequel shows- you can easily see him growing out of it as he gets older.
• Ho Yay: Between Richie and Eddie. There was even a draft of the script that implied that the former was bisexual. It: Chapter Two confirms that, at the very least, Richie was in love with Eddie.
• Jerkass Woobie: Henry Bowers. Kid comes off as a psychopath to the Losers, but then we meet the father and realize it's a miracle that he's only a bully (although he did try to commit murder). He's rendered petrified by his father nearly shooting him, which leaves him open to It's manipulations. Henry was a doomed child and frankly, it's a miracle he made it alive as long as he did without blowing his own brains out. There's even the deleted scene showing the poor kid crying after being whipped by his father.
• Jerks Are Worse Than Villains:
  • The Alpha Bitch Greta Keene and her little Jerkass Girl Posse who bullied Beverly in the bathroom are disliked by many of the viewers, particularly for being karma houdinis. The Eldritch Abomination itself, IT, on the other hand is praised highly for It’s creepy nature, uncanny mannerisms and the many forms it took to terrorize the protagonists.
  • That being said, the hate Greta and her GirlPosse receive is at least tame compared to Beverly's father, Alvin Marsh, to the point where some fans have joked that he's worse than IT, who's supposed to be the main villain. If you don't believe this, Greta and her friends at least have some fans but no one in the fandom finds Alvin likable and all unanimously hate him for his squick-y and lustful desires towards Beverly.
• Just Here for Godzilla: Just like the original made-for-TV film, Pennywise is the biggest draw in the movie thanks to how utterly Creepy Awesome he is and Skarsgård's Cold Ham performance.
• Memetic Molester: Pennywise, of course! The creepiness of the character has been cranked up to eleven in this film; for example, he takes a moment to drool and stare creepily at Georgie during their encounter.
• Memetic Mutation:
  • Pennywise's dance looks set to be the movie's biggest meme. In a matter of days, people started posting gifs◊ of it or videos of it set to random, catchy songs. Yes, this includes We Are Number One, if you're wondering.
    • One variation brought two memes full circle by pairing the scene with Guile's Theme, aka the theme that goes with any scene paired with scene that goes with any song.
  • The phrase "You'll float too!" has surged in popularity after this movie.
  • People have gotten a lot of mileage out of using Eddie's "gazebos" line.
  • Some fans have jokingly applauded Pennywise for attacking the kids after school let out for summer break.
  • Fans christened Pennywise PETTYwise in response to his Kick the Dog moment: "It was real enough for Georgie!"
  • They're gazebos! ^note A line Eddie says to his mother when he finds out that his pills are actually placebos. Quickly caught the attention of many internet goers due to just how narm-y the line is.
    • "Eddie has angered the gazebo."^note A crossover meme with Dungeons & Dragons, which has a memetic story about a DM describing a clearing "in which sits a gazebo," and a player believing a "gazebo" is a monster and attempting to slay it. Various versions end with the gazebo coming to life and devouring the clueless player's character.
• Moe:
  • His screen-time is limited, but Jackson Robert Scott uses every single moment by making Georgie as adorable as possible. This makes it all the harder to watch when he becomes Pennywise's first victim in the most gruesome fashion imaginable. Many a viewers have said that the scene in question was the scariest part of the film just based on how truly horrible it was.
  • Troubling Unchildlike Behavior aside, the Losers themselves are quite adorable as well too. Bill, Ben, Bev, Eddie and Stan in particular are seen as especially huggable.
• Moral Event Horizon:
  • The titular IT (aka Pennywise) has already crossed the line many years ago, casually terrorizing Derry and murdering hundreds of children.
  • Beverly's father definitely crosses the line when he tries to rape his own daughter.
  • If Henry hadn't crossed it by carving Ben's stomach with a switchblade and trying to shoot an innocent cat for no reason, he definitely crosses it when he tries to shoot Mike during the climax. And none of this was in Pennywise's influence, either.
• Narm:
  • Pennywise's random jig near the end of the movie is on record as having made theaters cackle. Of course, this might have been the point.
  • During Ben's confrontation with the Headless Boy in the basement of the library, the Headless Boy's rather silly way of running can quickly kill the tension.
  • The strange attempt to make a scene of the Losers cleaning Beverly’s blood soaked bathroom as a good times montage. Some found it Narm Charm, but others can’t let go of the sheer contrast between tone and location.
• Narm Charm:
  • The Deadlights, which can be Narm to those unfamiliar with cosmic horror, appear here when Pennywise shows them to Beverly to paralyze her — at the back of a bottomless, tooth-filled maw. And if you listen carefully, you can hear insane screaming from within.
  • From the same scene, Pennywise's jig (as mentioned above), followed by him suddenly grabbing Bev and letting out a wild gibbering scream. It's absurd and downright silly, but it fits perfectly with his growing frustration that there's finally a child he can't scare, and he's running out of ideas.
  • There's something extraordinarily silly about the Losers pitching in to help Bev clean up a bathroom soaked in gallons of demon blood only they can see — all set to a jaunty musical work montage — but if it doesn't sum up the summer these poor kids are having, nothing does.
  • The entirety of the rock war between the Losers and Bowers gang, which has everything from over the top slow-motion, quick editing tricks and even Anthrax is playing in the background. It feels like it was ripped from the 80’s...but given what time period it’s set in it all works out perfectly.
• Nausea Fuel:
  • Eddie's broken arm is pretty grisly to look at. Not helped by the slushy sound it makes.
  • Everything about Beverly's father.
  • The Leper
  • Pennywise getting a fence post stabbed through his eye. Despite the injury not hurting him that much it's still pretty gross to look at.
• No Yay:
  • Every single interaction between Beverly and her father, who is strongly implied to be sexually abusing her.
  • Pennywise gives off a lot of pedophile vibes, perhaps especially towards Bill, whom It seems to be a bit obsessed with. For instance, in both the film and miniseries, It really does not respect Bill's personal space and seems to be rather fond of grabbing him and pinning him against the wall.
  • In one scene, Patrick can be seen licking his lips, with a really creepy grin on his face while staring at Richie when he and the other Losers walks past him.
• One True Threesome: Many have latched onto Bill/Bev/Ben as the logical solution to their Love Triangle.
• Realism-Induced Horror: Henry Bowers is a walking manifestation of this trope. In a town where there’s a supernatural cosmic clown thing murdering kids, Bowers’ psychopathic tendencies and violent bigotry really bring to light just how fucked the Losers’ lives are, as teens like this absolutely exist in real life. Especially the way he seems to hate Mike in particular, likely because he’s black, and tries to kill him near the climax, showing that a perfectly normal teen is just as capable of being a monster as It.
• Rescued from the Scrappy Heap: This version of Richie Tozier was much better received than his book counterpart.
• Rooting for the Empire: Some viewers actually don't mind Henry's father terrorizing him considering all the horrible crap he's done all throughout the film. It gets to the point where some people actually forget that his father is the reason Henry is the way he is, yet it is still quite satisfying to see Henry brought down a peg after he tormented innocent kids and was about to shoot a presumably equally innocent cat for fun.
• Self-Fanservice: Henry receives this from time-to-time. While he's not exactly ugly, some fanartists like to draw him as much more muscular than he is in the movie.
• Special Effect Failure:
  • The scene where Pennywise transforms his mouth and bites the arm of Georgie is obvious CGI. Still was scary as hell, though.
  • The CGI-zombie face of "Georgie", during the scene where Pennywise torments Bill in the basement, on the other hand, not so much.
  • When the losers are forming their Blood Oath to return if It comes back, the piece of glass Bill is using never shows a single drop of blood despite all the palms its cut through by the end.
• Ship Mates: Many people who ship Richie/Eddie, usually also ship Bev/Ben and Bill/Mike and Stan/Patty.
  • Sometimes Stan and Bill are shipped, if the fan doesn't particularly like Patty or like Stan/Bill more.
• Squick:
  • It's a subtle detail, but in the scene where Georgie meets Pennywise, you can see Pennywise drooling. This isn't the only time this happens, either. When he is about to kill Eddie, he is clearly drooling.
  • Anytime Pennywise opens his mouth, whether it be to scare or feed, expect to see slimy gums, rows upon rows of razor-sharp, nail-like teeth, and unhinged jaws dripping with saliva.
  • Pretty much every scene involving Beverly's father.
• They Changed It, Now It Sucks!:
  • Pennywise's new design which draws more influence from past eras such as the Renaissance than modern clown costuming. Some people think it looks either too silly or not "clownish" enough, while others think it makes him look even creepier. However, others feel it makes him look too creepy, as Pennywise's look is supposed to be appealing to young children so he can lure them in easier, and some have pointed out that no child in their right mind would find his look appealing, as everything about him is just off.
  • Many eagle-eyed viewers noticed that the shot of Pennywise peeking out from the water in the first trailer had no eyes in the reflection, which quite a few felt was one of the scariest and most interesting shots of the entire trailer. However, this was revealed to be a simple editing error, as the finished shot in the second trailer had eyes added, which many felt was a wasted opportunity.
• They Wasted a Perfectly Good Character:
  • Pennywise gets a bit of this. Although it does get a couple of scenes that allow IT's personality and Bill Skarsgård's performance to shine through, for the most part IT is relegated to jump scares and snarling.
  • Poor Patrick Hockstetter doesn't get much time to shine, does he?
  • Victor Criss is heavily underutilized here, with barely even a hint of the Hidden Depths and redeeming qualities he had in the novel, making him just another generic bully.
• They Wasted a Perfectly Good Plot: Leaving Richie out of cleaning of Bev's bathroom. While the Losers are cleaning up her bathroom, they could've had Pennywise attack Richie. He was the only one who didn't have an encounter with him on screen before Neibolt. It would've added more to his fears of being The Friend Nobody Likes, and they would've learned that separating the group isn't a good idea.
• Tough Act to Follow: While both films are made as parts of one narrative, they left different impressions as separate films, with this film setting an impressive precedent that Chapter Two is largely agreed upon to have struggled to meet. The adult Losers' performances and writing introduced in the sequel have been commonly cited as less engaging than their originating portrayal as children in this film, and the tone and pacing have been seen as much less scary and cohesive than the structure of this film, with some adaptational changes also being seen as less successful in the sequel than in this film. While the second film generally wasn't hated, impressions were largely that it couldn't live up to Chapter One.
• Unintentionally Sympathetic: Henry's dad, especially in the initial theatrical release where we don't see his physical abuse on screen. The first time we see him he stops his son from bullying some of the Losers Club just by looking at him. While shooting at his son's feet is absolutely abusive behavior, this is done in response to Henry trying to kill a cat with said gun, specifically in a way that could have gotten his friends shot as well.
• Visual Effects of Awesome: The film looks beautiful. It's very well-shot and well-lit. The visual effects themselves were awesomely creepy and completely avoided Narm. Even the Deadlights, which can be Narm to those unfamiliar with cosmic horror, were turned into something amazingly creepy, appearing at the back of Pennywise's maw when he used them to stun Beverly.
• What Do You Mean, It's Not for Kids?:
  • Despite being an unsettling Stephen King story featuring a killer clown, some parents were still foolish enough to bring their kids to see this movie, most likely seeing the poster as a wacky children's adventure or hoping that the movie was going to redo the Narm days of the original miniseries. Needless to say, many families learned this was not an appropriate children's movie the hard way.
  • There have been reports of parents invoking this as a means of introducing older kids to the horror genre, treating the film as a “next step up” from more “PG-13” fare such as Stranger Things. Fitting, as many kids begin reading King works after exhausting or outgrowing “kiddy horror” works such as Goosebumps.
• The Woobie: The Losers club seem to have this as a pre-requisite in a city where everyone is already miserable.
  • Mike saw his parents burn alive as an infant, and worst of all, heard their agonizing screams as they cried for help while he could do nothing, is an afroamerican teenager in Derry (a town with a heavy story of racial and bigotry incidents) and is bullied and beaten frequently by Bowers and his lackeys. How the boy is not traumatized beyond belief already is anyone's wonder.
  • Eddie's father died when he was 5 years old, leaving him with an overbearing mother that makes him believe he's subject of many illnesses and psychologically manipulates the boy to never leave her side or engage into any kind of behavior that takes him away from her. It's so bad that his mother actually convinced Eddie he has severe asthma. He's also the one that ends up most traumatized by It's first attack, getting a broken arm and being abnormally scared by the entity.
  • Bill has his brother Georgie taken away from him and spends the entire film trying to get him back only to accept at the end that he's dead. His father doesn't really support him, and boy, It certainly takes sadistic glee into pushing the Georgie button over and over and over.
  • Stan starts out with a relatively happy and normal life, only to have his rational worldview shattered by It, his Bar Mitzvah unattended by his friends (except for Richie) and his face chewed on by Pennywise, which might have exposed him to the deadlights.
  • Beverly's mother died when she was younger, leaving her with a creepy and abusive father. She's bullied at school and shamed because of fake rumours, and then she ends up knocking out her father when he tried to rape her, then she's kidnapped by Pennywise. Yeah, life hasn't treated Beverly well.
  • Ben is the new kid in town and has failed to make a single friend during his partial year at a new school; instead, he's bullied mercilessly for his weight and his general status as an outcast. He attracts the ire of Henry Bowers to the point where Bowers carves his initials into Ben's stomach and seems pretty geared up to actually murder him.

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