From the get-go the premise was somewhat problematic. Sure, it’s pretty simple, but raises a lot of questions. What if someone passes it to someone, then sleeps with them again? What if they sleep with someone in a different continent? What if it’s a threeway? (This is a possibility hinted at but never used.) Do oral and anal count?note Insert obligatory ‘be Jay’ pun here. There are plenty of solutions that are never explored.
On a symbolic level, the film was supposed to be some sort of exploration of young sexuality. It feels awfully misguided (the idea of transferring STDs that somehow only affect one person at a time is... odd) and just plain disorganised to the point it stops being coherent and looks more like throwing allusions to a general concept at the proverbial wall just to see what sticks.
Now, ‘It’ is also said to be able to shapeshift to someone close to its victim to get closer. Somehow it never does so. It’s also said to be smart, and yet everyone treats it like an idiot, especially in the pool scene. Well, I guess it’s justifiable, because it doesn’t act too smart. Sure, the dialogue and acting (aside from the last sex scene, which looked like missionary with bizarrely reversed roles) were well-written, but the plot conveyed thereby was lacking.
Similarly, the music was very good, but felt very... not scary. It ruined the mood somewhat. Instead of focusing on the atmosphere, suddenly I was just appreciating the talent the musician who produced the soundtrack had.
Finally, the film is somewhat predictable. Once it’s established that ‘It’ acts a certain way (contrary to what we were told) and the characters keep passing the Idiot Ball around, it loses most of its edge. At the first real confrontation with ‘It’, when the characters were hiding in the shed, I just thought, ‘3... 2... 1... Jump Scare. Hm. OK. 3... 2... 1—called it. Jump Scare.’
It was a somewhat entertaining watch, but I’d give it just about 8/10.
Mostly good execution of a flawed premise.
From the get-go the premise was somewhat problematic. Sure, it’s pretty simple, but raises a lot of questions. What if someone passes it to someone, then sleeps with them again? What if they sleep with someone in a different continent? What if it’s a threeway? (This is a possibility hinted at but never used.) Do oral and anal count?note There are plenty of solutions that are never explored.
On a symbolic level, the film was supposed to be some sort of exploration of young sexuality. It feels awfully misguided (the idea of transferring STDs that somehow only affect one person at a time is... odd) and just plain disorganised to the point it stops being coherent and looks more like throwing allusions to a general concept at the proverbial wall just to see what sticks.
Now, ‘It’ is also said to be able to shapeshift to someone close to its victim to get closer. Somehow it never does so. It’s also said to be smart, and yet everyone treats it like an idiot, especially in the pool scene. Well, I guess it’s justifiable, because it doesn’t act too smart. Sure, the dialogue and acting (aside from the last sex scene, which looked like missionary with bizarrely reversed roles) were well-written, but the plot conveyed thereby was lacking.
Similarly, the music was very good, but felt very... not scary. It ruined the mood somewhat. Instead of focusing on the atmosphere, suddenly I was just appreciating the talent the musician who produced the soundtrack had.
Finally, the film is somewhat predictable. Once it’s established that ‘It’ acts a certain way (contrary to what we were told) and the characters keep passing the Idiot Ball around, it loses most of its edge. At the first real confrontation with ‘It’, when the characters were hiding in the shed, I just thought, ‘3... 2... 1... Jump Scare. Hm. OK. 3... 2... 1—called it. Jump Scare.’
It was a somewhat entertaining watch, but I’d give it just about 8/10.