‘It Chapter Two’ Review: You’ll Wish It Only Stayed At Chapter One

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Sure, there are lots of convoluted material from its 1000+ novel counterpart to showcase in the big screen, but that’s not saying that this continuation is trash overall. It’s not. The cast did well on playing their part, Pennywise still had proven that he’s a worthy villain, and there were enough scenes that made me close my mouth in case a shout escapes me. The major thing that killed this movie for me was its ending.

It’s even funny because it was even referenced in the movie: how Bill Denbrough, the main protagonist (who grew up as a writer) was hated because of how shitty his book endings were. That’s what made me so pissed by the time I left the cinema. I didn’t even bother how long the movie was. I get it. Actually, kulang pa nga ang 2 hours and 55 minutes runtime nito sa sobrang daming naganap sa novel nito. But as it approached its climax, I happened to have this thought: Iyon na ‘yon? Two hours at mahigit na paghihintay para lang doon? Doon pa lang sira na ang imahe nito sa akin.

As someone who had read it, I guess what made me disappointed so much was that I expected too much. It didn’t quite match how I envisioned what happened on the book. Kung tutuusin, kaya ko pinanood ang movie na ito dahil para malinawan ako sa mga nangyari kasi jusko, ang weird ng mga nababasa kong descriptions doon. What happened there included cosmic entities, total chaos, and a ridiculous ritual. Turns out, mas gugustuhin ko pa pala kung anong pagkaka-imagine ko dati kaysa sa naganap sa movie na ito.

Was it scary though?

Kinda. The only thing that scared me was the projector scene. Oh wait, that was from before? Well then. Wala.

Charot! Meron din naman kaunti. Watch out for that three doors—‘yung may labels na scary, very scary, saka not scary at all. It was back and I liked that part. And the other scene that made me clasp my mouth shut was the scene with the little girl (na hindi ko alam kung sino, extra lang ata).

What they did wrong in this movie though was that they overstuffed it with jumpscares, that by the end of the film, I have gotten immune by it, na tipong wala na akong pakialam sa kung anong mangyayari.

Also, Bill is supposed to be the leader and center of the story. He’s the one they’re supposed to look up to. But I haven’t felt his leadership in this one. Don’t get me wrong. James McAvoy was great in this though. Hindi lang talaga siya nabigyan ng masyadong focus kahit pa ang haba ng film.
Compared to its 2017 film, Chapter Two looks like it had gotten a lot more CGI-budget, and thanks to this, it did justice on making the film darker and grittier. But there are CGI-monsters that weren’t even that scary. Their weird combinations felt comical rather than induce nightmares. Nung nag-brainstorm siguro sila, basta nag-isip isip lang sila ng kung anu-anong pwedeng ipagdikit and then confidently say, Okay na ‘yan! Nakakatakot na ‘yan! It’s not.

In spite of all the negative things I’ve pointed out, it’s obvious this movie would still garner huge success. Huge thanks to the wonderful and convincing portrayal of the cast to the characters we’ve loved. Mai-imagine mo talaga na sila ‘yung mga batang characters noong 2017 na lumaki. One of them who stole the spotlight was Bill Hader’s portrayal of Richie. Siya ‘yung tipong pabida sa group project dahil individual daw ‘yung grade sabi ni teacher. Charot. His wit and snark remarks felt natural and effortless, kaya siya ‘yung number one favorite character ko roon. There’s also James Ransone as Eddie Kaspbrak (‘yung may asthma). May one scene siya roon na napahalakhak ako nang sobra. You’ll know when you’ve watched it. And above all that, there’s Bill Skarsgard who played the evil clown who certainly owned the role, the way Heath Ledger owned Joker and Robert Downey Jr., Iron Man. Though mostly CGI siya sa mga appearance niya, kuha pa rin niya ‘yung playfulness na attitude ni Pennywise at ang effective na pananakot nito. No one can ever replace him as It.

Overall, I would still recommend this if you want horror movies na mapapasigaw ka sa gulat. This is guaranteed a jumpscare fest. Pero ‘yung real scare factor na tipong mapapaangat ka ng paa sa upuan mo at mapapatakip ng mata? I would suggest that you watch asian horror movies instead. Also if you’re a fan of the book, mas mabuting basahin mo na lang iyon uli kaysa panoorin ito sa sine. Parehas lang din naman. Si ano pa rin naman ‘yung namatay (cheret). Mas kompleto pa ‘yung feels sa book. Kaya doon ka na lang, less gastos pa.

To anyone expecting a Chapter Three, wala na, hanggang dito lang ito. Everything ends on this one. And it better stay that way.

My movie rating:

2 out of 5 stars
a half-aspiring writer and a half-programmer, a Marvel fan, and devourer of books. I'm easy to befriend with. Just send your be-my-friend application letter thru my email. Needs 3-5 business days to reply back. Thanks!

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