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It’s rare that I consider a film to be fun and horrifying.

Let me rephrase that: “I never find movies to be both fun and horrifying.”

But, I thought “It” did an exceptional job of drawing me in from the get-go, keeping me interested and pushing a few laughs out along the way.

“It,” based on Stephen King’s wildly popular novel of the same name, takes place in the town of Derry. When local children begin disappearing, a group of kids band together to find and attempt to defeat an ancient evil clown named Pennywise.

The movie stars Bill Skarsgard as Pennywise, Jaeden Lieberher as Bill Denbrough, Finn Wolfhard (best known from “Stranger Things”) as Richie Tozier, Jack Dylan Grazer as Eddie Kaspbrak, Wyatt Oleff as Stanley Uris, Jeremy Ray Taylor as Ben Hanscom, Sophia Lillis as Beverly Marsh and Chosen Jacobs as Mike Hanlon.

The most notable thing about the movie was the undeniable chemistry between the child actors. Though they are young, the cast worked together beautifully — consistently building off each other to create a more memorable world.

It’s rare you find this caliber of young actors together at once.

Almost as notable, I thought Bill Skarsgard did an excellent job as Pennywise. He was sadistic and terrifying — I mean, what else would you expect from a killer clown?

On a negative note, there were scenes that felt completely unneeded or just thrown together. This clunkiness, for lack of a better word, felt awkward and impacted the pace of the 135-minute film.

Overall, “It” was a perennial success both critically and at the box office, grossing more than $123.1 million in North America over the weekend.

THOUGHTS: Though familiar, “It” was fun, fresh and an exceptionally entertaining watch.

I agree with Rottentomatoes’ Tomatometer score of 86%.

Oh, and yes, the 2017 remake is light years ahead of the 1990’s miniseries. (Though I felt Tim Curry played an incredible Pennywise)

See showtimes here.

My past reviews: