Watching this right now just rewatched the awful brady bunch variety hour remember seeing it on nick at nite in 1991 I was 7 until I was 10 in 1995 huge sid and marty krofft fan one of their worst tv shows their other shows are better in my opinion 🍩
Pennywise didn't kill Stan, Stan killed himself rather than have to deal with his childhood trauma, which is what the film and book are about: dealing with childhood trauma.
@@IAmHumongous Did you read it? It's pretty long and detailed. Maybe you just have to be able to understand symbolism and allegory. I thought it was pretty heavy handed on that. Not hard to spot.
Right? You can even see that he was showing hesitance about the situation. Plus, It's only in Derry, he has no influence outside the town. If it did, then the world would've already been consumed.
It was actually far truer to its source material than the more recent films were. A shame it had such restraints from the TV network censors and such a low budget. Had they been able to go balls to the wall with the violence and swearing, and had a bigger budget to spend on better effects, it could have been AMAZING. Still, as it is it's pretty damn good.
This adaptation follows the book much more closely. But it still leaves nearly three-fifths of it on the cutting room floor. Like the Stand, there really is no substitute for reading the book in the instance. I've been a King fan most of my life and IT truly is one of his masterpieces.
I can't read Stephen King books. I tried once and it scared the bejeezus out of me. When I read it's like a mini film in my head and apparently my imagination is way more scary than any of these film makers' are.
I'll always prefer this version of It for one reason: Tim Curry as Pennywise. Not because he's scarier necessarily, but because when he pretends to be friendly, it's convincing. He's good at being a charming clown who I believe could actually lure children in to be murdered, and that's more frightening than anything supernatural.
Unpopular opinion but I like this (IMDB: 6.8) a lot more than the remake (IMDB: 7.3). Maybe because of sentiment, but the characters feel more genuine and the ambiance more melancholic. I also had a crush on (old) Beverly Marsh.
@@bemindful924 that's because the first it was more suspenseful ..second one focus more on jump scares that's not scary too much CGI now in horror movies
Fun Fact: During the filming of the scene where Georgie is killed by Pennywise, the young actor playing Georgie broke character and said, "Tim.... you're scaring me!" And Tim Curry replied, "Well I'm so sorry, but that's what I'm supposed to be doing." lol 😆
I think the fact that you don't see Pennywise too often makes him more scary. I think keeping IT looking like a normal clown makes it seems a lot more creepy. Gives off twisted serial killer vibes as opposed to an alien.
"I Was a Teenage Werewolf' *is* a real film. It is a 1957 film starring Michael Landon, who went on to featured roles on 'Bonanza', 'Little House on the Prairie', and 'Highway to Heaven".
I Was a Teenage Werewolf was one of my first favourite horror movies, I could not get enough of it. A neighbour of mine had a vast collection of old black and white 50s and 60s horror movies, and he would let me borrow them regularly, it was like my own private video rental shop. I would take this fairly regular along with the original 🪰, great movies and times.
Emily Perkins (young Beverly) is lowkey underrated and I wish she would have done more movies. Ginger Snaps is a great canadian werewolf movie that she stars in!
In case you’re interested,a podcast I listen to called The Saturday Evening Freakshow Podcast(although you can hear the new episode on Saturday morning,around 8:45-9 a.m.) is going to be discussing that movie this coming Saturday,Oct.16.I have nothing to do with the podcast,but I highly recommend it.
I'm surprised you thought IT killed Stan, Mike specifically says Stan cut his own wrists in the bathtub. If IT could leave town, IT would have visited them and killed them all separately, not waited for them to all come back.
Pennywise didn't kill Stan, Jen. Stan killed himself because after seeing Pennywise's true form he couldn't go back and face Pennywise again, and he killed himself rather than go back.
This scared me stupid when I saw it, I can’t even watch the new version because this one scared me so badly 😂😂 even the book didn’t freak me out as much as this - Tim Curry did a phenomenal job.
There were a lot of changes to the book, for reasons of casting, and time limitations (the book was 1000+ pages), a lot of back-story left out, and a lot of IT-encounters were changed, presumably due to the difficulty of representing it with available effects. Also, the end is much more involved in the book, taking place on some kind of strange mental plane that mirrors or touches our own cosmos. EDIT: Oh, yeah, and of course I forgot about the whole slough of things you're not allowed to show happening to children.
Agreed. I enjoyed both the original mini series and the major motion pictures, but neither will hold up to the book, a true adaptation would take several films. The Corcoran brothers...poor kids...but arguably one of the most terrifying scenes and it never makes it into adaptations.
@@jean-paulaudette9246 I saw Salem's Lot on tv when I was 7 and was hooked since, although I didn't read my first book until I was 11 and Pet Sematary was released. I then went back and read everything, and I have been reading everything ever since, lol. But yes, it's an amazing book, and I loved the connections to the Losers.
@@tinastar1972 I don't remember my first, but I think it was reading his short story collections that hooked me. I recall, a few months after reading "Different Seasons" I was excitedly telling everyone I knew that the TV ads for "Stand By Me" were a story I had read. I was a very big fan of supernatural and sci-fi short stories. Ray Bradbury is another big favorite. It wasn't until my older sister took an interest in my reading habits, that I expanded into fantasy & magic...and I'm glad i did.
When Ben realises that he has made out with Pennywise, I hoped for this dialogue: "Why you! What have you done to Beverly?" "Nothing. Why? Do you think I should?" "You tricked me. I would never have... I've never never. Never!" "Yes I know. But it isn't all bad is it?"
The IT miniseries was actually filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, Jen. lol Your backyard! 😆 Filming locations included Stanley Park, Beaver Lake, Saint Thomas Aquinas High School Convent in North Vancouver, and the Buntzen Lake Hydro Plant.
Also The Paramount Theatre is actually The Paramount Gentlemen's Club (aka strip club) in New Westminster. At least the exterior was, I don't know about the interior. That was either shot on a soundstage or in an actual movie theatre. If they used an actual movie theatre, then I would guess it's what is now The Rio Theatre, as that's the only theatre I know of that has a balcony. It could also possibly be The East Van Cinema, but I don't remember whether or not if they had a balcony and they've been out of business for years so I can't go and check.
The miniseries was filmed in British Columbia, Canada. Many of the supporting actors were Canadian. I love this miniseries, despite the issues with the second half, it is the best adaptation of the novel, IMO.
The original "It" had such a great cast. The flaw in the film was in the execution of the ending. It could be that the production ran out of money. All practical effects. No CGI. It was originally a television mini-series.
@@boldbearings It was originally supposed to be a 4 part miniseries, each part a 2 hour TV run time (with commercials, that's 90 minutes without commercials). They were originally supposed to devote more time to developing the characters, both as kids and as adults. Bev's boyfriend was also going to be a bigger role, with him following Bev to Derry and becoming influenced by IT. I think the original plan was to also show more of Pennywise's kills back when they were kids and in the present, or at least Pennywise stalking his intended victims without showing the actual murders (something of a Hollywood taboo back then, ESPECIALLY for TV). Also, the kids were together in school all year long in the book. But in the miniseries it was summer time but they were still going to school? I'm pretty sure they would have had added scenes so that Pennywise was tormenting them throughout the school year, but it was summer when they finally fought back, instead of apparently having to go to school while on summer vacation (again WTH?). They also probably made Henry Bowers less of a one dimensional bully and gave him some backstory (like they did in the 2017 movie). So yeah, there was a LOT of stuff from the book that could have (and would have) been added had it been 6 hours instead of 3. And none of it was The Losers Club running a train on Beverly.
This mini series had the same pact as Jaws! Only Clowns and not sharks! There is a generation of people terrified of clowns because of this! Its awesome, thank you!!! 😃
As a kid I got a kick out of seeing Judge Harry Stone, Venus Flytrap, Lana Lang and Jack Tripper fighting a monster. I don't remember being scared at all though.
Alabama girl here, my kids and I did movies mostly horror but even now ( I’m 66) we just do movie talk occasionally but this was one of our favorites but there are so many! Stand By Me!
This clown makeup makes a lot more sense than the remake. Take into account that It dressed as Pennywise to lure children. Also, I suggest that in your own time you watch The Nostalgia Critic's review of IT. It's hilarious and you'll learn more about Stephen King tropes.
The book was so good I read it in about a week, could hardly put it down. This was filmed in my hometown of Vancouver, B.C. I have watched it a number of times. Looking forward to your reaction, here we go...
I've read the book and seen all the films. The book and films are very different from each other. This (original) film adaptation is far more accurate, in many ways, than the new films but it's still missing tons of what happens in the book. This makes the book well worth reading even if you've seen all the films. Also, anyone calling this a miniseries is incorrect. It even labels it that way on Wikipedia which is incorrect. It was a single film that had to be split into two parts when it initially aired because the TV network wouldn't allow them to use up so much air time at once during prime time hours. So they showed the first half one night and the second half the next night. After that, all subsequent showings were of the full film.
True on both accounts. King wanted to air the movie all at once but it was too long at just over 3 hours. With commercials it needed a 4 hour time slot ABC wouldn't allow that. They made him cut it in half and the producers added a "Part 1" and "Part 2" title screen to each part which they removed after the initial airing. If you own a physical or digital copy of it it's just a single film.
When Henry escaped from the psych ward, the orderly dropped the roll of quarters that he usually used to beat troublemakers and Pennywise morphed into a pit bull and mauled him to death
25:12 LOL I remember laughing at that part when I was younger. It's the reason why I think he's the best version of Pennywise he's hilarious and scary at the same time.
No adaptation of a Stephen King novel will ever do the source material justice. Did you know the kids have sex in the sewer towards the end of IT. We'll never see that on screen 😂
Here are a couple of descriptions of Pennywise direct from the book: "He looked like a cross between Bozo and Clarabelle...there were funny tufts of red hair on either side of his bald head..." (p.12) "...he could see a baggy suit with the big orange pompom-buttons down the front and the floppy yellow bow-tie." (p.179) (King, Stephen. IT. 1986. Signet.)
"Is that like a dig at author, Dean Koontz" I have always suspected as much -- the moreso when I learned that Dean had also published a horror novel about a killer clown (i forget the title). Never much of a Koontz fan, I did however really enjoy his Frankenstein series, which assumed that both the creator and the creation survived to the present day.
Fun Fact: IT was directed by Tommy Lee Wallace, who is a long time collaborator of John Carpenter, who worked as an editor and second unit director on Halloween and The Fog.
I was a Teenage Werewolf is a real movie from the 50s,and here’s something about it you may find funny:it stars Michael Landon from Little House on the Prarie.There is also I was a teenage Frankenstein by the same producer,and Blood of Dracula,which is a female teenage vampire story.To me,they’re all good
Love me some Tim Curry! I actually enjoy the 1990 made-for-tv IT. I'm a huge fan of Stephen King's written works, and IT is one of my favorites among his novels. The movie, though liberties were obviously taken, still captured the essence/vibe of the book...for me, anyway. Of course, the brutality (among other things such as the complicated details regarding Pennywise and IT's mythos) was largely abandoned in favor of a more viewer friendly interpretation. But it works, I think, for what it is. The acting is good by both the young actors as well as the more seasoned cast members. Perhaps nostalgia has biased my opinion (I was 15 when this was made), but I like IT (pun intended lol). Usually I dislike film adaptations that stray too far, or water down, the source material. Keep rockin' and stay heavy 🤘
I remember this aired as a mini-series on CBS the week of (US) Thanksgiving in my freshman year in college. I think it was part one on Sunday, part two on Tueseday, but in any case, my then-girlfriend (now ex-wife) and I watched the first part in the TV room in our dorm, and then I was home for Thanksgiving break when the second part aired.
Tim Curry was awesome in this role. One of the greatest male actors of all time. He can be funny, scary and serious all at once. Kind of like he was in Disney's, The Three Musketeers. He was an awesome villain that portrayed the same qualities he had in 'IT'.
Another difference between the 1990 version of IT and the newer version is that the characters were kids in the 1950s in the old version, but in the new version they're kids in the 1980s.
I remember when I was little, I walked in on my mom watching this. I asked her what she was watching which led to a bit of a who's on first routine between us. Me: What are you watching Mom: It Me: What is it? Mom: It.
'I was a teenage werewolf' was a real movie but I only know about it because it was a Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode. It's on RU-vid if anyone wants to see it.
It/Pennywise is a shape-shifting creature known as a Glamour who is billions of years old. Although It lived on planet Earth for many years, It originated in a void/dimension outside the regions of space known as the Macroverse. Since Its true identity is unclear, due to its shape-shifting abilities and being from another universe, Its real name and species are called Deadlights, but few know this, which is why it is referred to as IT. The form of a female spider seems to be Its true physical form on Earth (or at least that is the closest thing the human mind can comprehend), living deep below the fictional town of Derry, Maine. It can morph into any other human animal, nonhuman animal or object (including combinations thereof). This ability is useful for, A) appearing as the target's loved ones or friends to manipulate them or lure them into a trap or B) appearing as the target's worst psychological fear. However, Its favorite and most common form is that of a circus performer named "Pennywise the Dancing Clown," as most small children love a clown and generally, it seems that the people in Derry happily accepted the presence of a stray circus performer. At the same time, many people are afraid of clowns, making them an easy fear to exploit. Its real name (if indeed, it has one) is unknown. Although, several times in the novel, It calls itself by the name Robert “Bob” Gray. This may be an allusion to real-life child cannibal Albert Fish, who reportedly used the name "Robert Gray" as an alias. He may also get his first name from Robert "Bob" Bell, the man who originally portrayed Bozo the clown. Its primary goal is to feed on humans, generally preferring children over adults since they were easier to scare and manipulate. According to the creature, frightened flesh tastes better and uses fear to "salt the meat". It originated in an undiscovered void containing and surrounding our entire Universe, another far off universe referred to as the "Macroverse." (A concept related to Todash Darkness from The Dark Tower Novels). Other evidence from this series suggests It is the creation of a separate omnipotent creator referred to as "the Other" (who may be the entity Gan). This "Other" helps the defeat of it at the end, and may also be responsible for the creation of "The Turtle", who is It's natural enemy. In It the novel, the Turtle refers to It as his "brother". The Turtle is named Maturin, and its huge. If I'm remembering correctly, Maturin had a stomach ache and coughed up the universe. It may be one of, or a Twinner of, the six greater demon elementals mentioned by Mia in Song of Susannah (as the Spider is not one of the Beam Guardians). It's possible that there are other creatures of the same species as It, due to the fact that It is revealed to be pregnant. No one knows the true form of IT since it first existed in an inter-dimensional realm referred to as "deadlights". Bill Denbrough comes close to see the "deadlights", but defeats IT before this happens. The true form of the "deadlights" exists outside the physical realm. Any living being that sees the "deadlights" goes insane almost instantly. Bill comes dangerously close to seeing the deadlights and the shape behind the shape for a brief moment. He described IT as an endless, crawling hairy creature made of orange light. Throughout the novel, IT is generally referred to as male; however, late in the novel, the characters come to realize that IT is most likely female, due to its true form in the physical realm being that of a giant pregnant female spider. This revelation prompts Audra Denbrough to say, "Oh, dear Jesus, IT is female." This, however, is not its true form; it's just the closest representation of it in our universe. Due to its pregnancy, it’s very possible that a male of the same species as IT existed at one time. The reason there are so many terrible people in this movie is because of IT. IT is pretty much manipulating the entire town.
How could I forget that Emily Perkins played the young Beverly Marsh. Emily Perkins was great in the horror film 'Ginger Snaps'. Loving your reactions to IT.
It is actually implied in the novel that the Losers can shine, just like Danny in The Shining. All of Stephen King's books are set in the same universe. In the book, Dick Hallorann is mentioned as the man who saved Mike Hanlon's father from a bar fire.
I’ve always felt this version captured the feel of the novel much better than the remake. The 50’s / 80’s timeline was much creepier than the modern time. Separating the kids’ story from the adults’ was a mistake in the remake. “I Was A Teenage Werewolf” is a 50’s horror classic starring Michael Landon. Curry’s Pennywise is much scarier than the new one. Let’s face it, no kid is going anywhere near the new Pennywise! This, in my opinion, is King’s best novel. If you decide to read one, read this. IT was the spider. Pennywise is only one manifestation of the actual creature. The new version had the chance to explain this more but totally blew it. IT was an extra dimensional creature.
The clown in the book was intended to be friendly in appearance to draw kids too him. The new IT clown in the new film was too scary looking to attract children.
11:00 I love how they kept Richie fear as werewolves after seeing the movie. They never put it in new versions of film. Also, the security guard was afraid of dogs 34:28 , not killed by Henry like the movies. Mike stab and hospital was book as well.
I saw this miniseries when it premiered on ABC in 1990, at the tender age of 10. Call me biased, but this version is far creepier than the remake, in part because of how much they leave to the imagination. The caliber of the actors in this version was way above most of what passes for dramatic acting today. Harry Anderson and John Ritter, where are you guys when we need you.
Hey, really great reaction. I really like your style! I was wondering if you have any advice or like tips & tricks for a newbie reactor starting out such as myself. Thank you so much and keep up the hard work❤
Not sure if anyone else posted this already, but I Was a Teenage Werewolf was, in fact, a movie, starring Michael Landon of Little House on the Prarie and Highway to Heaven fame. He plays a horrible, psychotic monster in it. And he turns into a werewolf, too!
Great reaction of a movie no one seems to want to watch. This is always going to be my go-to IT movie. It's a very biased statement but I'm ok with it. Funny, you don't know Harry Anderson. Night Court fame? When you get back to regular movies, try the John Ritter awesome, bargain bin movie, Real Men. One of my favorite movies, yes, of all time.
