| Stephen King's It | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Tommy Lee Wallace |
| Produced by | Mark Basino Allen S. Epstein Jim Green |
| Written by | Stephen King (novel) Lawrence Cohen Tommy Lee Wallace |
| Starring | Harry Anderson Dennis Christopher Richard Masur Annette O'Toole Tim Reid John Ritter Richard Thomas Tim Curry |
| Music by | Richard Bellis |
| Cinematography | Richard Leiterman |
| Editing by | David Blangsted Robert F. Shugrue |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Television |
| Release date(s) | November 18, 1990 (USA) |
| Running time | 192 min. |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
It (also referred to as Stephen King's It) is a 1990 horror mini-series based on the Stephen King novel of the same name.
Contents |
Production
The miniseries was filmed in New Westminster, British Columbia, which stood in for the town of Derry. An actual former movie house in New Westminster, the Paramount, appeared in several scenes in the miniseries, including an establishing scene where the young Losers go to a Saturday matinee and a later scene where the adult Richie drives by the theatre and sees a disturbing message from It on the marquee. In reality, the New Westminster Paramount stopped showing movies in 1983 and now functions as a strip club.
Storyline
It aired as a two-part television mini-series on November 18, 1990 on ABC, and loosely follows the plot of the novel. The first half of the film, set in 1960 (in the novel, it was set in 1958), introduces a group of social outcasts, the "Losers", as they meet and form a tight-knit group in the face of a cruel and intolerant world. They each individually come into contact with the child-killing monster haunting their hometown of Derry, Maine, which they name "It". It usually appears as Pennywise the Dancing Clown before taking the form of whatever its child victim most greatly fears. Spurred on by Bill Denbrough's desire for revenge on It for killing his younger brother Georgie, the Losers resolve to locate It's home in the sewers and destroy the threat to Derry once and for all. After fighting It, and believing to have succeeded in killing It, they come out from the sewers and make a promise to return if It ever comes back. Little did they know that they would keep that promise 30 years later. The second half of the film, set in 1990 (instead of 1985 like the novel), focuses on the now-adult Losers who agree to return home to Derry (except for Stan Uris, who killed himself when he learned It had returned) to destroy It once and for all. Again, the Losers must face not only the terrible creature, but also Henry Bowers, the bully who made their childhoods miserable and is now an incarcerated madman under the influence of It, who is determined to kill them all. Upon returning to the sewers, where It dwells, they encounter many of its victims wrapped up in cocoons hanging from the walls, one of whom is Bill's wife, Audra. They encounter It in the form of a spider. Bill, Ben and Richie are transfixed by the 'deadlights' which shine from beneath the creature. Beverly shoots It with a silver bullet. It manages to kill Eddie, after which the gang follows It to its inner sanctum and attack/dismember It once and for all. Bill pulls It's heart out, consequently killing It. After It dies, all of It's victims descend from the sewer walls, all in a hypnotic state. The movie closes with Mike explaining what happened to each of the Losers following these events. The final scene of the movie involves Bill riding Audra down the roads on his childhood bike that he saved Stan with. This manages to break It's curse upon her. The movie ends with the sound of Pennywise laughing one last time.
Deaths
- Laurie Ann Winterbarger: In the form of the clown, Laurie Ann was killed by It in her backyard. Actual cause of death is unknown.
- Georgie Denbrough: In the form of the clown, his arm was ripped off when trying to reach for the wax paper sailboat that went into sewer drain; bled to death.
- Stanley 'Stan' Uris: Committed suicide in the bath tub, because he was haunted by his past memory of It. On the bathroom wall 'IT' is written in blood.
- Henry Bowers: Killed by Mike Hanlon after attempting to kill him, nearly succeeding.
- Victor Kriss/Belch Huggins: Belch is pulled into a pipe in the sewers, frightening Henry so immensely that his entire head of hair turns white. Victor is picked off while off on his own, but the actual scene of his death is not shown.
- Eddie Kaspbrak: Attempts to blast the It's spider form with his aspirator, but after it fails to succeed in hurting It, It throws him to the ground, fatally wounding him.
Cast
Adult Characters
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Tim Curry | Pennywise the Dancing Clown/It |
| Richard Thomas | Adult Bill Denbrough |
| John Ritter | Adult Ben Hanscom |
| Annette O'Toole | Adult Beverly Marsh |
| Harry Anderson | Adult Richie Tozier |
| Dennis Christopher | Adult Eddie Kaspbrak |
| Richard Masur | Adult Stan Uris |
| Tim Reid | Adult Mike Hanlon |
| Michael Cole | Adult Henry Bowers |
Child Characters
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Jonathan Brandis | Young Bill Denbrough |
| Brandon Crane | Young Ben Hanscom |
| Emily Perkins | Young Beverly Marsh |
| Seth Green | Young Richie Tozier |
| Tarik Hill Jr. | Young Eddie Kaspbrak |
| Ben Heller | Young Stan Uris |
| Marlon Taylor | Young Mike Hanlon |
| Jarred Blancard | Young Henry Bowers |
Other Characters
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Olivia Hussey | Audra Phillips Denbrough |
| Sheila Moore | Ms. Sonya Kaspbrak |
| Laura Harris | Loni (uncredited) |
Novel vs. Mini-series
The television miniseries was done on a fairly modest budget, and thus events in the book had to be ignored, especially if they would have required expensive special effects. Wallace, the director, notes on the DVD commentary that he was unhappy with the final result of the spider-like "true" form of It. Many parts of the book are twisted, either changed completely, or have different characters.
Omitted elements
The following elements that were important to the book's plot are all either removed or represented very differently in the film. Violence: Many of It's extremely graphic and gory attacks are merely implied in the film, and are not shown onscreen. This includes the fatal attacks on George Denbrough, Laurie Ann Winterbarger, and Reginald "Belch" Huggins. The Losers' findings of many mutilated corpses are also omitted, as are several instances of cruelty to animals, including Patrick Hockstetter's suffocation of many animals inside an abandoned refrigerator, and Henry Bowers poisoning Mike Hanlon's dog, Mr. Chips. Significantly, the character of Patrick Hockstetter is severely truncated and appears merely as one of Bowers' henchmen. Child abuse is also a major theme in the novel; although Beverly's father, Alvin Marsh, still acts threatening towards his daughter, he is not seen beating her, and the subplot featuring Edward and Dorsey Corcoran, two children in Derry (one murdered by their abusive father, the other by It), was dropped. Homophobia: In the book, It's first attack during its modern cycle is not on a five-year-old girl but on a homosexual man named Adrian Mellon who had just been gay bashed by a trio of hoodlums. The movie drops this scene entirely, and never refers to it at any point. Other scenes involving homosexuality are left out, including a bar named the Falcon where most of the patrons are homosexual, and when Patrick Hockstetter proposes to have oral sex with Henry. It is worth noting that an attack similar to the opening scene is mentioned in passing in the novel although in 1958 instead. Profanity: Vulgar dialogue is omnipresent throughout the entire novel. It also features an aspect of characters developing their own abilities to curse. The amount of profanity is significantly lowered in the film, and many parts of dialogue are altered to become less harsh. For instance, Eddie yells, "This is battery acid, you slime!" while spraying his inhaler in It's face, as opposed to "BATTERY ACID, FUCKNUTS!" in the novel. Racism: Racism, particularly towards the Hanlons for being black, is a significant issue almost entirely ignored in the film. Despite establishing Henry Bowers and other characters as racists, the film does not feature some of the novel's racist attacks, such as when Henry drenches Mike in mud in order to make a "tar baby", or a thorough analysis of the word "nigger". In addition, Stan being Jewish results in some stereotypical views of Judaism in the novel, though this issue is also never analyzed in the film. Sexuality: One of the most blatant omissions in the film is the treatment of sexuality. In the novel, before the young Losers successfully escape from the sewer after encountering It, Beverly Marsh has sex with the boys. She also has sex again with Bill later as an adult. Sexuality also makes some appearances in which It threatens the children with sexual assault. These scenes are dropped entirely from the film, as well as characters' viewings on sexuality as children, and details of their sex lives as adults. On the DVD audio commentary, director Tommy Lee Wallace states that he did not want to get into these sexuality issues. Drugs: Many of the Losers in the novel smoke cigarettes while in their clubhouse. Beverly's protective father also shows some concern about his daughter drinking alcohol, claiming "Everyone knows what a girl like that will do!".
Characters
The following characters were omitted from the film
- It's natural enemy, and brother, the Turtle
- Dorsey Corcoran and Eddie Corcoran, victims of It (Dorsey indirectly)
- Mrs. Marsh, Beverly's mother
- Vincent "Boogers" Taliendo, a rumor-spreading boy in the Losers' class who later becomes an alcoholic reducted to menial labor
- Patrick Hockstetter's younger brother Avery, whom he murders by suffocation
- Henry's insane father, Oscar "Butch" Bowers, whom Henry kills by a knife to the throat (he's only mentioned by Henry, very briefly in passing).
- Beverly's friend Kay McCall. Tom (Beverly's husband) attacks her, demanding to know where Beverly is.
- The parents of many of the Losers
- Eddie's wife, Myra, a neurotic and overweight woman who resembles his mother. The role of Eddie's mother, Sonia Kaspbrak, is greatly reduced.
- Adrian Mellon, a homosexual who is It's first victim in the cycle in 1985, as well as Don Haggerty (Adrian's lover) and Webby Garton, Chris Unwin, and Steve Dubay, a trio of young hoodlums who beat the gay lovers severely and dump Adrian into a canal, where he is murdered by It.
- Dave Gardener, the man who finds Georgie's corpse. His son Harold, who is also omitted from the film, is portrayed in the novel as one of the investigating officers in the death of Adrian Mellon.
- Victor Criss, one of Henry Bowers' friends. In the film, Patrick Hockstetter acts as Victor from the book, relegated to being merely one of Bowers' henchmen.
Attacks
While many of It's attacks are represented accurately in the film, some never appear in Stephen King's novel at all, and are completely unique to the film. These include the following.
- Pennywise emerging from a drain while Eddie is taking a shower at school.
- A young Ben seeing his father, who died while serving in the Korean War, near the Barrens. Pennywise appears in his father’s place, and almost succeeds in dragging Ben into the swamp.
- As adults: Ben, beginning to kiss Beverly, is horrified as she transforms into Pennywise, who leers "Kiss me, fat boy!" (In the novel, it is actually only Bill whom Beverly shares a brief yet profound sexual relationship with, although Ben's youthful crush on Beverly is retained to a minor degree. With it being Ben instead, the fact that Bill sleeps with another woman behind his wife's back is also omitted from the film.
The following attacks were removed from the film:
- Mike encountering It as a giant sparrow.
- Stan walks into the Standpipe, where he encounters the boys who have drowned in there.
- Eddie encounters It at Neibolt Street as a rotting hobo offering him a blowjob.
- Ben is attacked in the winter: It, disguised as a mummy, while still wearing the clown outfit, walks to him on the frozen canal.
- Patrick becoming covered in leech-like creatures until It drags him away into the sewer and eats him alive.
- It leaving the kids a message reading "Stop now before I kill you all; a word to the wise from your friend Pennywise".
- It appearing to animate a giant Paul Bunyan statue in Derry.
- Eddie Kaspbrak getting his arm bitten off by It in its true-spider-form.
- Bill entering "the Void" while in the Barrens.
- Richie and Bill entering It's lair on Neibolt Street and encountering It as a werewolf.
- Numerous gory incidents from Derry's past are also not present in the film, including the Bradley gang massacre, the explosion of the Kitchener Ironworks, and several murders perpetrated by an insane lumberjack, Claude Heroux.
Other differences
- The controversy between Ben and Henry when Ben refuses to let him copy his math exam isn't in the movie. Instead, Bowers appears to hate Ben merely for being overweight and for being a teacher's pet.
- In the novel, Mike goes to Neibolt Street Church School for religious reasons. In the film, he is shown as a student at Derry Elementary along with all the other Losers.
- In the novel, an adult Beverly visits her old house, which is now occupied by an elderly woman named Mrs. Kersh, whom she has tea with. Mrs Kersh, turns into It, and later into a likeness of her father. The tea turned out to actually be feces. In the mini-series, the tea turned out to be blood instead.
- The Losers never throw popcorn on Henry Bowers and his friends while at the movies; they provoke the bullies' wrath by dumping a drink on them from the theatre balcony. Their subsequent fight in the cafeteria because of this incident is also not in the book.
- The aspect of the children's scars from the attacks they went through as children reappearing as adults is left out of the film.
- The scene where Beverly spies on Henry Bowers and his friends lighting farts in the junkyard is not in the film.
- In the novel Stan's severed head, found in the refrigerator, is not that of an adult but that of the boy he used to be with bird feathers stuffed in the mouth. Also, only Mike is there when this happens.
- The children never encounter It in its Pennywise form in the Barrens (except as part of a malevolent moving photograph in Mike's father's "Derry History" album).
- The spectacular storm and destruction of Derry during the group's final encounter with It are never shown in the film.
- The structure of the story is changed. In the movie, each of the people who were affected by It while they were children receives a phone call asking them to return to Derry. When this happens, they each have a flashback from that year, and so this part of the story is revealed bit by bit. After the adults have all arrived back in Derry, the story is presented in chronological order throughout. Their rearrival in the book is told in between the events of June and July of 1958. The end of the book alternates between the characters going into the Barrens as children and as adults.
- Some of the major characters' backstories are either ignored or changed. In the novel, Eddie Kaspbrak eventually tells his friends that he married a neurotic woman similar to his mother, but in the television miniseries he tells his friends that he is still a virgin.
- The Derry Standpipe, a major landmark and site of an attack in the book, is mentioned but neither shown nor used as a setting in the movie. Interestingly, in one scene, young Mike Hanlon shows his class a picture of it, but we don't see the picture.
- In the novel it is Ben who encounters Pennywise in the library, not Richie.
- Eddie's mother is obese and neurotically worried about her son's health; in the film, her role has been reduced and she is no longer overweight.
- Eddie Corcoran is not shown in the film
- Adult Richie's role in the book is more prominent, where he is much braver and central to the story than the one in the film. In the film he is represented as somewhat coward and non-believer. In the book, Richie's one of the first to embrace his old self, enabling him to overcome It. Also, his Voices are not represented in the film, or their role is diminished to just a joke, they have no mystical power and are not used to fight It
Reaction and Possible Remake
Radio Times magazine in 2004 held a survey for the scariest program aired on television, in which It came first. The X-Files came second. Others on the top ten list included Twin Peaks, Ghostwatch and Tales of the Unexpected. The Sci Fi channel announced a 4 hour remake of the film which will be made sometime in 2008. [1] The main criticism of the film is that it is vastly different from the book, for the reasons listed above as well as problems that presented themselves from the start of production, such as the task of preserving King's book while keeping the running time at a reasonable level, altering it to be sanitized for television, as well as budgetary limitations, hence the vast differences.
References
External links
- It at the Internet Movie Database
- It at Rotten Tomatoes
