It (2017): All I really knew about this movie was that it is based on a book by Stephen King and in it, a crazy clown was after kids. I'm glad that was the case as it made things more interesting. It wasn't a perfect movie, but ultimately I had a great time watching it.
Kids in movies usually aren't that great, but here all of em did a DAMN fine job, some more than others. It was particularly fun seeing Mike (Finn Wolfhard) from Stranger Things cursing a lot. Being R-rated, it didn't hold back. Kids talk like what you'd expect them to talk like, with swear words. Kids get hurt or abused by Bullies or their parents or Pennywise, and the movie doesn't shy away from that, giving it an extra layer of grit you don't usually see. I loved this aspect of the movie. And it just made the stakes higher, making me care more about them.
Another thing I loved was Pennywise The Clown itself, the entity that is after these kids. Bill Skarsgard performance was awesome. Every single time Pennywise was on screen, I was hooked. He was genuinely unsettling, creepy, and a blast to watch. I was always looking forward to seeing what kind of messed up thing he'll do next to scare them. The extra effects they did to cement his presence visually worked well.
However, the extra audio/sound effects added to his scenes were sometimes too cheesy and cliched and cheapened the moment. Not talking about the score or the eerie sounds added to create tension and build-up, those were good (children voice always works, I dunno why
). It's the damn jump scare queues and things like that which lowered the quality of those moments for me. And in a similar vein, some horror cliches were used repeatedly, which got a bit annoying.
The movie looked beautiful, though. It was well-shot and had a nice production value.
Overall, I immensely enjoyed IT despite some flaws. I didn't look at this movie and thought I'd be watching a horror movie. Instead, I looked at it as a dark adventure with kids 80s Nostalgia trip.
The Big Sick (2017): What a nice sweet film. Based on the real-life relationship of Kumail Nanjiani (Pakistani-American) and Emily Gordon (American), who wrote the script as well.
Kumail plays as himself with Emily being played by Zoe Kazan. Both were great together and I enjoyed their chemistry. I also really enjoyed the performances from Ray Romano and Holly Hunter, who play as Emily's parents.
The film's biggest strength for me was that it felt fresh, it didn't follow a typical path you'd expect from a film like this, and with its down to earth natural comedic feel, it made it feel more authentic and REAL. AND with it being Kumail's story and he playing that role himself, it just added another layer of reality.
Also, the relationship of Kumail with Emily's parents, the way it started out and carried on, it was just a surprise for me and it might very well be my favorite part of the film.
Another thing that made this a great watch for me was how relatable at times it got, particularly Kumail's relationship with his family, who followed Pakistani traditions a bit strictly. One scene in particular really got to me.
All in all, a great sweet romantic comedy.
P.S I'm really happy for Kumail. I absolutely loved his character in Silicon Valley, which is the first time I saw him in anything, and he was great in this film as well. Seeing him be at the Oscars and get a chance to say something felt great.
The Ritual (2017): A pretty good horror thriller. It's about a group of guys who go on a hike in Sweden and an entity starts stalking them.
The group feels natural like they actually have a history together/are friends, and the performances were good from all of them. The movie could have done with more scenes of them having a good time before the situation goes awry, though.
The direction and cinematography were top notch. Properly utilizing the location, you get a real sense of beauty in open areas, and a real sense of claustrophobia and dread from being lost in the forests. The score builds the tension further, and it was during these moments where I enjoyed this movie the most. The atmosphere in the movie made me feel like I was with them there, and that put me on the edge of my seat.
As is the case with movies like these, the last act is where you get a full release from the tension and mystery, and...it was interesting here, I'll say that. The movie got a bit weaker by that point but I still enjoyed it.
All in all, a beautiful looking nice horror thriller with great buildup and tension. If these type of movies are your cup of tea, it's definitely worth a watch.