“Your every fear – all in one deadly enemy” Synopsis: In 1960, seven pre-teen outcasts fight an evil demon who poses as a child-killing clown. Thirty years later, they reunite to stop the demon once and for all when it returns to their hometown.

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Calamity Brains:

Because I saw the miniseries for the first time so close after seeing It (2017), it was impossible not to compare the two. The new version handily wins in terms of quality, acting, and effects – which isn’t surprising, considering that the miniseries was made for TV.

But the miniseries is still well worth the watch. The quality really isn’t that bad for a TV release, and it’s engaging all the way through. The child actors in the flashbacks leave something to be desired (sorry, Seth Green), but I’d probably be less critical of their performance if I hadn’t just been wowed by Sophia Lillis and the others in the 2017 version. Tim Curry is brilliant, of course, and does some horribly creepy things with his voice. Even as an avid Tim Curry fan, I wasn’t distracted knowing that he played Pennywise; his portrayal definitely kept me focused on the characters malevolence.

Where I think the miniseries compares best to the new movie is the way it’s framed. Like the book, the miniseries has time jumps throughout to help tell the story. Since the 2017 movie is only Part I of the story, I’m reserving full judgment until I see the second half… but at this point, I felt like the story made more sense with the time jumps. It’s a lot more apparent that Pennywise is really some cosmic evil, and not just a creepy clown monster. Of course, the miniseries had the benefit of extra time to tell the story, and what worked in a miniseries would be difficult to achieve in a theatrical release.

Overall, the miniseries was a solid attempt at telling the story. Even if you’re not specifically a Stephen King fan, it’s worth watching on a rainy day.

Calamity Brains’ Rating: C+
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