“IT Chapter Two” recently opened at the box office on Sept. 6, greeted by mixed reviews from the audience–but fan-wide anticipation and excitement prevail in its opening week numbers nonetheless. The film is the second of the series, in which the members of “The Losers Club” are called back to Derry 27 years after the events of the first film, which holds the box office record for the second biggest horror film opening of all time. “IT Chapter Two,” however, is more about the aftereffects of the trauma that the cast members endure in the first film. 

“It’s inevitably bleaker and less colorful, but that is ultimately what Stephen King is doing–he’s saying adulthood is a bummer compared to childhood,” says Andy Muschietti, who directed both films. “It’s a story about the loss of everything that is so beautiful about being a child, like the power to imagine, the power to believe in things that don’t exist,” he goes on to say. 

One of the different aspects that the second film possesses over the first one is its nodes of humor–of course, that does not mean that the film lacks its fair share of jump scares. The characters this time around are especially likeable, as we see them reconnecting after many years apart, acting like grownups remembering their youth. Some of the critiques from the audience, however, include that, even though there was a lot of humor that made the movie enjoyable in one aspect, more of the scary elements–that they were especially expecting to see–should have surfaced to a greater degree. 

Due to the film’s lengthy duration, which was almost three hours, Muschietti clearly aims to include both humor and horror into the film to create a hopeful balance. Other viewers expressed their own critique, with one saying that the film is, “basically a three hour version of the first film but the only change is the characters are adults and less charming. Not really worth a sequel,” says Alachia Queen. 

Other reviews provided a more balanced viewer approach, with one saying that, “(‘It Chapter Two’) is entertaining and properly creepy throughout, but it would’ve been nice if it had taken time to slow down here and there,” says Toby Woollaston. 

What does make the film enjoyable are the flashbacks that permeate it from the first film, showing the characters as little kids. The casting for the film is also incredible and the scenes of the characters as kids are equally excellent as audiences revisit that aspect of the film. Despite some of the critical reviews that “IT Chapter Two” receives–and even though it was a little bit lengthy for a horror film–the movie has gained a lot of success overall, with $185 million in sales at the box office to prove it thus far–but will it hold up?