Andy Muschietti, who has directed the 2013 supernatural drama horror film “Mama”, has reappeared to produce the supernatural horror film “It”, which was adapted from the book with the same name by Stephen King.

“It: Chapter One” begins with the familiar scene of seven-year-old Georgie (Jackson Robert Scott) sailing his paper boat in the streets of the small town of Derry. When the little boy attempts to retrieve the boat from a storm drain, however, he spots a seemingly innocent clown in the sewer, who calls himself “Pennywise the Dancing Clown” (Bill Skarsgård). In a frightening turn, when Georgie reaches for the boat again, Pennywise bites the kid’s arm off and drags him into the sewer. The following summer, Bill (Jaeden Lieberher) and his friends, the Losers, become haunted by Georgie’s disappearance while dealing with the bully Henry Bowers (Nicholas Hamilton) and his gang. After each experiencing different, yet similar horrifying experiences with “It” (Pennywise), the Losers team up and work to try and get rid of the evil manifestation. The kids then descend into the sewer and discover It’s underground lair. Bill then finds Georgie in the sewers, but then realizes that that boy is Pennywise in disguise. The children reaffirm their friendship and defeat the clown by conquering their fears and working together. As summer ends, Beverly (Sophia Lillis) tells Bill that she is leaving to live with her aunt in Portland, Oregon. She then gives Bill a kiss and they bid each other farewell.

Muschietti has concocted a delightful adaptation of Stephen King’s “It”, because he not only stays true to the tone of the book, but also brewed something entirely different from it. He attracts the audience’s attention with his attention to detail and does not pander to the mainstream. Even though the soundtrack may have been a little blaring at times, that a few of the jump scares fall flat, and that the scene with Pennywise dancing in the sewers looks simplistic, the film is otherwise an exhilarating adventure into the deepest roots of our childhood fears.