Monster of the Day #1637

Updated on October 10, 2017 By Ken Begg 25 Comments

It’s got to be difficult to work around an iconic image like this one (although to be fair I’ve seen neither version), but I think the ‘friendly’ clown in the sewer is creepier than the more overtly sinister one.

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  • Gamera977

    Haven’t read the novel, haven’t seen the newer film, I’ve only seen the TV movie back when it aired in the ’90s I think it was? Frankly I find King more silly than scary but it was a great WTH moment when the kid is just walking along and the happy clown pops up in the storm drain.

    So did they make Pennywise evil looking like this in the new film? Most of the scary mood of the TV movie was that Pennywise seemed a happy playful clown until he had the child in his clutches and he’d change into a toothy monster. If he looks this vile all the time I’m not sure why any child would approach him.

  • Beckoning Chasm

    Exactly my thinking–the new Pennywise just looks evil and threatening from the get-go.

  • While your point has some degree of merit, as Pennywise’s whole intent is more inspiring terror than bone rendering, scary clown isn’t an entirely bad way to go.

    If anyone care, Pennywise’s look was one of my brother Todd’s big peeves about the trailer. He has since seen the film and rather likes it.

  • I keep rereading this reply going “Man, is that Cullen guy a jackass.” This tends to be my normal response to a lot of what I write, but in case the previous reply inspires the thought more so than usual, I do apologize. It’s early morning for me and I have a dentist appointment with one Dr. D. Sade that’s occupying my thoughts.

  • Are storm drains *ever* big enough for a person to fit in like that?

    I’m also picturing a meme starting of other people appearing in storm drains….

  • Eric Hinkle

    Yeah, I can’t see any but the most foolish of children getting near THAT clown.

  • Eric Hinkle

    I like King’s earlier works, but when he apparently decided to needed to lecture people how ‘the 60’s were totally awsum and crap, man’ I got tired of him. I’m not a fan of that school of writing no matter who’s doing it.

  • Gamera977

    You’re probably right. My only knowledge of the story is from seeing the TV movie once about twenty or so years ago.

    Good luck at the dentist. I have an appointment Thursday for a crown. And my new dentist is single, in her early twenties, Korean-American, and cute as a button. I’m afraid it’s some form of S&M to have a crush on your dentist.

  • Gamera977

    I don’t remember but was Pennywise actually solid or was he just a projection in the person’s mind from the real monster at the end?

  • It also helped that Tim Curry could go from jocular to terrifying in 1.6 seconds, even *before* the makeup transformations, he’s just that good and that expressive. Gotta say, I could see a little kid talking to clown one, but no way in hell are the getting near this one, which makes the Curry version *far* the more dangerous.

  • What do you mean, I’m probably right? That I’m a jack ass? What a thing to just come right out and say! True, though. Sadly true.

    Silliness aside, a part from the crown I now sit in deep, deep envy of your dentist visit. Good luck with that.

    (I will now spend the rest of my day thinking about giant prehistoric turtles laying back in dentist chairs…)

  • Pennywise was solid, but could change shape. He tended to be whatever scared the kid. Which, again, is why the current Pennywise doesn’t bother me in theory. How the scene plays out is where the problem might lie (I haven’t had the chance yet. Though a Horror movie scoring big box office numbers does sort of appeal…)

  • He definitely has done more into preach mode than I care for. Also, he seems to have lost the knack of making likable characters, which also doesn’t help.

  • bgbear_rnh

    You can’t usually stand like that because there is usually a shelf at the opening.

  • Beckoning Chasm

    I remember the X-Files episode “Squeeze” where the opening shots dollyed into a storm drain, into a pair of eyes.

  • bgbear_rnh

    Thanks, the other day I was trying to recall where I remembers a bad escalator incident in a film. I believe that is it.

  • Wade Harrell

    He’s always good even if the material isn’t. My daughter was a big fan of the animated Barbie “movies” (really just long-form toy commercials) when she was younger and he provides the voice of the Mouse King in the Barbie version of “The Nutcracker”. His performance elevated the experience from torture to tolerable. To this day I always hear his growl when I see the advertisements for various performances of the ballet around Christmastime…”NUTCRACKAH!!”

  • Eric Hinkle

    This will sound odd but today as part of my personal Halloween movie marathon I watched Candyman. Was both impressed and scared as always; Tony Todd is an amazing actor.

    I wonder how well “It” would have done trying to lure kids close to sewers in Cabrini-Green? The gangs would probably have shot him/her/whatever the heck “It” is.

  • Eric Hinkle

    More dentists need to be like yours, Gamera977. If you must suffer at least you have a lovely vision to gaze upon.

  • Eric Hinkle

    At least he was able to make likeable characters. I’ve seen way too many modern horror authors who seem to think that making everyone a total swine is somehow good writing.

  • KL

    i read the book and I remember saying to myself…what kid would stop and talk to a creepy clown in a storm drain? I don’t even look into storm drains much less talk to wacko clown inside.. I would have tear ass out of there. I guess it is the suspension of disbelief.

  • Marsden

    I agree that a friendly would draw in more victims where scary clown would just scare them away.

    And I won’t call Cullen a Jack-Ass.

  • Marsden

    Tim Curry is awesome. I used to watch a weekday afternoon cartoon called Peter Pan and the Pirates, it was based directly on the original book without any of the Disneyness and Tim Curry was the voice of Captain Hook. It was great hearing him chew out the pirates, he had quite a vocabulary of insults, even for a G cartoon.

  • Flangepart

    When you ‘suspension of disbelief’ could support an M-1 Abrams…yeah, it’s a hard sell.

  • The Rev.

    Overall, the movie was good, moreso than I’d expected. This design didn’t inspire a lot of confidence when I saw photos of it before the movie release, seeming, as most have said, too creepy to lure in a kid. It works the rest of the time when it’s not trying to be alluring, though. I did like the touches that made it seem like an ill-fitting clown suit worn by something that didn’t quite have pretending to be human down pat. I still love Curry’s version, but Skarsgard was definitely a strength in the new one.