Film

It

Name: It
Genre: Horror, Thriller, Drama
Released: 2017
Cast: Jaeden Martell, Jeremy Ray Taylor, Sophia Lillis, Finn Wolfhard, Chosen Jacobs

A group of outcast kids in 1980s Derry, Maine, band together against a shape-shifting entity that feeds on fear and wears a clown's face. It's a big, well-oiled horror machine — jump scares, yes, but also genuine tenderness about friendship and growing up scared. Best for people who want their nostalgia with teeth.

TMDb rating

7.2

If you liked this

Stranger Things2016

Same DNA almost literally — kids on bikes, small-town dread, a monster from somewhere unspeakable, and Finn Wolfhard doing the same brand of nervous-funny kid he perfected here. If you liked the gang dynamic, this scratches that itch for hours.

But It's cosier than It — the scares are gentler and the 80s nostalgia is thicker, almost a comfort blanket rather than a threat.

Stand by Me1986

The other great Stephen King film about kids walking toward something terrifying together, minus the monster — just grief, friendship, and a body in the woods. It's the emotional blueprint It borrows from.

But No supernatural horror at all, so if you came for Pennywise you'll find this quiet and melancholy instead.

The Conjuring2013

James Wan directing dread like a conductor — slow builds, perfect jump-scare timing, and a genuine sense of a house (or town) that hates you. Great if the craft of the scares was your favourite part.

But Adult protagonists and a much colder tone — none of the coming-of-age warmth that makes It more than a haunted-house ride.

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

The Night of the Hunter1955

Same structural nerve: a monster in a friendly mask that only the children recognise, and adults who won't believe them until it's nearly too late.

Robert Mitchum's preacher-conman hunting two children through rural America is the original Pennywise — a predator who charms adults while children alone can see exactly what he is. Gorgeous, nightmarish black-and-white filmmaking that still unsettles.

But No supernatural element at all — the horror is a human being, and the pacing is stagey and deliberate by modern standards.

It Chapter Two2019no page yet

The Losers Club as adults, returning to finish what they started — bigger, messier, and more emotional if you want closure on these exact characters.

But Baggier and less focused than the first film, with an ending that splits opinion.

Doctor Sleep2019no page yet

Another Stephen King story about childhood trauma resurfacing in adulthood, with a genuinely unsettling villain and a surprising amount of heart underneath the horror.

But It's tied heavily to The Shining's mythology, so some of its weight lands better if you know that film first.

Super 82011

J.J. Abrams' love letter to Spielberg gives you the same pack of resourceful, wisecracking kids facing something monstrous in their own backyard, shot with real affection for that era.

But The creature is sci-fi rather than supernatural, and the tone stays more adventure than horror throughout.

Fear Street: 19942021no page yet

Teens versus an ancient evil terrorising their town, made with the same gleeful genre-movie energy and a real willingness to be gory and fun about it.

But Broader and trashier by design — it wants to be a slasher throwback, not a character study.

Gerald's Game2017no page yet

A leaner, meaner King adaptation from the same Netflix era, proving his stories don't need a town-eating monster to be genuinely upsetting.

But Almost entirely one location and one actor — claustrophobic and psychological rather than sprawling and communal.

The Babadook2014

A monster that's really about grief and fear given a body, handled with the same emotional intelligence It brings to trauma — just smaller, sadder, and stranger.

But Slow-burn and low-budget, with almost none of the set-piece spectacle It delivers.

Pan's Labyrinth2006

Both use a fantastical monster as a proxy for real-world abuse and adult failure, filtered entirely through a child's perception of danger.

A lonely girl in fascist Spain escapes into a fairy tale world full of monsters that mirror the real horrors around her — visually stunning, genuinely frightening, and devastating in ways horror rarely allows itself to be.

But Spanish-language with subtitles, and its politics and sadness run much deeper and darker than a studio horror film — this doesn't end tidy.

Coraline2009

Same trick, different medium: a friendly, seductive monster that offers a lonely child exactly what they want, before revealing the trap underneath.

Stop-motion animation aimed at kids that is, quietly, one of the creepiest things ever put on screen — a girl finds another version of her life that turns out to want her forever, with sewn-on button eyes and all.

But Animated and PG-rated, so it's tonally gentler on the surface even when the imagery underneath is deeply disturbing.