Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1165935
11 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 15 SEPTEMBER 2019 FILM ENVIRONMENT IT LIT SIT SPLIT S*IT ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ After the 1980s' success in saving Għadira for nature, Bird- Life's second foray into habitat restoration was at Is-Simar in Xemxija. Formerly a rat-infested dump, the site cried for at- tention. Luckily it was the early 1990s – arguably the golden age of nature conservation in Malta – and with massive input from the then Environment Secretariat, the site was trans- formed into a proper wetland with creeks and pools, tamarisk groves and reedbeds. Birds like reed warbler, little bittern, little grebe, moorhen and common coot gave their nod of approval by nesting in the area. The project also earned Is-Simar the coveted Ramsar Site designation. As with all BirdLife sites, Is- Simar is also open for human enjoyment, visited by thousands of school children every year. It's also open to the public (Tue + Fri 2pm–7pm, entrance free, donations welcome). More de- tails and events at www.birdlifemalta.org Text: Victor Falzon - Photo: Charles Coliero 678. SIMAR NATURE RESERVE returns Visit Friends of the Earth's website for more information about our work, as well as for information about how to join us. You can also support us by sending us a donation - www.foemalta.org/donate GREEN IDEA OF THE WEEK 577: Find out more and try our delicious recipe: www.foemalta.org/goodfood brought to terrifying life by lightning-in-a-bottle image, and brimming with universal poten- tial. A killer clown as a stand-in for childhood trauma is one of those ideas that literally feels like it could have been beamed into Stephen King's mind by a deranged but generous dark god. And now, this second 'chapter' – almost literally the latter part of King's original novel – deepens the metaphor further by exploring the idea of repression… another key com- ponent in the trauma package. This is the horror genre at its best: through exaggerated, pri- mordial imagery that speaks to our collective unconscious, it brings to the fore home truths about some of the most un- pleasant aspects of our lives. It's a pity, then, that Muschi- etti is less concerned with giving this very worthwhile thematic backbone a smooth run for its money, instead favouring an ep- isodic, fairground ride approach that crams in the effects-laden jump scares but distracts us from what it should all be about. Once the remaining members of the Losers Club get on board, Mike sends them on something of a treasure hunt for childhood talismans, which he claims to be a crucial first step in battling Pennywise. This 'collect the tokens' approach to storytell- ing may work in a novel, but in a film it just comes across as awkward and repetitive, and it's made even worse by the splicing in of episodes from the charac- ters' childhood selves. While the set pieces themselves – and the scares that follow – are certain- ly rendered effectively enough as standalone pieces, but they unforgivably hamper the flow of the narrative. This results in a bloated, overlong and, by the end, not particularly engag- ing ride. The reasons for this approach could be numerous – increased budgets leading to lax, over-indulgent decisions? King himself being too closely involved in production (he does get an amusing cameo)? – but the upshot is that the audience remains short-changed of a tru- ly visceral cinematic experience that does justice to the powerful image and implications of the Pennywise archetype. Perhaps this is the trade-off we have to make when horror really gets 'big'. Instead of being that naughty little goblin of cin- ema raspily whispering harsh home truths from the dark, sticky corners of the back seats, 'blockbuster horror' has to pay its dues to overbearing con- temporary trends: in this case, piggybacking on '80s nostalgia tropes like Stranger Things, and a too-literal approach to the source material that does away with filmic coherence and flow in favour of giving the book fans what they want. The verdict While the scares are both well-timed and beauti- fully rendered and the film enjoys an expansive im- aginative canvas not often afforded to contemporary horror features, Muschi- etti's return to Derry is marred by a frustrating stop-start plot engine. So that instead of a lean and mean journey into the dark recesses of trauma, we get a pick-and-mix array of laboured set-pieces that deflate both narrative pro- pulsion and thematic reso- nance. ★ ★ IT: CHAPTER 2 (15)