It Follows (2014)

Sex :
Violence :
Director David Robert Mitchell
Writers David Robert Mitchell
Starring Maika Monroe, Jake Weary, Keir Gilchrist, Lili Sepe
Genre Demonic
Tagline It doesn't think. It doesn't feel. It doesn't give up.
Country
It Follows (2015)

Review

"It could look like someone you know or it could be a stranger in a crowd. Whatever helps it get close to you." - Hugh

Jay lives in a depressing neighbourhood that would appear to be solidly blue collar. Adding to her troubles, beyond the above ground swimming pool, is a couple of neighbourhood kids who seem to spend all their available time perving on her. On the bright side of the parlour she has a new boyfriend, Hugh, and things are getting serious.

Unfortunately after doing the wild thing in Hugh's car Jay discovers she has contracted a STD, Sexually Transmitted Demon, and is soon running for her life from a slow moving entity that can take any human form it wants. On the bright side no one else can see her supernatural foe, except Hugh, which of course makes her appear to be stark raving bonkers. The best horror flick of 2015 ensues.

Director Mitchell gets this movie out of the garage in impressive, and not overtly flashy, horror style. A Chick, must be a warmed night, is running from something we can't see. She manages to grab the car and zoom off; I assume leaving her antagonist in her dust. Later she is at the beach delivering a heartfelt message to be dad via a mobile phone. The next day dawns, quick scene transition from the night before, and the girl has been outrageously killed. If you don't like the aftermath of violence in your movies then you are going to want to cover your eyes during this part.

Having established there's something supernaturally amiss Mitchell jumps to Jay and her crew, who seem to be the sort of teenage drifters that go to school, because they have to, hold down pretty menial jobs, and are pretty much living the American life style all the adverts tell us don't exist. Mitchell adds a few identifying traits to the lead characters, but that's all he's interested in doing. I was actually pretty depressed watching the first block of the movie, there's no real joy in these peoples' lives; the outlook is as bleak as the working class suburb they live in. Director Mitchell nails this aspect; the atmosphere is pretty bleak even before our invisible demonic entity gets the hots for Jay.

We next learn the mythology from Hugh, after the car interlude - no this one doesn't go graphic, and right after he proves what an okay guy he is by chloroforming Jay then tying her to a chair. Basically if you have sex with someone the entity is after it will switch its attention to you, and if you happen to fall into its clutches then it will switch back to the person you had sex with and then the person they previously had sex with etc. etc. Sort of a demonic chain letter, except in real life, with a hell of a lot more drastic consequences if you don't pass it along before the entity runs you down. To make things even more fun thrilled the entity can appear as anyone, known or unknown, is invisible to everyone else, and walks at a speed that most slasher villains could out pace.

The middle block of the movie sees Jay having narrow escapes, passing the STD along, and having it rebound on her. Thankfully her Scooby gang is with her and help out, as best they can, including hatching a plan involving a swimming pool that made no logical sense whatever. Mitchell keeps his movie moving through all this at a reasonable pace, I didn't get bored in the slightest, but some may find things moving a tad slow for their liking.

Like most good horror movies It Follows doesn't offer up any trite ending, make your own decision on whether or not our core group are going to survive after the credits, given they really don't seem to understand how to scout out information about what they are facing I'm guessing not. Mitchell ain't saying kids; make your own mind up.

While the atmosphere and styling of the movie are top notch there are a few problems peeking in from the corners. At one stage Jay seems to be swimming out to a boat, we change scenes before that is resolved and it is never brought up again. Problem with editing right there folks, we are talking some loose threads woven partially into the fabric of the film. Equally some characters are simply extra to the requirements, you will know them when you see them, the Director could have cut back on the cast here with little to no impact on what we see on the screen.

I don't want to go into the sub themes going down here, there's a lot going on which you can either groove to or simply ignore, and enough web real estate is being taken up by shoot from the hip analysists who are reading all sorts of bogus themes into the movie. Suffice it to say It Follows is richly textured and delivers whatever meaning you want to derive from it.

Overall I had a good time with the movie, I've watched it three or four times now and it remains enjoyable though I'm not exactly getting any new insights into the human condition from repeated viewings. I would recommend this movie to true horror fans and any citizens who simply like a good movie, catch the movie, what follows is worth the price of admission.

ScaryMinds Rates this movie as ...

  Almost the perfect horror fans for those of us who like some dread in our atmosphere.