In It Follows you meet a girl named Jay. She lives at home with her mother and sister. She is cute, sweet, and is your typical young girl just trying to get good grades and find a nice guy to date. However, the guy she picks has a bit of a secret. After Jeff has sex with Jay, he knocks her out and ties her to a wheelchair so she has to listen to everything he has to say. He tells her that he passes something onto her. It will cause something to follow her. It could look like someone she knows or a random person, but it will always be coming towards her to kill her and if it kills her, it will come after him next and then to the person who gave it to him. I know what you're thinking and yes, that is one killer STD. I swear, that will be my only joke. After he tries to make her understand what he is telling her he leaves her at her home and disappears. Jay spends the rest of the movie trying to find Jeff and get away from whatever it is.
For those of you who have no idea what the heck I am talking about, I have added the trailer for educational purposes.
Now that you have the basics, I am going to give you my top seven reasons to watch It Follows!
#7 - The Plot is Original
This isn't some cookie cutter ghost story or your average teen scream. Heck! Not a single character has a cell phone that suddenly has no service! In fact, the lack of modern technology in the film is oddly refreshing. You don't have kids running around trying to make the parents believe them because they aren't really around to begin with. I like that it doesn't follow a very simple formula. Sorry, Randy. The rules do not apply in this flick!
#6 - The Monster
The monster in this film is there, but it isn't there. It takes on many different forms. Sometimes people the character knows, other times it is a stranger. Whatever it is, we don't really know. We don't know if it is some evil spirit, a demon, or what. All we know is you it will follow you until it kills you and then it will keep going down the line. We don't know where it came from or how it all started, we just know that it is very real and you had better keep a move on.
#5 - No Gore. No Cheap Shots.
That's right. The shock and scare factors that films like Saw have will not be found in this film. Nope! You might not believe me, but the first three minutes have the goriest part in the entire film. Everything else is suspense and psychological, but still incredibly powerful.
#4 - You Can't Watch It Just Once
This film has stuff hidden all over the place. Was there a person following them that you missed or was it a bystander? There is even a moment where Jay is asked what It looks like and she says I can't tell you. The reason behind that is hidden in the background of her home. There are so many details all over the film that make it even more powerful as you re-watch it... which leads me to my next reason...
#3 - The Flawless Cinematography
Mike Gioulakis is the man behind the cinematography. He is work is very reminiscent of John Carpenter's Halloween and even some of Stanley Kubrick's work. The scenes in this film, even ones that don't seem all that important are rich with detail and a strange beauty that will keep you coming back for more. Now pair that with the music and we are really cookin!
#2 - The Soundtrack
This is an entirely original soundtrack. You won't be finding any top 40 rock songs in this film. What you will find is a score by Disasterpeace that has the feel of a late 70s/early 80s slasher. The last time I listened to a horror film soundtrack this much was back when I was in high school and Queen of the Damned was my world. Not to keep mentioning John Carpenter, but his score for Halloween is very present in this film and also reminds me of Goblin's work on Suspiria. Phenomenal! And yes, it is available to stream on Spotify. You're welcome.
#1 - Maika Monroe as Jay
She killed it. This role was made for her. She is so beautiful without any effort. Watching her go from normal girl to facing her own mortality is really something. You watch her transform to a breaking point. She not only has to fight to understand what is going on and why this is happening, but also has the struggle as to what she should do about it. Does she sleep with someone else and carry the burden of giving this to another person or deal with having to stay on the run for the rest of her foreseeable life? Prior to seeing It Follows, I had also watched another film that Maika is in called The Guest which I also recommend. This girl has a promising career in film and I hope to see her in a few more horror flicks before Hollywood realizes what a gem she is.
I hope you will check out It Follows and share the horror with the ones you love. The family that slays together, stays together! If you have any horror movie recommendations, leave them in the comments below!
Stay sweet and twisted,
Krystal Lake
