Review #4: It Follows, Directed by David Robert Mitchell
Many of you (like at least two) recommended the 2014 film
It Follows. It was on sale on Amazon Prime, so I figured why not? But I do have a confession, I have already seen this film. Not in a while, though, and I enjoyed it the first time, so I rewatched it.
This film got a lot of critical acclaim back when it came out (Rotten Tomatoes highest ranked horror film of 2014). It actually got #38 on our own 2010s film poll, the fourth highest ranked horror film after
Get Out,
Black Swan, and
Hereditary, all great movies as well.
However, compared to those other three films, this one lacks something in comparison. Not quality-wise at all, but more in the sense of acclaim. Both
Get Out and
Black Swan were nominated for Oscars (Best Picture included!), and
Hereditary had a major outcry when it wasn't. To be fair, this film isn't really an Oscar film. But it is notable that AMF's other favorite horror films of the decade all received higher points of public notarity than this one that was very close on the EOD list.
Well that's enough about the critics. I'm here to say what I think, dammit! So the premise of the film is that a nineteen-year-old Jay (Maika Monroe) has sex with Hugh (Jake Weary). After this, he reveals that something is amiss: he has passed on to her a curse, that an entity will follow her for the rest of her life. Always walking at the same pace. Always following. And if it catches her, well, I assume you know what happens...
****LIGHT SPOILERS START HERE****
This film is so good. This is a film that exemplifies mastery of the horror genre. I love it! But let's get into why.
Firstly, the cinematography. This film's camera work is what I like to call 'unapologetic.' Often in films, the camera is meant to seem as though it doesn't exist. As though we are there, experiencing the events. Found-footage films are based on this premise. But films like this have the camera being a tool of story telling. So often, the genius of cinematographer Mike Gioulakis (who also worked on Jordan Peele's
Us) is displayed through simple panning shots, showing us the environment like we are in an art film, and forcing us to decide what is important. This film trusts its audience, something only the best films do.
There are a lot of references to other horror films in this one, all of them very subtle. One is possessing similar, urine-filled imagery to
The Excorsist. The most glaring is that to John Carpenter's original
Halloween. Throughout the film we are forced to search the screen for 'it.' Much like how we were forced to look for Michael Myers in the Carpenter classic. One thing that I always wish more films/television shows would do is pack the run-time with terror that not everyone might see. If you've ever seen
The Haunting of Hill House, you know what I'm talking about. This film packs every minute with awe-inspiring horrors, some that could be easily missed by those who aren't observant.
If I were to come up with a list of my favorite horror scenes of the last decade, it'd be hard to exclude this film from three or four of the top spots. This film has one of the best jump-scares I've ever seen, and if you've seen the film you know which one I'm talking about. This film also has some of the most effectively disturbing imagery I've ever seen in a horror film. One scene sticks out, and it involves Jay, Greg (Daniel Zovatto) and Greg's mother (Leisa Pulido). I'm not going to go into any further detail, but this image invokes some of the most horrible aspects of human existence, and doesn't leave you after the film is over. It still sticks out in my mind, years after my first watch.
One scene that I was a bit lukewarm to during my first watch, however, was the climax of the film. However, I have changed my tune after seeing it again. The climax of this film is epic and fun to watch, and most importantly, stressful.
It Follows absolutely exudes stress at all the right moments.
A small note on the actors. All of the actors do wonderful jobs! None of them stand out, but there isn't a weak one in the bunch. Maika Monroe is great as a lead, and everyone who play the entity does a magnificent job.
****HEAVY SPOILERS START HERE****
Finally, I'm going to analyze the film a little bit. What is it about? At a very basic level, we see the film to be about sexually transmitted diseases. Probably HIV/AIDS specifically. Throughout the film we see Jay experience a lot of fear that she won't be believed or taken seriously in the face of real danger, which seems to echo the lackluster response to HIV/AIDS during its respective epidemic. On the more general side of things, we see Greg seem to have the attitude of 'it can't happen to me' that can cause so many infections, and does, catching up to Greg and his lack of caution.
On a deeper level, I think that this film can point to the sexism that is imprinted in so many people. For example, the idea that men having sex is an achievement whereas women should remain 'pure' (which I've never understood at all, think about it for a moment and you realize that it's a paradox). I also see a small commentary about sexual assault against men, in Greg writing off everything happening and then falling victim to a horrifying scene that evokes the imagery of rape, but that's about where that part of my analysis ends.
Back to the sexism in sexual standards. Throughout the film, you see very little actual consequences for the men in the film (aside from Greg, who as I've stated before can almost seen to be representative of other issues). Jay is constantly abused by the entity, and the first person we see fall victim is also a young woman, where Hugh gets off with no physical consequences. In an one point of duality that stuck out, we see Jay shoot at the creature while Greg cowers in the background, but doesn't cause him any harm. In a later, similar moment, we see Paul shoot at the entity while Yara (Olivia Luccardi) hides in the line of fire, but she is injured. As this moment serves no other purpose in the narrative, I feel like this moment might exist as an extension of this symbolism, but maybe I'm symbol hunting. There are other moments in the film (such as all of the entity's use of female bodies being nude while all but one of the men are clothed, and the climax using Jay's father as the entity's disguise, possibly pointing to the stereotype of father-figures being overly possessive of their daughters' virginity) that point to similar conclusions as well. Let me know what you think!
****SPOILERS END HERE****
Alright, so, simply put, this film is fucking great! I love it! Not a dull moment, not a wasted oppurtunity. This film has great writing, great directing, awesome acting, and stylish cinematography. This is a modern classic by every definition of the word! So much of the imagery stuck with me from my first watch years ago. The premise is great, and the film is even better. Watch it!
Score: ★★★★★