Perhaps the most striking of the entity's disguises in It Follows, the tall man - not to be confused with The Tall Man villain from Phantasm - is a towering figure that terrifies Jay by appearing behind her friend Yara as she walks into Jay's bedroom. It stars Maika Monroe as a young woman who is pursued by a supernatural entity after a sexual encounter and must have sex with another individual to avoid it. Following The Babadook (2014), The Conjuring (2013), and Insidious (2010), It Follows is the next big thing when it comes to horror. as a compelling horror film owes much to Mitchell's use of wide shots and distinct visual style and production design. Greg doesn't realize it's not his mom, opens the door, andgets murdered in what's easily It Follows' most disturbing death scene. If it's about trauma, the trauma is still with them. All the TVs are black and white, Hugh drives a 1975 Plymouth Gran Fury that seems brand new, and none of the kids seem to have cell phones. Not hearing Jay's pleas, Greg opens the door and the entity pounces on him. "[25] Tim Robey of The Daily Telegraph gave the film five out of five stars and said, "With its marvellously suggestive title and thought-provoking exploration of sex, this indie chiller is a contemporary horror fan's dream come true. At the beginning of the film, a young woman runs out of her house wearing a pair of heels, short-shorts, and a tank top. The director has stated in various interviews that he intentionally mixed in a bunch of different bits of fashion and technology from different decades, to keep the film from becoming immediately dated and to give it a bit of a timeless and dreamlike feel. She's doomed to keep one eye out for Death, who will consistently come for her in the form of friends and strangers alike unless she passes it on to another sexual partner. Jay leaves in abject terror. Same man, basically same age, but shes a child. (Welcome toScariest Scene Ever, a column dedicated to the most pulse-pounding moments in horror. Some films are easy to leave behind, while others follow. Hes obviously absent from the house. In an interviewwith Yahoo, Mitchell says, "People ask me where the shell phone is, or if they can get one, more than almost anything. Maybe sometimes it disappears for months, and other times it shows up everywhere you go, appearing suddenly and without warning. Hugh explains that he has passed an entity on to her through intercourse. It's precisely because Jay doesn't see her that Hugh knows he's in serious trouble. It's scary because, no matter what you do, eventually, it will catch you. All the TVs are either clunky CRT units from the 1980s-1990s or even older models with rabbit-ears and dials. Hes been dead for years, which is why the girls seem more complacent and put-together theyve learned to cope but their grieving mother is still despondent, self-medicating with alcohol. One day, death will catch you. Its her dad thats why she doesnt want to tell her little sister. It Follows Horror 2015 1 hr 40 min English audio R CC Buy or rent After a seemingly innocent sexual encounter, 19-year-old Jay becomes trapped by a vicious curse - "it" is following her, and. Bizarrely, Jay sees him standing atop the roof, and not actively pursuing her, which is out of character. It's more often presented with a knowing wink in the context of a satiric horror comedies like Scream or The Cabin in the Woods. Some horror movies are easy to forget. However, it could actually be a subtle allusion to Jay's unresolved issues with her unnamed, deceased father Mr. [6] It grossed $23.3 million worldwide against a $1.3 million budget. If any of you missed that detail, it was revealed subtly, by a photograph beside her bed. A person, somewhat resembling Paul, Jay's friend and formerly unrequited lover, can be seen walking in the pair's direction down the sidewalk. The Idiot is an extremely dense and complex text, and if we tried to explain everything going on in that novel, we'd be here all day, but if you're wondering whether or not it has any similarities to It Follows, the short answer is a resounding yes! When "It" finally arrives, things don't go exactly as our heroes planned. As Neil Gaiman once said, "If someone tells you what a story is about, they are probably right. Even from a far-off distance, the wide angles elicit an exposed vulnerability that builds dread. Box Office: 'Exotic Marigold' Sequel Topples 'Fifty Shades', "It Follows, review: 'tender, ingenious and scalp-prickingly scary', "Toronto 2014, Day One: Judging Robert Downey Jr., catching up with Locarno and Cannes", "Why "It Follows" is the best horror movie in over a decade", "It Follows: 'Love and sex are ways we can push death away', "No Safe Space: Economic Anxiety and Post-Recession Spaces in Horror Films", "Don't Let It Touch You: Watching It Follows in the Age of Coronavirus", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=It_Follows&oldid=1136363944, Articles with unsourced statements from August 2016, Articles with MusicBrainz release group identifiers, Articles with MusicBrainz work identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Lili Sepe as Kelly Height, Jaime's sister, Bailey Spry as Annie Marshall, one of the entity's victims, Debbie Williams as Mrs. Jay strips down and starts swimming towards the boat. stunt safety Dan Lemieux . Worried that she's suffering a mental breakdown, Jay's sister Kelly (Lili Sepe), friends Yara (Olivia Luccardi) and Paul (Keir Gilchrist), and neighbor Greg (Daniel Zovatto) rally around her. "Whether it's an 'It Follows' sequel or something else, I think he's so insanely talented.". Then again, it's tough to argue with the facts. It's funny, everybody keeps asking me if they can get one of those. IT cant walk through walls! but isnt it more interesting to learn this the same way Jay does by pure investigation? The entity didn't just enter her home to claim her, but it exploited her trauma, too.It's the disheveled woman's visual that makes this scare so powerful, as Mitchell employs conventional tactics to induce goosebumps between the ominous music stings and slowed down focus on the intended victim. ", In terms of sequel concepts, Tom Quinn co-president of one of the film's distributors said he'd want to "flip the title" in a sequel. It was the so-upset-I-feel-sick kind of . Of course,it keeps pursuing her relentlessly, making It Followsfeel like The Terminator in that respect. Up until this point, the entity only appeared from a safe distance. There is a ton of crappy horror movies out there and this isn't one of them. Perhaps the coolest thing about It Followsis just how little lore there is and how the ending leaves you with so many ambiguities. Michael Kennedy is an avid movie and TV fan that's been working for Screen Rant in various capacities since 2014. And in the universe of It Follows, you are LITERALLY forced to meet your maker in the most terrifying way possible. Yara stands relaxed and sleepily in the doorway of Jay's bedroom, inquiring about the commotion. Not only that, but it reveals another layer of the movie's metaphorical stalker. We are never given this information right-out but Gregs mothers comment plus Jays mothers day drinking seems to point to his. Its meant to show how unprepared she was when confronted with IT. the whole internet asks, collectively. "[24], David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter said, "Creepy, suspenseful and sustained, this skillfully made lo-fi horror movie plays knowingly with genre tropes and yet never winks at the audience, giving it a refreshing face-value earnestness that makes it all the more gripping. By relying on her support structure, Jay's friends help carry the burden of her curse, unlike Hugh, who tries to go it alone and ends up passing his trauma along to someone else. The film masterfully follows a less is more format that leaves a lot unsaid but tells the audience just enough to make for a truly unsettling experience. Regardless, it's going to mess you up pretty bad when your dad starts throwing TVs and trying to drown you, so either way, Jay's reaction totally tracks. To me, it's dream logic in the sense that they're in a nightmare, and when you're in a nightmare there's no solving the nightmare. That night, Paul drives through town, passing prostitutes. The entity's imagery as it edges towards Jay leaves a mark, but Mitchell doesn't give his heroine much of a reprieve.Jay cowers in her room, and her loved ones arrive to protect her, either from herself or her unseen foe. They try to calm Jay's nerves when there's a knock at the door. , a column dedicated to the most pulse-pounding moments in horror. Apart from the literal monster that starts chasing her, what makes Jay's date with Hugh so horrifying isn't the sex, it's the abuse. While explaining the death curse rules, Hugh points out a naked woman approaching in the distance, at a slow but steady clip. If the entity from It Follows starts chasing you, it's probably not going to catch you today. Even if you try to solve it.". Maika Monroe told ComicBook.com in January 2021 that she "would do anything" to work with director David Robert Mitchell again. But behind them, it looks nothing like fall or even winter. Its even got a sweet icemaker in the door. It wasn't the best movie I've ever seen but I thought they did a good job and it's worth a watch. She turns and is faced with a disheveled woman her age, her clothes torn and missing teeth. I don't know if this explanation makes The Follower MORE or LESS horrifying for you. The monster seemingly defeated, Jay and Paul go home and have sex. But then, at the theater for their date, Hugh/Jeff, Jay, and EVERY SINGLE OTHER PERSON IN LINE is wearing heavy winter coats. Hugh drives Jay home and flees. The entity didn't just enter her home to claim her, but it exploited her trauma, too. All of this, combined with carefully choreographed terror that can come from anywhere in the wide-open spaces, induces agoraphobic dread. We then meet Jay and her sister Kelly, who are childhood friends with Paul. She runs into the house and finds the entity in the form of Greg's half-naked mother knocking on his door. hanging around the windows and doors. As Jay tries to get out of the pool, it pulls her underwater by the ankle. It's Yara, half-asleep and perplexed by the uproar. Is she stupid? Shortly after he gets the curse, there's a scene when Greg is hanging out and flirting with a group of girls. Whatever I was going through at that time, my parents divorced when I was around that age, so I imagine it was something to do with that. Following The Babadook (2014), The Conjuring (2013), and Insidious (2010), It Follows is the next big thing when it comes to horror. This scene marks the first time the eponymous "it" invades Jay's home and personal space. Therefore, their relationship is not romance but more of a survival technique. The Follower may also represent the anxiety of STDs, adulthood, the fear of poverty (Yara has an important monologue about Detroit)I've read a slew of interpretations, few of which completely miss the mark. When you watch It Follows, you might have a hard time figuring out in what decade it's supposed to be set. It's easy to overlook who this is during a normal It Follows viewing, but it's Jay's neighbor, the one who was leering at her while she relaxed in the pool. What answer makes the most sense, given what the film is actually about and what the monster represents? The group plans to kill the entity by luring it into a swimming pool and dropping electrical appliances into the water. The woman edges closer as she urinates. Even from a far-off distance, the wide angles elicit an exposed vulnerability that builds dread. Categories. Unfortunately, none of them have been able to grasp the essence of the story, but I think this one does. When Jay gets cursed after a sexual encounter, she finds herself being stalked and tries to grapple with the sinister entity that keeps changing its appearance and showing up unexpectedly. . And death isn't a giant horrifying monster that's running at you and screaming at the top of its lungs. All 30 Forms IT Takes in Stephen King's Original Novel, Every Form Chucky Has Taken In The Child's Play Series, Every Form Pinhead Has Taken In The Hellraiser Franchise, Freddy's Other Forms In The Nightmare On Elm Street Franchise, Every Form IT Takes in the 1990 Miniseries, 7 Ways James Bond 26 Has To Be Different From Daniel Craig's 007 Era, Avatar: The Way of Water Breaks Major International Box Office Record, Puss In Boots: The Last Wish Set Up Shrek 5 Entirely By Accident. It's the precise type of scene that would otherwise allow the viewer a moment to soothe their rapid pulse. And did you catch when Greg asks his own mother whats happening, just after the attack, she says Those people are such a mess. Why? Whatever the reason the It Follows monster chooses a particular form to take, the result always has one thing in common; being terrifying. [22][23] Peter Debruge of Variety gave an overall positive review, saying: "Starting off strong before losing its way in the end, this stylish, suspenseful chiller should significantly broaden Mitchell's audience without disappointing his early supporters in the slightest. As Jay struggles to stay afloat, her friends intervene. The entity also seemingly stalks only one person at a time, as it doesnt attack Jay until Greg (to whom she passes the curse) is dead. "[6] On review aggregator website Metacritic, the film has an average rating of 83 out of 100, based on 37 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". Fear? It's the disheveled woman's visual that makes this scare so powerful, as Mitchell employs conventional tactics to induce goosebumps between the ominous music stings and slowed down focus on the intended victim. Not a single cordless phone in sight. That wouldn't have any immediate significance to Jay but could be one last taunt directed at its previous target. If that's all a fan gets from this film, there's obviously quite a bit that they're missing. However, Jay spends the rest of the movie attempting to outrun and outsmart the entity. Well, the pan beyond Jays mother shows an older family photo. Obviously, whatever IT is, the monster is spooky in more ways than one. Is that the entity, or just another person walking? It then falls into the water, but as Jay tries to swim out of the pool, the creature grabs her and holds her underwater. When not writing, Michael enjoys going to concerts, taking in live professional wrestling, and debating pop culture. 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