{"id":2425,"date":"2015-12-23T10:49:25","date_gmt":"2015-12-23T15:49:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/?p=2425"},"modified":"2026-10-02T16:02:56","modified_gmt":"2026-10-02T20:02:56","slug":"it-follows-2014","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/?p=2425","title":{"rendered":"It Follows-2014"},"content":{"rendered":"

It Follows-2014<\/strong><\/p>\n

Director David Robert Mitchell<\/strong><\/p>\n

Starring Maika Monroe<\/strong><\/p>\n

Scott’s Review #306<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"It_Follows_(poster)\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Reviewed December 23, 2015<\/p>\n

Grade: A-<\/strong><\/p>\n

It Follows (2014) is a mysterious, unique, dreamlike (or shall I say nightmarish!) independent horror film that is a pleasant throwback to old-school horror films (my favorites!), with a supernatural twist thrown in.<\/p>\n

Newcomer David Robert Mitchell directs the film very well, with wonderful cinematography and creative camera angles.<\/p>\n

This film isn’t glossy; it has a raw, almost videotaped feel, which I found wonderful. The film was shot entirely in and around Detroit, giving it a cold, industrial look.<\/p>\n

The film begins on a dramatic note, leaving the viewer immediately curious.<\/p>\n

A young woman flees her suburban home and nervously stands on the street looking back at her house. \u00a0A neighbor asks if she needs help.<\/p>\n

She returns, collects her things, and hurriedly drives to the beach. She suspects something or someone is watching her. She tearfully phones her father and tells him she loves him.<\/p>\n

The next scene appears to be the following morning, and the woman is lying murdered on the beach in a grotesque position- her leg strangely bent.<\/p>\n

This is a fantastic way to begin the film, and it quickly reveals the premise.<\/p>\n

The main character is Jay (Maika Monroe), an attractive college-aged girl. She lives with her sister, Kelly, and is good friends with their next-door neighbors, Paul and Yara. Another neighbor and classmate, Greg, also plays a role in the plot.<\/p>\n

Jay is on a date with Hugh, and things are going well. They attend a classic film. They sneak into a deserted lot and have sex. Afterward, Hugh chloroforms Jay and the weirdness begins.<\/p>\n

A strange woman appears, and Hugh tells Jay she must pass on a curse. Otherwise, an entity in the form of another person that nobody else can see but the victim will get Jay, and she will be doomed.<\/p>\n

I love the throwback elements to 1970s and 1980s horror, but it’s vague when the film is set- purposely so, I imagine- as many cars are 1970s and 1980s models.<\/p>\n

Only one cell phone is used throughout, but most of the time it could be present or past.<\/p>\n

Even the houses appear dated.<\/p>\n

Story-wise, It Follows is tough to figure out and open to a certain level of interpretation. Is the film anti-sex? Is the story a metaphor for sexually transmitted diseases?<\/p>\n

The victims become possessed by the entity after sex and then must pass it to another unwitting victim, sexually.<\/p>\n

I notice some similarities to John Carpenter films- specifically the classic Halloween from 1978. Jay sits in a classroom (ironically in the back row next to the window, \u00e0 la Jamie Lee Curtis in Halloween) and sees a strange older woman slowly lumbering towards her, eyes fixed on her.<\/p>\n

Later, the three main girls casually walk around the neighborhood, engaging in small talk similar to Laurie, Lynda, and Annie on Halloween.<\/p>\n

The ending- a scene in the indoor community swimming pool where the kids try to catch the spirit is a bit hokey and unresolved. However, I did enjoy the final scene- a peaceful one in which I was unsure if the entity had been destroyed or remained.<\/p>\n

A sequel perhaps?<\/p>\n

I give It Follows (2014) major props for its styling and creativity, while giving classic horror fans a good old-fashioned treat without much CGI.<\/p>\n

Independent Spirit Award Nominations:\u00a0<\/strong>Best Director-David Robert Mitchell, Best Cinematography, Best Editing<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It Follows-2014 Director David Robert Mitchell Starring Maika Monroe Scott’s Review #306 Reviewed December 23, 2015 Grade: A- It Follows (2014) is a mysterious, unique, dreamlike (or shall I say nightmarish!) independent horror film that is a pleasant throwback to old-school horror films (my favorites!), with a supernatural twist thrown in. Newcomer David Robert Mitchell … Continue reading It Follows-2014<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,13,41,217,11782,11808],"tags":[5838,4493,4495,12811,4494,12812],"class_list":["post-2425","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-2014-films","category-horror-films","category-indiefilms","category-indie-horror","category-psychological-horror","category-supernatural-horror","tag-daniel-zovatto","tag-david-robert-mitchell","tag-jake-weary","tag-keir-gilchrist","tag-maika-monroe","tag-olivia-luccardi"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2425","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2425"}],"version-history":[{"count":18,"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2425\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24696,"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2425\/revisions\/24696"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2425"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2425"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottsfilmreviews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2425"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}