Unpacking the Dread: Why 'It Follows' Remains a Horror Masterpiece
Modern horror films can create lasting impressions. It Follows, a 2014 indie horror film, is one such movie. Viewers find it worth at least one watch. Its atmosphere and premise stand out. The film unfolds slowly, building tension without cheap thrills.
It lacks constant jump scares. Yet, It Follows generates a deep dread that lingers. The originality lies in its concept and execution. Critics praised its refreshing ideas. Many consider the plot a metaphor for sexually transmitted diseases and trauma transfer from person to person.
Critics and audiences appreciate the film's atmosphere. Tension builds slowly, avoiding typical jump scares. The unsettling visuals create a mood of impending doom. Stunning cinematography enhances the experience, making it both visually striking and deeply unsettling.
The Curse Unveiled: Plot, Themes, and the Unseen Threat
It Follows tells the story of Jay, a young woman whose life drastically changes after intimacy. After being with her boyfriend Hugh, Jay faces relentless pursuit by a supernatural force. Hugh has unknowingly passed on a curse, making Jay its latest target.
The film digs deep into themes that resonate broadly. It explores lost innocence common in coming-of-age stories, twisted through horror. Emerging sexuality ties directly to the curse, portraying intimacy's vulnerabilities. Ultimately, mortality serves as a haunting backdrop throughout It Follows.
Another interpretation of It Follows sees it as a metaphor for modern teens' fear of aging, or gerascophobia. The entity embodies anxieties around growing older and loss of vitality. Many see it as reflecting real concerns about sexual encounters and STDs. The film's fear becomes visceral.
The timeless aspect of the film adds to its dreamlike feel. Director David Robert Mitchell avoids specific time settings, contributing to its unsettling nature. This ambiguity deepens the impression that It Follows taps into universal fears across eras.
Decoding "It": The Relentless Entity of Fear
The antagonist of It Follows is not an ordinary movie monster; it's a supernatural force known as "the Entity" or "It." This force stalks victims with distressing persistence, amplifying feelings of fear.
The Entity's intelligence heightens its terror. It’s not a mindless creature; it adapts and changes strategies. One unsettling ability allows it to take familiar faces, intensifying psychological horror. Despite changing forms, the Entity maintains a slow pace that paradoxically amplifies dread, like an unending nightmare.
The Entity manifests in various unsettling forms. Ruby Harris embodies Greg's mother, provoking primal fear through familiarity. Ele Bardha portrays Jay's father in a haunting manner. The "Giant Man" form also symbolizes Jay and Kelly's deceased father, blurring lines between nightmare and reality.
The curse transmits through sexual intercourse. After her encounter with Hugh, Maika Monroe's Jay must bear this deadly burden. This method underlines metaphorical readings regarding STDs. Isolation arises as the Entity is visible only to those cursed or who have passed it on, leaving victims alone in terror.
The characters in It Follows search for ways to confront their relentless pursuer. One intense scene features an attempt to electrocute the Entity in a pool, exploiting perceived weaknesses. It hints the Entity avoids water, although it's not confirmed. By the climax, it faces a gun but escapes without resolution. Its reappearance hints at the curse being temporary, showing it's hard to escape from.
The curse is clear yet terrifying: Jay must evade the Entity, visible only to her. The creature relentlessly pursues until it kills her or she passes the curse through intimate contact. This leads to a troubling cycle of fear, pressuring Jay into impossible choices.
Behind the Scenes: The Genesis of Dread
The brilliance of It Follows stems from David Robert Mitchell's vision as writer and director. He based the film on personal dreams of being chased by an unseen presence. "The core idea," said Mitchell, "came from my own recurring dreams.” His unsettling experiences are palpable throughout the film.
To create its unique atmosphere, Mitchell chose specific filming locations. Most scenes occurred in Detroit's suburban areas. Key spots included Sterling Heights and Clawson. These eerily empty settings amplify isolation and unease throughout the film.
Mitchell cleverly included Yara's clamshell e-reader to avoid instantly dating the film with modern technology. This decision enhances the timeless quality, adding to its unsettling aura and contributing to its lasting appeal. You can explore more about It Follows's enduring scare factor through resources like this analysis on CBR.
Meet the Players: Characters in the Shadow of "It"
It Follows shows characters caught within the curse, each confronting their fears. Central is Jay (Maika Monroe). For 19-year-old Jay, life should involve teen experiences: school and carefree moments. Yet her life changes when she becomes cursed.
Hugh (Jake Weary) is Jay's boyfriend who unknowingly starts her nightmare. After she enjoys a carefree life, everything turns upside down when she faces the Entity.
After sleeping with Hugh for the first time, Annie becomes a target. In It Follows, she is the girl in the opening scene. Already desperate, she tries to escape the Entity. Yara (Olivia Luccardi) is Jay's friend. She often seems immersed in her clamshell e-reader. Yara reads Dostoyevsky's The Idiot. This choice hints at her intellectual depth. Many analyses of It Follows discuss Yara's e-reader's significance. Greg is a character Jay sleeps with. This happens after she escapes her first encounter with the Entity. Afterward, Jay wants to pass the curse to someone else by sleeping with Greg. Paul is another close friend of Jay's. He often supports her. In one tense moment, Jay and Paul are tailed by the Entity while they hold hands. Greg's mother is one of the forms the Entity takes. Ruby Harris chillingly portrays her, highlighting the personal and psychological horror.
Unpacking the Layers: Interpretations and Deeper Meanings
It Follows offers multiple interpretations and sparks analyses delving into deeper meanings. Some view it as an allegory for the pandemic. It reflects contagion anxieties and hidden threats that spread quickly. This view gained traction during recent global crises, showing the film's relevance. A common interpretation sees It Follows as a metaphor for sexually transmitted diseases or trauma. Audiences and critics acknowledge this clever conceit. The Entity represents how burdens pass from one person to another.
It Follows explores fears, anxiety, and death's inevitability. Themes include loss of innocence, emerging sexuality, and mortality. The film conveys that death lurks near. Additionally, It Follows serves as a coming-of-age film. Characters seek experiences, especially sexual intimacy, representing danger and destruction. This tension between desire and fear forms the film's unsettling power.
Echoes of Influence: Literary Connections
It Follows weaves literary references into the narrative, adding depth and resonance. One notable connection is T.S. Eliot's “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock.” This allusion suggests themes like anxiety, isolation, and fear of intimacy, mirroring the protagonist's emotional state. Yara's choice to read Dostoyevsky’s The Idiot adds significance. This hints at innocence, societal corruption, and struggles against overwhelming forces, echoing It Follows’ narrative. Such connections enrich the film's layers and invite deeper analysis, elevating it beyond standard genre fare.
"They Follow": The Dread Continues
Fans of It Follows can expect dread to return with its sequel, titled They Follow. It promises to expand on the chilling world from the original film. David Robert Mitchell reprises his role as writer and director, ensuring a consistent vision and tone. Maika Monroe returns as Jay Height, the central character who faced horrors in the first film. They Follow takes place a decade after the original, suggesting significant time has passed since the curse.
Filming for They Follow was set to begin in 2024 but is now delayed to 2025. Details emerge slowly, but anticipation runs high. Monroe hints that They Follow will be “bigger, darker, and more f***ed up” than its predecessor, suggesting an intense experience. Revisiting this terrifying universe is exciting and unsettling, promising to explore fear's nature and the unseen's relentless pursuit. For insights on why the original is so terrifying, check out a compelling perspective on this article.
Lingering Shadows: The Ambiguous Ending and Unanswered Questions
It Follows has an ambiguous ending that significantly impacts its lasting impression. The fate of the entity remains unknown. Viewers ponder Jay’s true resolution. The monster vanishes at It Follows’ end, but this does not mean she is safe. The narrative suggests a cyclical nature to the curse. Days pass between Greg’s death and the Entity’s return to Jay, showing that respite periods are temporary. The monster takes time to reappear after one victim passes it along, creating false security. Jay and Paul are seen holding hands while being followed, underscoring uncertainty. This implies that the threat may still exist nearby, leaving an unsettling question mark over their future. This ambiguity is a vital horror element of the film, ensuring unease lingers after viewing. For another angle on the film's nuances, see Bright Wall/Dark Room's insightful analysis in their piece "The Middle Distance."
Intriguing Details: Unveiling Hidden Layers
It Follows features hidden details that enhance its atmosphere and reward close viewing. Savvy viewers may note that Annie wears heels in the opening scene while fleeing the Entity. This choice adds vulnerability to her desperate escape. Annie Marshall, in the opening scene, is a victim of the Entity, possibly Jeff's ex-girlfriend. She dies after calling her father to say she loves him, adding poignancy to her tragic fate. The pool scene breaks new ground in the film's progression. The group attempts to electrocute the Entity by luring it into a swimming pool, showcasing their vulnerability and ingenuity in a desperate gamble. Yara’s shell phone is not commercially available; it's a deliberate artistic choice that enhances the film's timeless atmosphere. These details contribute to It Follows’ rich tapestry, making it an unsettling film that continues to fascinate audiences years after its release.
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