It Follows received acclaim from critics, who praised its originality and Monroe’s performance. It grossed $23.3 million worldwide against a $1.3 million budget. It has since achieved a cult following, with many calling it a modern horror classic.[4][5][6][7] In October 2023, a sequel entitled They Follow was announced to be in development[8] with filming due to begin in 2024.[9]
Plot
Annie Marshall runs out of her house, seemingly being pursued, but denies that she needs help to onlookers. She gets into her car and drives away. That night, she sits alone on a beach and calls her parents to tell them she loves them. In the morning, her mutilated corpse remains on the beach.
Carefree university student Jay Height goes to a movie with her boyfriend Hugh. Hugh points out a girl in a yellow dress, whom Jay says she cannot see. Unnerved, Hugh asks that they leave. Later, Hugh and Jay have sex for the first time in his car, after which he incapacitates her with chloroform. She wakes up tied to a wheelchair, where Hugh explains that he has passed something to her through intercourse - she will be pursued by an entity that only they can see, which can take the appearance of any person. It moves at a walking pace, but always knows where she is and will be approaching at all times. If it catches Jay, it will kill her and pursue the previous person to have passed it on. Hugh waits until a naked woman slowly approaches them to prove Jay is being followed, then urges her to have sex with someone else soon. He drives Jay home and flees. The next day, the police cannot find the naked woman or Hugh, who was living under a false identity.
At school, Jay sees an old woman walking towards her, invisible to others, and flees. Jay's sister Kelly and her longtime friends Paul and Yara spend the night at Jay's house. Someone smashes a window; Paul investigates but sees no one. Jay then sees a disheveled, urinating, half-naked woman walking toward her and runs upstairs to the others, who cannot see the entity. When a tall man enters the bedroom, Jay flees the house by bike. With the help of their neighbor, Greg, the group discovers Hugh's real name, Jeff Redmond, and find his home. Jeff explains that the entity began pursuing him after a one-night stand, and reiterates that the only option is to sleep with someone else and implore them to do the same. He recommends that Jay drive to a distant location to buy herself time to think.
Greg drives Jay, Kelly, Yara, and Paul to his family's lake house. The next day on the lakefront, while Greg leaves to pee, the entity arrives in the form of Yara and attacks Jay from behind by grabbing her hair, which is witnessed by her friends. She flees in Greg's car and crashes, then wakes up in a hospital with a broken arm. To buy herself time, Jay has sex with Greg in the hospital. Greg denies the existence of the entity, despite the insistence of Jay's friends. Later, Jay sees the entity in the form of Greg walking towards Greg's house. It smashes a window and enters. Jay runs into the house and finds the entity in the form of Greg's half-naked mother attacking and killing Greg. Jay flees by car and spends the night outdoors. On a beach, Jay sees three young men on a boat. She partially undresses and walks into the water. Back home, Paul, willing to take the risk, asks Jay to pass it on to him, but she refuses.
The group plans a last ditch effort to kill the entity by luring it into a swimming pool and dropping electrical devices into the water. Jay waits in the pool until the entity arrives with the appearance of her father. Instead of entering the pool, it throws the devices at her. Firing at an invisible target, Paul accidentally wounds Yara but shoots the entity twice before it falls into the pool. As it pulls Jay underwater, Paul shoots it again, and Jay escapes as it sinks to the bottom. When Paul asks if it is dead, Jay approaches the pool and silently watches as it fills with blood.
Back at Jay's house, Jay and Paul have sex. Paul drives through town, passing prostitutes. Yara recovers at a hospital. Later, Jay and Paul walk down the street holding hands, as a figure walks behind them.
Cast
Maika Monroe as Jaime "Jay" Height, a young woman targeted by the entity
Keir Gilchrist as Paul Bolduan, a friend of Jay, Kelly, and Yara
Daniel Zovatto as Greg Hannigan, Jay and Kelly's neighbor
Jake Weary as Hugh / Jeff Redmond, Jaime's former boyfriend and a target of the entity
Bailey Spry as Annie Marshall, one of the entity's victims
Debbie Williams as Mrs. Height, Jaime and Kelly's mother
Ruby Harris as Mrs. Redmond, Jeff's mother
Featured as forms of the entity are Ingrid Mortimer, Alexyss Spradlin, Mike Lanier, and Don Hails. Ruby Harris also portrays the entity while it is in the form of Greg's mother, and Ele Bardha portrays it in the form of Jay's father.
Production
Development
Writer and director David Robert Mitchell conceived the film based on recurring dreams he had in his youth about being followed: "I didn't use those images for the film, but the basic idea and the feeling I used. From what I understand, it's an anxiety dream. 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."[10] The role that sexual transmission plays came later, from Mitchell's desire for something that could transfer between people.[11]
Mitchell started writing the film in 2011 while working on a separate film he intended to be his second feature film; however, Mitchell struggled with this would-be second feature and made It Follows as his next film instead.[12] Mitchell realized that the concept he was working on was tough to describe and thus refused to discuss the plot when asked what he was working on, reasoning later, "When you say it out loud, it sounds like the worst thing ever."[11]
The film was shot in late 2013 in Detroit, Michigan.[13] Mitchell used wide-angle lenses when filming to give the film an expansive look,[13] and cited the works of George A. Romero and John Carpenter as influences on the film's compositions and visual aesthetic.[10] The film's monster, shot composition and overall aesthetic were influenced by the work of contemporary photographer Gregory Crewdson. Director of photographyMike Gioulakis said: "We're both big fans of the still photographer Gregory Crewdson and David had him in his look book from day one. [Crewdson's] photographs have the same kind of surreal suburban imagery that we wanted for It Follows."[14]
Music
The score was composed by Rich Vreeland, better known as Disasterpeace.[15][16] It was released on February 2, 2015, via Editions Milan Music with a digital booklet.[17] The digital version of the album went on sale March 10.
Release
It Follows premiered at the 67th Cannes Film Festival on May 17, 2014. It was released theatrically in France on February 4, 2015, and in the United Kingdom on February 27. It was given a limited release in the United States on March 13[18] and a wide release on March 27[19] in 1,200 theaters.[20] That same day, the film also received a limited release in Canada by Mongrel Media.[21]
Reception
Box office
It Follows earned $163,453 in its opening weekend from four theaters at an average of $40,863 per theater, making it the best limited opening for a film released in the United States and Canada in 2015.[22] The film made its international debut in the United Kingdom on February 27, 2015, where it earned $573,290 (£371,142) on 190 screens for the #8 position. The following week, the film dropped two spots to #10 with a weekend gross of $346,005 (£229,927) from 240 screens.[citation needed] The film had a domestic gross of $14.7 million and an international gross of $8.6 million for a worldwide total of $23.3 million.[3]
Critical reception
It Follows received critical acclaim.[23] On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, it holds a 95% approval rating and a rating average score of 8.10/10, based on 270 reviews. The critical consensus states: "Smart, original and, above all, terrifying, It Follows is the rare modern horror film that works on multiple levels – and leaves a lingering sting."[24] On review aggregator website Metacritic, the film has an average rating of 83 out of 100, based on 37 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[25] On Rotten Tomatoes' aggregation, it was ranked as the sixth most-praised film of the year, and the ninth most-praised horror film of the 2010s.[26][27] 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."[28]
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."[29] 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."[30] Ignatiy Vishnevetsky of The A.V. Club said, "Despite all the fun-to-unpack ideas swirling around Mitchell's premise, this is first and foremost a showcase for his considerable talents as a widescreen visual stylist, which are most apparent in the movie's deftly choreographed, virtuoso 360° pans."[31] Mike Pereira of Bloody Disgusting described the film as a "creepy, mesmerizing exercise in minimalist horror" and labeled it as "a classical horror masterpiece."[7] Michael Nordine of Vice named It Follows as "the best horror film in years",[32] and critic Mark Frauenfelder called it "the best horror film in over a decade".[33]
Analysis
It Follows has sparked numerous interpretations from film critics in regard to the source of "it" and the film's symbolism.[10] Critics have interpreted the film as a parable about HIV/AIDS, other sexually transmitted infections[34] and the social perceptions thereof; the sexual revolution;[35] "primal anxieties" about intimacy;[36] and post-Great Recession economic anxiety.[37][38] Mitchell stated: "I'm not personally that interested in where 'it' comes from. 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. Even if you try to solve it."[10] Mitchell said that while Jay "opens herself up to danger through sex, the one way in which she can free herself from that danger... We're all here for a limited amount of time and we can't escape our mortality... but love and sex are two ways in which we can at least temporarily push death away."[34]
Themes
Sexual Assault
Within the movie, the monster is a shapeshifting demon who follows Jay after a sexual encounter with Hugh, a guy she was seeing. This monster is transmitted via sexual intercourse and begins stalking Jay. It follows her at a slow pace, and if it catches up to its prey, it attempts to kill it via sexual intercourse.
STI Interpretation
While this movie can be seen as a metaphor for sexually transmitted infections (STI), it loses validity when considering the larger scheme of the curse and the monster. JP Nunez from Horror Obsessive elaborates “when you give someone an STD, you don’t cure yourself, but in It Follows, the monster stops going after you once you pass the curse on to someone else."[39] In the movie, it is explicitly mentioned that Jay did not contract any STI’s after her sexual encounter with Hugh. This moment is significant as it highlights that the monster is more than an STI or disease but is something more complex.
The Initial Assault: A Moral Monster
The theme of sexual assault is not fully acknowledged or addressed but holds legitimacy when given the context of the movie and its monster. For Brendan Morrow of Bloody Disgusting, It Follows is “one giant metaphor for the horrifying aftermath of sexual assault."[40] Before sexual intercourse with Hugh, Jay is seen explicitly saying “I know he wants to…But I don’t know”. Her hesitancy in this scene highlights her feelings of being pressured by Hugh for intercourse, despite her obvious discomfort. After the coerced intercourse, Hugh chloroforms and binds her wrists to a wheelchair to explain the conditions about the monster. Hahner and Varda (2017), argue “Hugh has committed rape by deception, rendering Jay not a sexual partner but a mere body to which the curse might be transferred."[41] Within this context, a new monster appears, Hugh. He takes on the form of a moral monster, using Jay for his own needs (e.g., self-preservation), lacking morality to communicate information about “It” prior to sleeping with her.[42] By failing to communicate about the monster prior to intercourse, Hugh removes Jay’s legal right to make an informed decision about sleeping with him.
When Hugh eventually drops Jay off at her house, her hands are still bound, and she is still in her undergarments. This creates the sense of violation and a lack of dignity as Jay is afraid and humiliated. To further the rape imagery, Jay is seen checking her underwear after, giving a tone of defilement and intrusion. In these scenes, viewers empathize with Jay, witnessing how her ability to consent was taken away from her, and how she must as a result, live with the aftermath (the monster) literally walking after her.
Shapeshifting and Invisibility: A Biological Monster
Interestingly, the monster, “It” can shapeshift into various people, as Hugh elaborates, “it can be someone you know, or it could be a stranger in a crowd. Whatever helps it get close to you.” Initially, the monster takes the form of a nude woman, then an elderly woman in a hospital gown, then a semi-nude woman. This monster is a biological monster; it is formless[42], taking on a variety of identities, taking advantage of “collective human fear of the unknown.”[43] Importantly, within the context of assault, victims are often triggered by moments, places and people.[44] The unknown presence and identity of “It” further serves as a constant reminder for Jay about her traumatic past ‘catching up to her’, acting as a trigger. These rapid changes in identity creates a sense of paranoia and fear of another attack or assault from strangers in public. As a result, viewers are left analyzing the foreground constantly throughout the movie in attempts of identifying the monster and are left with a constant feeling of unease. By making the viewers experience the paranoia felt by victims of assault, they can empathize with victims of assault and reflect on society’s role in victim-blaming.
Another stylistic choice made was about the invisibility of the monster, throughout the movie only Jay can see the monster and appears invisible to everyone else. When Jay attempts to express her feelings and what she sees, she appears crazy and paranoid to her friends. While her friends cannot see the creature, this stylistic choice “speaks to the distrust of what humans cannot see or touch”[43], portraying Jay as crazy to her friends. This is further exacerbated considering the extremeness of rape culture; society only recognizes rape in its most gruesome form, “a stranger jumping from the bushes to attack a helpless and continually protesting victim— as rape myths hold.”[41] As a result, people are hesitant believing victims as the scars (or in this case, the monster) are invisible and attitudes towards rape culture prevent survivors from speaking out in fear of being labeled crazy, similar to Jay’s experiences. Film and society further only highlight rape in its gruesome form, preventing audiences from recognizing this movie as one coded with the aftermath of assault, allowing for the cycle to repeat and victims to be dismissed.
Critique of the Film
Despite its strengths, one scene remains relatively unclear. Stephen Holding from the New York Times states, “Jay dives into an indoor swimming pool, which her friends encircle with electrical appliances. But why? For protection?”[45], unable to connect it back to the larger theme and implication. Given the themes of rape and assault, this scene falls flat and lacks meaning in the grand scheme. While the unknown nature of the monster highlights the nature and paranoia of assault, watchers are left confused as to the relevance of the pool scene.
Sequel
Following the film's success, Radius-TWC co-president Tom Quinn announced that the studio was looking into a possible sequel.[46] Quinn has expressed the idea of flipping the concept of the first film around, with Jay or another protagonist going down the chain to find the origin of "it."[47]
On October 30, 2023, it was announced that a sequel entitled They Follow, was in pre-production with writer-director David Robert Mitchell and star Maika Monroe returning. Neon, Quinn's second film studio, would produce and distribute the film domestically.[8] Filming would begin in 2024.[9]
In popular culture
In April 2015, Funny or Die hosted a spoof of It Follows entitled What Follows After Watching It Follows, produced by Whelmed Productions and starring Danielle Shapira, Matt Sweeney, and Wes Schlagenhauf, receiving a generally negative critical reception.[48]
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