It Follows is not your typical horror film and that’s a good thing.  More than any other genre, horror has really become watered down in recent years.  Most horror films released nowadays are plagued by poor plotting, an over abundance of gore and cheap jump scares.

 

Thankfully, with It Follows and last year’s The Babadook, horror seems to be heading in the right direction.  Both films focus on character and plot development, as well as pacing to build tension.  

 

It Follows has a simple, yet unique plot.  The horror genre has always featured strong themes of sex and sexuality, but It Follows is one of the only films I can remember where it’s actually part of the plot.  In It Follows, the main character is being haunted by mysterious beings after having a sexual encounter.  The plot kind of reminded me of The Ring or Final Destination a little bit.

 

Fans of 80’s horror films will find themselves in familiar territory.  It Follows has a great 80’s vibe and the film really seems to be channeling films like Halloween.  This is especially the case with the soundtrack that literally feels like it was lifted right from a John Carpenter film.  It’s easily one of the better soundtracks I’ve heard in a horror film in a long time.  The use of pounding synthesizers really amped-up the intensity of certain scenes.

 

Like most 80’s horror films, the main character that is being terrorized is a young, beautiful female.  Here we follow Jay, played by Maika Monroe.  Monroe shined last year in The Guest, another film that relied heavily on 80’s nostalgia.  While The Guest is a little bit more difficult to classify into a specific genre, it’s very heavily influenced by old school horror films.  It might be a little too early to say, but in Maika Monroe, we might just have our new “Scream Queen.”

 

Like The Babadook, It Follows is sure to disappoint those that have grown accustomed to the horror films Hollywood continues to pump out.  For many, the lack of blood and gore will no doubt disappoint the masses that have grown to thirst for it.  I would consider It Follows more creepy and tense than scary.  

 

Much of the film actually feels like a nightmare.  There’s a surreal quality to the film and this is especially the case with how the beings are portrayed.  I don’t want to give too much away, but there’s something completely unsettling about a being that slowly walks, but that you still can’t get away from.  This is another nod to Halloween.  To me, one of the scariest things about Mike Myers is that no matter how fast you run, he’s always behind you.  Just leisurely walking.

 

It Follows is certainly not a perfect film.  Monroe does an excellent job, but the supporting cast is somewhat lacking.  Certain characters seems to serve no purpose and the others I just didn’t feel a whole lot for.  Another problem with the film is that we don’t get any answers about what these beings are and where they came from, we also doesn’t really get a clear set of rules as to how to get rid of them and how exactly they can be passed along.

 

These are kind of nitpicks, but I found myself curious throughout and a little let down when we didn’t get a few more concrete answers.  Regardless of that, It Follows needs to be seen by any true fan of the genre.  It features an interesting plot, a great soundtrack and timely themes of female sexuality, as well as teenage sex.  One of the best films of the year so far.