It Follows

Director: David Robert Mitchell
Starring: Maika Monroe, Keir Gilchrist, Daniel Zovatto, Jake Weary, Olivia Luccardi, and Lili Sepe
Distributor: Rialto Films
Runtime: 100 mins. Reviewed in Apr 2015

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Rating notes: Strong Supernatural themes, violence and sex scenes

This American supernatural horror film, with a marvellously suggestive title, tells the story of a young, 19-year-old woman, Jay Height (Maika Monroe), who becomes the unwilling victim of a curse. She is terrified by a ghost, who changes identity constantly and pursues her silently and relentlessly. The film was shown at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival to considerable critical acclaim.

One night, in a parked car, Jay has sex with her boyfriend, Hugh (Jake Weary). Hugh, however, has another purpose behind his act of intimacy. He knows that any sexual encounter he has, will pass a curse to his partner, who will then become the next target. Apparitions who carry the curse can be seen only by the victim, and not by anyone else. The ghost follows its intended victim, always shuffling slowly and determinedly behind, or close nearby, waiting for the chance to kill.

Maika’s friends, Paul, Yara, Kelly and Greg (Keir Gilchrist, Olivia Luccardi, Lili Sepe, and Daniel Zovatto), are aware of her terror. They listen to her story, but at first don’t believe her. Slowly the terror of her predicament affects them all. The only way Jay can shed the influence of the curse is by having sex with someone else. She does so with Greg, who is attracted to her, but Greg meets an untimely end, killed by a ghost appearing in the form of his mother. Towards the end of the movie, Jay’s attacking apparition is a ghost in the form of her father.

The film aims to terrify and it achieves its terror effectively, not by copious scenes of blood and gore, but by building silently and stealth-fully the dread of what might happen soon. It is the threat of what can happen which carries the film’s real impact, not by horrible events displayed grotesquely. It recognises that what is about to occur is likely to keep the viewer most involved. There are a few macabre scenes, as most horror films inevitably have, and the film begins with one which shows what can happen to some victims, but they play a very minor role.

At one level, the movie pursues teenager appeal by showing that sex is readily accessible. Sex with one person can easily lead to sex with another, it seems to say. But at another level, the movie shows that promiscuous sex can have disastrous consequences. It is only through sex that the curse can be transferred, and the homicidal intent of the apparition can only change direction after another sexual encounter. If one accepts this division of meaning, the film becomes a cautionary tale.

There is obvious teenage appeal at a superficial level, but a surprising moral point rests deeper down. Whether one agrees with such an interpretation, or not, the movie is a very thought-provoking film about sexual encounters. The film could well be a parable about AIDS, and it has been directed by David Mitchell to provide thoughtful comment about teenage sexual confusion.

At the end of the story, the psychological explanation of what happens is very complex, and the film loses its way in the maze of possible explanations. Oedipal fantasies, or repressed fears, are obviously at play somewhere, and there is more than a hint of sexual abuse. Jay finally becomes free of the ghost, sleeps with Paul, and the credits begin to roll roll just as we hear the steady shuffling of feet a few steps behind Jay and Paul walking down the street, hand in hand. Paul must have had sex with someone else, and is likely to hand the curse back to Jay.

This is a clever, original horror movie that builds up the anticipation of terror and dread very effectively. It is directed and photographed with smouldering intensity. The film’s musical soundtrack emphasises heavily what might happen, but holds the tension. The movie targets the teenage market, but it also has sophisticated adult appeal.

The movie is very much beyond the nightmarish appeal of blood-conscious, teen-slasher movies like “Halloween” (1978) and “A Nightmare on Elm Street” (1984). This is a stylish, smart movie of a very different kind to most films in the horror genre, and worth seeing for its originality and surprising messages of moral caution.