It Follows

Wow!  That was… I mean… Blimey!  What a stupendously creepy experience.  I was hooked right from the opening scene to the very end.

Loving the artwork, too

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For those who haven’t seen it (am I the last?!), It Follows centres on Jay, a teenage girl who gets more than a dose of the clap when she sleeps with her new boyfriend, Hugh.  She soon learns, he’s passed on something much more dangerous.  Following their encounter, a supernatural force, a relentless, stalking thing, the It of the title does indeed begin to follow her.  And if it catches up to her?  How can you stop It?  Can you beat It?  Well.  I’m not going to ruin it for you.

I can’t remember seeing anything else quite like It Follows. The young cast is all very good, particularly Maika Monroe (Jay), although she’s not quite Sharni Vinson.  The story is extremely unsettling, and the execution is delightfully raw and unpolished, while remaining professional.

Sharni Vinson isn’t in this

It looks great, all muted colours and greys which add to the sense of foreboding: things are bad and might get worse at any moment.  Coupled with the nerve-jangling 80s-style synth soundtrack, there’s a genuine and intense sense of dread throughout.  Because we don’t really know what It is, where it comes from or what It wants, and that, my friend, is a scary prospect.

There are some very memorable scenes that are right up there with some of the best; I’m thinking the opening, the wheelchair scene, the beach and the swimming pool.  There’s a great deal of tension throughout, although it sags occasionally – there’s a fair bit of watching the kids nervously just hanging around – but overall it works.  At first I as a bit disappointed with the ending, but on reflection I think it works really well.

Score: 8/10