Review of It Follows (2015) by Chris O — 20 Nov 2015

If you want a simple synopsis of the story, here it is. This entity in this movie is equivalent to an STD. It's transferred through the process of sex, is nearly impossible to get rid of, and will probably kill you at some point. So the message in this movie is to practice abstinence. Show your kids this, and they'll not even think of sex for years.

Okay, I was joking, don't show your kids this movie. But, for those of you of legal age, this movie is probably one of the smartest, and most simply horror movies of our generation. The screenplay is great, and you are on the edge of you seat throughout the whole movie.

To start out, this movie just happens to be labeled as one of the scariest horror movies ever. Sadly, this is a false title for a great movie. This movie is not so much scary, as it is intense and nerve-racking. Those are two completely different feelings, and although I was on the edge of my seat throughout the entire movie, I couldn't help but wish that this movie was scarier. Yes, although I did feel trapped and scarred for her life, it just felt like their was no end to the madness. It was always intense, but not particularly scary. This movie did a great job of making it feel like their was never a safety net to fall back on, and that this was a situation that no one would like to be in. I just loved the feeling that this movie gave me, and I felt like that because this movie was just executed really well.

This movie was also shot really well. There are many shots that are just smartly filmed, and they utilized their low budget to the max. It was clear that the director and crew were intent on making a quality, well-thought out film, and it was clear cut when this movie was playing on the big-screen.

The screenplay was also pretty smart, and although it wasn't genius by any means, it was a good fit for this movie. The characters never really did anything stupid to piss of the audience, like they typically do in dumb slasher flicks. Speaking of which, the actors in this movie were solid all around. Maika Monroe does a good job as the lead, and she's been in some good movies as of late. I can't wait to see her in more films, and the rest of the cast was functional enough.

This movie ultimately did it's job. It brought us a smart, well-shot horror movie for the 21st century. Considering we don't get many of these very often, we should cherish the few gems we get. This movie was intense on many levels, and the plot was simple enough to comprehend, yet complex enough to entertain. This movie knows exactly what it is, and it capitalizes on it.