A retro allegory for the anxieties of adulthood.

Rating: 8/10 (23 June 2015)

I'm not usually one for horror, but I do appreciate films that use the genre to explore interesting themes. It Follows is hardly scary. A couple disturbing scenes perhaps, but it cushions the threatened protagonist by always keeping her company with her friends. This is not a film that uses isolation to its advantage for suspense. The menace doesn't care. But how the 'it' manifests itself is irrelevant, it's a coming-of-age film using a stalking terror as an allegory for the anxieties of adulthood. Sure, it could also be about sexually transmitted diseases given its teenage cast and the method of the monster, but the beauty of It Follows is that it works for any interpretation. The former is the one that resonated with me the most, hinted in an early scene where the protagonist hangs out with who later becomes the person who gives her 'it.' There's an odd nostalgia about it, conjured by the vibrant cinematography and retro score, but Mitchell keeps it fresh. The only misstep is the misconceived third act where the characters are essentially asking for the trouble they receive but the humanistic approach Maika Monroe takes to her character saves it from feeling too removed.
8/10