Plot: What’s it about?
I’ve become more than a little dismissive with horror movies lately. They just don’t cut if for me. There are many issues I have with them, especially with the found footage angle, but more to the point, they simply don’t scare me. Instead, I’m usually eagerly awaiting the end credits due to sheer boredom. A few months ago when It Follows arrived in theaters, I heard nothing but praise. Not just from the audience, but critics seemed to adore this film. That still didn’t push me enough to pursue this film while it was in theaters. Now, with it being on disc, I decided I’d give it a shot. As it turns out, the film is quite enjoyable, offering a nice, scaled back approach absent from a lot of modern horror films. I won’t say it’s particularly frightening, but it still left an impression on me. I don’t think it quite deserves the endless praise it received, but it was a mostly enjoyable film that’s deliberately paced.
Jay Height (Maika Monroe) is an easygoing college student who is infected with an unknown entity after it’s passed to her through a sexual encounter. Little is known about it other than it can be passed along during sex. This pretty much sets the stage. We see Jay continuing as she and her friends help her stop this supernatural force before it consumers her. There’s an obvious influence here of earlier films, especially John Carpenter. I appreciate a more subtle approach, moving away from gore and obvious scares into something more down to earth. I won’t say this is one of the scariest horror films I’ve ever seen, but it does have a few moments of genuine scares. There’s also the lingering feeling that something is about to happen at any moment. The year is never directly addressed, but we don’t see a lot of cell phone usage or other signs of modern technology or social media. Having said that, there are still more modern vehicles shown, so it could take place somewhere in the late 90’s or early 2000’s. Regardless, this touch only benefits the film. Another fresh twist is that there’s not an actual killer. Indeed, the entity is the enemy here, but there aren’t any masked killers lurking in the shadows. As much as I love the old slasher films, this did make for a breath of fresh air when compared to a lot of the horror films we’ve been seeing more recently. So while I don’t feel it’s some modern classic, I do think It follows is a worthy horror film that’s at least worth renting.
Video: How’s it look?
This is a hard one to nail down. On one hand, it’s a modern film so we do get the expected lack of grain, strong contrast and the like. But the way it’s shot is a bit “dull” and that’s intentional and no fault of the transfer. I remember seeing the Blu-ray and being impressed and with this 4K release, it ups the quality by a notch. There’s a bit stronger contrast, colors (or lack thereof) seem to pop a bit more and we’re given a nicer, cleaner overall presentation. The best comparison I can make is that it’s similar to Let the Right One In. In that it checks all the boxes, but if you’re looking for something that’ll cover every color in the spectrum – look elsewhere.
Audio: How’s it sound?
While not overly aggressive, the new Dolby Atmos track still serves the film nicely. I read on some message boards that some thought the track was toned down a bit than what was heard in theaters. Since I didn’t see it in theaters, I can’t comment, but it sounded fine to me. During some of the louder moments, nothing here felt subtle at all. Vocals were always fine, but I did have to turn it up a few times to make sure I could hear it all. It provides a little more atmosphere (pardon the pun) than the original DTS HD Master Audio mix, but either way you go – it’ll work.
Supplements: What are the extras?
For those that only have/watched the Blu-ray, we’ve got some more features but those that were found on the aforementioned disc are present as well.
- Audio Commentary – Author Joshua Grimm has probably the most personal track and though I didn’t give it an entire listen, what I heard was very interesting.
- Audio Commentary – In an unusual move, we get a commentary from critics. There are good notes here and the track is filled with good info, but can seem a bit jumbled at times. Still, fans will want to give it a listen.
- Chasing Ghosts – Actor Keir Gilchrist who played Paul in the film profiles his character as well as some of his motivations.
- Following – Actor Olivia Luccardi, who played Yara in the film, gives us some candidness about the film as well as her part.
- It’s In the House – The film’s producer David Kaplan is interviwed.
- Composing a Masterpiece – Composer Rich Vreeland (also known as Disasterpeace) is profiled.
- A Girl’s World – Production Designer Michael Perry gives us his thoughts on the film as well as some instances in which the production design came into play.
- It Follows – The Architecture of Loneliness – Joseph Wallace provides some commentary and observations in this video essay.
Legacy (Blu-ray) Supplements
- Audio Commentary – In an unusual move, we get a commentary from critics. There are good notes here and the track is filled with good info, but can seem a bit jumbled at times. Still, fans will want to give it a listen.
- A Conversation with Film Composer Disasterpeace – This is a brief segment with the film’s composer. He gives us a brief background of how he got into writing music as well as some other notes. I don’t usually like these segments, but this was fairly interesting.
- Poster Gallery
- Previews
The Bottom Line
While I don’t think it was quite as good as all the positive buzz surrounding it, there’s still enough to enjoy in this film. I can’t see myself watching it multiple times, but it’s worth seeing at least once. The uptick in picture quality along with a new Atmos track and more supplements make this a compelling release.
