FEBRUARY 11, 2015 12:41AM
It Follows - Sundance 2015
Chillerpop@ Sundance Review
Director: David Robert MitchellWriters: David Robert Mitchell
Notable Cast: Linda Boston, Caitlin Burt, Heather Fairbanks
Synopsis: For nineteen-year-old Jay (Caitlin Burt), Autumn should be about school, boys and week-ends out at the lake. But after a seemingly innocent sexual encounter, she finds herself plagued by strange visions and the inescapable sense that someone, something, is following her. Faced with this burden, Jay and her friends must find a way to escape the horrors that seem to be only a few steps behind. (source: imdb user Jose Tamayo).
I'm back in my element with a very thought provoking horror movie that screened at Sundance 2015. It is at times frightening, it has heaps of meaning, and it could be this generation's own Nightmare on Elm Street.
There's a plot synopsis above, but I'm forced to elaborate some technical details.
It Follows is about a young girl, Jay who decides to lose her virginity to her new boyfriend. The boyfriend proceeds to choloroform her, tie her up and then inform her that "It" is coming for her. Only she can see It. He can see It too but now that he had sex with her, It only wants to kill her. The only way to to stop It from coming after her is to pass It on to someone else through sex. If It kills her sex partner, It will come back for her.
This is a literally sexually transmitted disease. I could only
imagine what the reception to the movie would have been had it been
made and released in the 1980's.
It is a great horror monster. It can look like anyone, except with
blacked out eyes and demonic shrieks. We know nothing about It - not
what kind of demon It is, not what kind of spell, prayer or potion you
need to kill It, no contrived long-winded mythology to bore you to
tears. It just is, and the only information you get is what you're given by word of mouth from the person who passes It on to you.
The film is tense, exciting, and harbors great jumps and scares.
But it's also quite serious and morose. It's no horny teen slasher
thrill ride, so I am curious how it will be received by the Torture Porn
generation.
And that's what makes It Follows worthy. There's a lot of
questions to be asked and debated. Is the Final Girl trope being
deconstructed? Is she being forced to be a slut in order to survive as
opposed to being spared for her chasteness?
Or does surviving It mean that she has to forge new, strong adult
intimacies? Will sex workers and the bottom rung of society end up
bearing the brunt of It's murderous horror?
The director wasn't present so there was no Q&A session after the screening. Perhaps that was for the best. I can tell you I'm not above asking all the sophmoric teenage boy questions this movie generates. What happens if the It carrier is in an orgy? Does it have to be penis-to-vagina intercourse to count? Can gay sex pass It on? What about bestiality?
Settle down, Beavis.
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Comments
R&R On a more primal level, if Jay elects to become the virgin sacrifice, will that guarantee a good harvest? ;-)
Nah Jmac, that only works on Summerisle ;)
I can tell you really
liked It (groan). Do you feel the overall audience response was strong
also? Does it tend to be standard at Sundance to have the director
present at screening? It seems to be the case but wasn't sure if that
was just with a selection of screenings.
It was tough to gauge
audience reaction, VA, but it's been getting good buzz. So has "The
Witch", which I didn't get to see at Sundance. And yeah, typically
there's a panel after the screening with directors, producers etc. But I
saw this towards the end of the week, and it had already premiered
earlier in Park City. By the end of Sundance week a lot of people
leave.
I will start making my list! So you got to actually GO to the 'Dance this year? Awesome if so...
Next year :)(:
Maybelline, Butterflies and the Electric Bus
that'll be us,
for the T-shirt at least, something
astonishingly awesome as
Beauty and the Beast
Maybelline, Butterflies and the Electric Bus
that'll be us,
for the T-shirt at least, something
astonishingly awesome as
Beauty and the Beast
Thanks for this,
Chiller; sounds eminently watchable. Interesting that STD is used:
generally, there's nothing "sexy" about it and its ultimate
effects--loss of bodily control and madness--are pretty nasty. But, it
makes for a dandy metaphor for the spread of moral corruption. But
let's take a metaphorical step up: don't we all have "its" that bedevil
and beset and beleaguer us, and that, to restore some level of comfort,
we project onto others. And then there's the idea that the teen years
themselves are a kind of disease--I distressful time in which merely
inhabiting the body seems strange and filled with dis-ease; and,
finally, the idea of the fraudulent romanticized mystique that can
surround the initial sexual encounter being seen for what it is. Lot's
of possibilities here!
rated!
@James, do you have a film coming out? If so congrats!
@Jerry - beautifully analyzed, and you haven't even seen the film!
@KC - only living in UT really makes that possible for me, plus my reaping the grace of friends who actually have the drive and energy to stand in line, wake up at ungodly hours, etc.
@Jonathan - thanks as always.
@Jerry - beautifully analyzed, and you haven't even seen the film!
@KC - only living in UT really makes that possible for me, plus my reaping the grace of friends who actually have the drive and energy to stand in line, wake up at ungodly hours, etc.
@Jonathan - thanks as always.
Chiller,
no I don't
However,
from time to time I think:
film it and they will come
no I don't
However,
from time to time I think:
film it and they will come
I would have asked,
Can I catch It from a toilet seat?
Will my girlfriend get pregnant if It goes in a hot tube?
Btw, I like your theory of the deconstruction of the chaste girl theme . R
Can I catch It from a toilet seat?
Will my girlfriend get pregnant if It goes in a hot tube?
Btw, I like your theory of the deconstruction of the chaste girl theme . R
Trudge my dear friend! It is good to see you 'round here. I hope all is fantastic with you.
Chiller, all is well. Thank you for asking.
Chillerpop@ Sundance Review 
The man that it was attached to, John Wood, had a whole host of
troubles - drugs, unemployment, family estrangement, and more. But what
come to light are his feelings towards his father (who lost his life in
the same plane accident that resulted in his amputated leg), his guilt,
and his desire to reconnect with his own family and overcome his
addiction. For him the battle for this leg symbolized all of this, and
it eventually drew him closer to peace, closure and healing.
Meanwhile, I couldn't help but be charmed by Shannon Whisnant. He
seems like a stock comic villain at first, stubbornly refusing to return
another man's lost body part. You'll further whisper "what the fuck"
under your breath when you learn that Whisnant had plans for that leg.
Grand plans. A local museum, t-shirts, appearances on reality shows,
celebrity, riches - Wood's severed leg represented the fulfillment of
his dream. And with a sad admiration, I could see through interview
segments that Whisnant has a strong, deep and passionate desire to be
famous and to make people laugh. 
My big takeaway: far from the cliches of the sweet young girl taken
advantage of by sleazy abusive porn industry men, girls learn at a very
early age that participating in sexually explicit media acts - whether
on purpose or via leaked sex tape - will launch multimillion dollar
brand empires, acting careers, celebrity lives or more. They feel "like
a boss"; and there are women with active porn careers who gleefully
tout that message. 
The 
