It Follows

Death in Slow Motion Plot Summary

It Follows begins with 19-year-old Jay Height (Maika Monroe) dating a charming young man named Hugh (Jake Weary). Set in a nondescript suburban Detroit, the movie has a unique setting. After they sleep together, Hugh chloroforms Jay and ties her to a wheelchair. He then explains to her a tragic reality: he has transmitted to her the curse that “was” to follow him as a consequence of sexual intercourse.

“As Jay Height, a teen faced with relationship hurdles set in suburbia, starts dating Hugh, her seemingly passionate boyfriend with a dark secret. The movie tracks Jay’s transformation from their romantic getaways to chilling encounters as he reveals the shocking truth about a lingering supernatural curse.”

Jay is now being stalked by an entity – “It” – a supernatural force that assumes the guise of random individuals, mostly people one knows or ones who evoke a sense of fear. It walks slowly but never stops. If It catches you, the end is death. No alternative to get rid of the curse exists aside from passing it on to another victim through intimacy.

Jay and her friends, Paul, Greg, Yara and her sister Kelly, come together to try and protect her as she deals with the trauma and moral implications of transferring her curse. The group’s attempts at caging or destroying the entity culminate in a horrific last battle at an old swimming pool. Even the ending is left ambiguous—are they certain it’s gone for good?

Main Characters

Jay Height (Maika Monroe)

Jay is a strong, emotionally vulnerable character. Even as a “final girl,” she is much more complex than previous iterations. Monroe portrays a crushing sense of growing paranoia and fatigue that is both subtle and haunting.

Paul (Keir Gilchrist)

Jay’s childhood friend who silently loves her. His willingness to take on the burden of the curse speaks volumes of his silent devotion and sacrifice.

Greg (Daniel Zovatto)

A neighbor who, in disbelief of the curse, sleeps with Jay and later comes to a gruesome demise.

Hugh / Jeff (Jake Weary)

The character who turns Jay on to the curse carries the trauma of trying to pass it on, implying deep-rooted psychological scars of “passing it on.”

🎞️ Aesthetic & Style

David Robert Mitchell directs an atmospheric slow-burn horror different from the typical jump-scare-ridden fare. The movie feels both dated and modern:

The technology is anachronistic (CRT monitors, clamshell e-readers, cars from the 50s), fostering a disturbingly dreamlike state.

The camera work features long takes, 360 degree pans, and wide angles, creating a sense of disorientation and perpetual anxiety.

Disasterpeace, best known for his video game scores, provides synth-laden, sinister horror bordering on John Carpenter’s Halloween while maintaining a unique score.

🧩 Symbolism and Interpretations

Sexual Allegory

More nuanced than the allegory for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and HIV/AIDS as doom delivered through sex, this film is much deeper.

“It” is more than representative of a disease; it is consequence, guilt, and the inevitability of death.

Death Itself

The creature’s relentless, sluggish pace mirrors the inescapable approach of mortality. You can run, but death will always be there.

Unlike typical horror villains, “It” does not embody vengeance or dramatics; It exists merely to fulfill a function that is cold and inescapable.

Paranoia & Isolation
The combination of broken homes in the suburb, neglect, and emotional numbness reinforces the loneliness and generational fear.

The world is eerily barren, reflecting Jay’s increasing detachment from what is once safe and familiar.

🔪 Standout Scenes
Opening Kill: Sets a surreal and shock-inducing tone is the sight of so disoriented a girl fleeing from an unseen force, only to witness her dead on the beach in a grotesquely broken state.

Classroom Sequence: Another masterpiece of background horror is Jay lookækiρωπου/stares out the window trying to identify if the figure slowly traversing the campus is indeed the woman she saw which makes the entire scenario utterly chilling.

Swimming Pool Climax: An attempt to ensnare the entity within a web of electrical appliances ends with the water being stained crimson, a subtle visual reminder of precisely why Jay is terrified.

🏆 Reception & Legacy
It Follows received largely positive reviews from critics and audiences alike, focusing on originality, restraint, and atmosphere.

Rotten Tomatoes: 95% approval rating
Metacritic: 83/100
Tarantino and other directors hailed it as one of the most important horror films of the decade.

Like The Babadook, Hereditary, and The Witch, the film was praised for its cultivation of fanbase alongside enhanced Parkour for its elevated horror approach.

✅ Final Verdict

It Follows is much more than a horror film; it is a chilling exploration of mortality, the fear of growing up, and the inescapable nature of intimacy. Its masterful visuals and dreamlike structure invoke an everlasting feeling of dread, cementing its position as a contemporary horror classic.

It Follows persists in individual interpretation as a supernatural thriller, metaphor for trauma, or a nightmarish fairy tale. No matter the context, “It” is always present—constantly trailing with inexorable intent.