---
title: "It Follows"
year: 2015
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/it-follows"
fi1m_id: "it-follows"
imdb_id: "tt3235888"
tmdb_id: 270303
wikidata_id: "Q16547881"
fi1m_score: 84
critics_score: 84
critics_reviews: 17
published: "2026-09-16"
updated: "2026-09-18T08:37:41.780864+00:00"
region: "RO"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# It Follows (2015)

Directed by David Robert Mitchell · 1h 41m · Horror, Mystery

## Identity

It Follows

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/it-follows
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** it-follows
- **IMDb ID:** tt3235888
- **TMDB ID:** 270303
- **Wikidata ID:** Q16547881
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3235888/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/270303, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q16547881

**Fi1m score: 84** · Critics 84 from 17 reviews

*In a sentence:* A distant pedestrian should not require this much of our attention

> David Robert Mitchell makes a slow walk frightening, with Maika Monroe giving the fear a person worth caring about. *It Follows* is an unusually effective horror film, though its hazy rules occasionally weaken the suspense.

## Synopsis

Jay Height (Maika Monroe) lives in suburban Detroit, where a sexual encounter leaves her pursued by a presence that walks slowly and changes its appearance. She wants to escape it, but it keeps coming, and the curse can pass from one person to another through sex. Her admirer Paul (Keir Gilchrist) and Kelly Height (Lili Sepe) belong to the young circle around her. Their familiar suburban surroundings offer little reassurance once Jay knows something is following. With friends close by, she faces a threat whose steady approach gives her time to be afraid.

## Review

The good idea in *It Follows* is that the pursuer has no need to run. David Robert Mitchell, who writes and directs, makes its steady approach difficult to stop watching. This is a frightening, carefully made horror film, with a sympathetic lead and rules that sound firmer than they prove to be. The presence moves slowly and changes its appearance; the curse passes between people through sex.

Maika Monroe plays Jay Height with a fear that never makes her seem foolish. After a sexual encounter leaves Jay being followed, Monroe gives us someone whose distress matters beyond the question of how the next scare will arrive. Keir Gilchrist’s Paul is an admirer, and the tenderness between them gives the film something to lose even during its quieter stretches. Mitchell lets these young people care about each other; their willingness to help keeps the film from becoming an exercise in waiting for somebody to be caught.

Mike Gioulakis’s wide shots give us too much room to search, deliberately. We were frightened by the sight of someone walking in the distance, because the frame gives us time to notice an approach without immediately settling whether it is dangerous. A person at the edge of an image can take our attention away from the people we are supposed to be watching. Gioulakis makes that distraction part of the suspense, and ordinary open space becomes difficult to look at comfortably.

Michael Perry’s production design gives the suburban Detroit setting the everyday appearance this premise needs. The surroundings must look like somewhere people can safely spend an uneventful afternoon, or the approaching figure will have little to disturb. Editor Julio Perez IV lets the wider views last long enough for us to inspect them and then doubt our inspection. That patience works because the creature’s slow movement makes the time spent looking part of the danger.

Richard Vreeland’s electronic score makes the waiting feel physically unpleasant, which we mean as praise. The sound is insistently threatening even when nothing seems to be happening. Sometimes it insists too much; the long shots already have us searching for trouble, and we would prefer less encouragement. For most of the film, though, the music sustains the tension without making every moment of uncertainty sound like an imminent attack.

The difficulty comes when Mitchell asks us to think harder about how the curse works. Its rules are vague enough that puzzling them out can take us away from Jay’s immediate fear, and the sexual premise invites questions the screenplay does not quite answer. We need a steadier sense of what these people can reasonably do about it. That uncertainty occasionally feels convenient rather than frightening.

The familiar teen-horror ingredients are here, but Mitchell is unusually interested in the friends who want to help Jay. Their support gives the film a warmth that makes the danger harder to shrug off. At 101 minutes, it allows time for those relationships without forgetting what is coming towards them. Choose it for an evening of sustained unease, provided a little uncertainty about the curse will not spoil the pleasure.

*Fi1m score 84, published 16 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

The consensus is strongly positive, with most critics praising It Follows for making a simple pursuing menace frightening through patient staging rather than cheap shocks. David Robert Mitchell’s control of space and pacing draws repeated praise, alongside the atmospheric photography and electronic score. The reviews also value the young characters’ convincing friendships, with Maika Monroe singled out for making fear sympathetic and immediate. Many find the sexual curse an effective way of exploring anxieties about youth, sex and mortality.

The differences concern how fully those ideas hold together, rather than whether the film works. Slant Magazine admires the visuals and score but questions the sexual politics and finds the metaphor muddled. The Playlist praises the atmosphere while finding the rules unclear and the scares less forceful than hoped. These are qualified endorsements within a broadly enthusiastic response; the chief reservation is that the sustained dread can be more persuasive than its explanation.

## Straight answers

**Is It Follows worth watching?**

*It Follows* is worth watching for anyone who wants a patient, frightening horror film with a lead worth caring about, and we scored it 84. David Robert Mitchell makes a slow walk across a wide frame genuinely alarming, and Maika Monroe keeps Jay's fear sympathetic. The one reservation is that the rules of the curse are hazier than they first sound, which occasionally loosens the suspense.

**How long is It Follows, and what is it rated?**

*It Follows* runs 1h 41m. It is a horror and mystery film.

**Where can I watch It Follows in Romania?**

*It Follows* is not on any streaming or rental service in Romania at the moment. It is available in 23 other countries; change your country at the top of the page to see where. Availability is checked daily.

**How violent or frightening is It Follows, and is it suitable for children?**

*It Follows* is a 15 certificate in the UK and R-rated in the US, and it is not suitable for children. The fear comes from sustained dread rather than constant gore: a figure walking slowly towards the camera, a threatening electronic score, long shots that leave you searching for danger. Its premise is sexual, with the curse passed on through sex, so it suits older teenagers and adults who can take prolonged unease.

**How does It Follows compare to Halloween?**

*It Follows* shares a great deal with [*Halloween*](https://film.one/film/halloween): both use patient widescreen framing, ordinary suburban streets and an insistent score to make waiting uncomfortable. The earlier film is the more assured in its suspense, and Jamie Lee Curtis and Maika Monroe each give their film a person to worry about. Choose *Halloween* for the purer, tighter exercise in dread, and *It Follows* if you want warmer friendships and a stranger premise, accepting that its rules are vaguer.

**What should I watch after It Follows?**

After *It Follows*, try [*Halloween*](https://film.one/film/halloween) (1978, Fi1m 88): Patient widescreen suspense turns an ordinary neighbourhood into somewhere difficult to relax. Then [*Ring*](https://film.one/film/ring) (1998, Fi1m 84): Another transferable curse, with fear sustained by patient investigation and troubling images; and [*The Babadook*](https://film.one/film/the-babadook) (2014, Fi1m 86): A sympathetic central performance keeps the domestic horror painful as well as frightening.

### Reviews we read (21)

- **Time Out**, Tom Huddleston (5/5): This is the most unexpected and downright unnerving fright flick in years, which riffs smartly on the classics while adding something ineffable all of its own. It offers an authentically frightening experience with folklorish simplicity and a smart STD metaphor. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/it-follows)
- **Total Film**, Matt Glasby (90/100, inferred): The critic highlights the film's roots in the director's nightmares and its knowing nods to classic horror while capturing the feel of being young and afraid. It is called one of the most fearsomely original chillers of recent times, with a central conceit that serves as a subtle metaphor for teenage angst and relentless, nameless dread. [Read](https://www.gamesradar.com/it-follows-review/)
- **Empire**, Kim Newman (85/100, inferred): The critic praises the film's simple but effective central premise of an implacable pursuing entity passed on like a curse, along with its serious undertones and the strong portrayal of the young friends' relationships. It is described as a first-rate horror movie that adds a new monster to the pantheon while maintaining a meaningful subtext without undercutting the spookiness. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/follows-review/)
- **Film Comment**, Jonathan Romney (85/100, inferred): The critic praises the film's simple yet ingenious premise of a sexually transmitted curse embodied by an implacable pursuer, blending old-fashioned horror with subtle, personal observations on youth, suburbia, and mortality. They single out the emotionally engaging performances, particularly Maika Monroe as the sympathetic lead and the tender dynamic with her admirer Paul, alongside atmospheric cinematography and score. [Read](https://www.filmcomment.com/david-robert-mitchell-it-follows-review/)
- **Little White Lies**, Anton Bitel (4/4/4): A petrifying and refreshingly original horror movie from an American name-to-watch. It is a mature, character-based film where waiting itself is scary. [Read](https://lwlies.com/reviews/it-follows/)
- **Los Angeles Times**, Michael Rechtshaffen (80/100, inferred): The film delivers impressively fresh, smart and relentlessly chilling horror by opting for originality over cheap jolts. Convincing performances by relatable young characters and an unsettling electronic score enhance the nerve-jangling dread. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-it-follows-movie-review-20150313-story.html)
- **Radio Times** (4/5): This rough-edged but pleasingly creepy American indie puts suburban teens at risk from a seemingly inescapable presence. It is more about goosebumps than gore, with an unsettling, slow-moving, shape-changing monster that sticks to its victims. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-myy32s/it-follows/)
- **Sight and Sound**, Kim Newman (80/100, inferred): The critic praises David Robert Mitchell's imaginative young-adult twist on horror's implacable-pursuit mode. It puts rare emphasis on virtue and solidarity among the teens facing the threat. [Read](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/film-week-it-follows)
- **Slant Magazine**, Ed Gonzalez (3/4): The critic calls the film visionary but faults it for undigested ideas and dubious sexual politics, noting the strong visuals and Carpenter-like style while criticizing the metaphor and resolution. They single out the disarming delineation of slow-growing madness and the synth score for praise amid complaints about the catch-all metaphor. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/it-follows/)
- **The New Yorker**, Anthony Lane (70/100, inferred): Mitchell uses Detroit's contrasts to depict horror worming its way into placid life after a sexual encounter passes on a curse. The narrative rhythms blend frights with anomie among bored teens, making violent extinction feel ordinary. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/goings-on-about-town/movies/it-follows)
- **The Guardian**, Peter Bradshaw: The critic calls the film a modern classic of fear that taps into primal anxieties about sex and death with disturbing effectiveness. He singles out the director's sensational setpieces of suspense and the way it evokes a bland suburban world turned alien and menacing. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/feb/26/it-follows-review-horror-sex-death)
- **The Hollywood Reporter**, David Rooney: The critic praises the film's creepy, suspenseful atmosphere and skillful manipulation of tension in this lo-fi horror, noting its earnest tone and effective use of genre tropes without winking. They single out the assured direction and genuinely unnerving quality despite some lack of originality in characters. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/follows-film-review-cannes-705174/)
- **The New York Times**, Stephen Holden (Critic's Pick): The critic praises the film's cool, controlled direction and its incarnation of paranoia through a shape-shifting menace. Everyday teenagers and moody atmosphere stand out as elements that distinguish it from slick Hollywood horror. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/13/movies/review-in-it-follows-a-shape-shifting-horror-stalks-a-teenager.html)
- **The Times**, Wendy Ide: The critic praises the film for being made with love and infusing familiar horror tropes with fresh influences and atmosphere rather than cheap shocks. She highlights the director's skillful use of space, both temporal and within the frame, to build creeping menace. [Read](https://www.thetimes.com/uk/photography-uk/article/it-follows-7lrwrclk0h7)
- **Den of Geek**, David Crow (5/5): The critic hails It Follows as one of the best horror movies in years for its intangible, relentless dread that makes death feel immediate and personal to young characters. They single out the film's personification of primal terror through an unstoppable entity and Maika Monroe's sympathetic performance as the terrified protagonist. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/it-follows-review-maika-monroe-scary-movies-2015-horror/)
- **Collider**, Tommy Cook (A): The film is a remarkable deconstruction of the teen slasher genre and a powerful allegory for fears of sexual disease, aging, and mortality. It creates an unavoidable sense of dread through its focus on inevitability rather than a conventional monster confrontation, while remaining surprisingly non-nihilistic thanks to the support of the protagonist's friends. [Read](https://collider.com/it-follows-review-afi-fest/)
- **/Film**, Germain Lussier (9/10): The critic calls it one of the scariest horror films in years thanks to its simple, relentless walking-entity conceit that creates paralyzing real-life dread without jump scares or effects. They praise the performances (especially Maika Monroe conveying fear) and the John Carpenter-influenced score. [Read](https://www.slashfilm.com/534798/it-follows-review/)
- **The Wrap** (85/100, inferred): The critic calls the film an undeniable triumph of mood and an ambitious effort at reinventing horror by eschewing the genre’s common tricks. They single out the long shots that build stomach-dropping suspense without relying on jump scares. [Read](https://www.thewrap.com/it-follows-review-maika-monroe-lili-sepe-keir-gilchrist/)
- **Eye for Film**, Owen Van Spall (80/100, inferred): The review highlights the superb execution of the visual style with wide shots that force constant background scanning, the gripping mythology, and convincing teen performances, resulting in one of the most impressive tension-builders in years. It notes the dreamy teen-movie quality alongside the horror. [Read](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/it-follows-2014-film-review-by-owen-van-spall)
- **NME** (80/100, inferred): The critic describes It Follows as a fresh and scary low-budget horror film centered on the world's worst STD-like curse. They single out the smart script that builds tension effectively without relying on gratuitous gore. [Read](https://www.nme.com/reviews/reviews-various-artists-15949-318345)
- **The Playlist**, The Playlist Staff (B): The review appreciates the arthouse sensibility fused with genre horror, dreamy photography, and atmospheric score but finds the rules diffuse and the film softer on outright scares than hoped, working better as mood and allusion than pure horror. [Read](https://theplaylist.net/cannes-review-david-robert-mitchells-hotly-buzzed-horror-it-follows-20140518/)

## Details

- **Director:** David Robert Mitchell
- **Director:** David Robert Mitchell
- **Screenplay:** David Robert Mitchell
- **Cinematography:** Mike Gioulakis
- **Editor:** Julio Perez IV
- **Music:** Disasterpeace
- **Production design:** Michael Perry
- **Costume design:** Kimberly Leitz
- **Producer:** Rebecca Green, David Kaplan, Erik Rommesmo
- **Cast:** Maika Monroe as Jay Height; Keir Gilchrist as Paul; Daniel Zovatto as Greg Hannigan; Jake Weary as Hugh; Olivia Luccardi as Yara; Lili Sepe as Kelly Height; Bailey Spry as Annie; Carollette Phillips as Woman with Groceries
- **Runtime:** 1h 41m
- **First release (France):** 17 May 2014
- **Genres:** Horror, Mystery
- **Budget:** $2 million
- **Box office:** $23 million
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zoNa1WH3GR8

## Where to watch in Romania

Not streaming, renting or buying in Romania at the last check.

Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, BE, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, DE, ES, FI, FR, GB, IE, IT, MX, NO, NZ, PA, SE, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## If you liked this

- *Halloween* (1978), Fi1m 88: Patient widescreen suspense turns an ordinary neighbourhood into somewhere difficult to relax. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/halloween.md)
- *The Innocents* (1961): A watchful ghost story that makes uncertainty about what we see frightening.
- *Ring* (1998), Fi1m 84: Another transferable curse, with fear sustained by patient investigation and troubling images. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/ring.md)
- *The Babadook* (2014), Fi1m 86: A sympathetic central performance keeps the domestic horror painful as well as frightening. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-babadook.md)
- *Personal Shopper* (2016), Fi1m 76: Loneliness and possible haunting, with suspense built from waiting for a reply. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/personal-shopper.md)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/it-follows