David Robert Mitchell’s 2014 film It Follows tells the story of a sexually-transmitted demon that clings to the protagonist, Jay, after she is unknowingly given the burden by a man that she thought she could trust. The demon’s only goal is to catch up to Jay, as it slowly follows her in a straight line, equipped with the ability to look like anyone they can to get closer to Jay. The film’s themes surround the trauma you carry after acts of sexual violence, and one pivotal scene in the film comes towards the end when Jay and her friends hatch a plan to kill the demon. The group gathers as many electrical appliances as they can and head to the community pool, where they plug them all in. They use Jay as bait, wading in the pool, to lure the demon into the water for an end by electrocution. The most noticeable technique used within this scene is the color grading. Throughout It Follows, there is an overall muted and somewhat upsetting color grade, and in a handful of scenes, there are blue undertones to emphasize the melancholic feeling that the characters in the film, primarily Jay are feeling. In this specific scene though, everything is painted in the bright blue reflection of the community pool. In the film, Jay copes with the fact that she was given this burden against her knowledge, and this scene at the community pool serves as a peak of her emotional experience, and we as the audience can see this through the color. So while the overall mood of the film has been depressing thus far, the audience is clued in by the emphatic use of blue that this specific moment is pivotal for Jay.
Another component within the scene that worked well to emphasize this climactic point of despair for Jay was the shot composition. Mitchell utilizes one shot within this sequence in particular that I think stood out, and that is the shot of Jay waiting in the pool. The shot is of Jay’s body, under the water level. The camera lingers here for a moment, and I think that there is something important to be said about the way Jay’s only feature is excluded is her head. This shot offers an interesting commentary on how the experience we have witnessed in the movie has affected Jay. With this specific villain being such a strange and confusing entity, there is a lot of wandering about and uncertainty through the film. Jay and her friends aren’t exactly sure what the best plan of action is, and it is evident from various narrative details that this experience has affected not only her trust and comfortability in her own body, but also her mental health. I believe Mitchell included this shot to suggest that Jay has fully lost her head and completed a transformation into a new person than she was before her life-changing sexual encounter. It is a somewhat disorienting shot, which I think speaks to Jay’s personal journey while also fitting in well with the rest of the film’s aesthetic. Because of these theme I think that this scene functions not only as an important climax narratively, but also within Jay’s own personal inner journey.
Another useful shot within the sequence is a pan shot, as the camera moves along the edge of the pool, not only showing all of the various electrical appliances the group has prepared to throw into the pool, but also Jay’s friends who all wait by her side. I think that this tracking shot works well to emphasize the support Jay has after all that’s happened. I think that this shot, positioned in this important sequence, speaks to the heavy themes that Mitchell was aiming to include in the film; This scene is widely considered the climax of the film, and while in many other horror films this scene would include the defeat of the villain/killer, It Follows chooses a different path. Instead, Mitchell uses the scene to emphasize the climax of Jay’s transformative journey, leaving the killer demon undefeated. The film ends on a follow shot, which is of course very fitting. The camera is positioned in front of Jay and Paul as the demon is wandering after them. Ending on this note followed by this climax can be seen as referential to the themes of sexual assault; even though Jay will be forever affected, her mentality does not have to be, thanks to the support system around her.
