Ladies of Horror: It Follows

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Written by Cat Wilson of catthewilson.com
Today’s pick is the supernatural horror film, It Follows. College Student, Jay, has sex with her new boyfriend, but she contracts from him a curse in the form of a shapeshifter creature that will follow her until it kills her or she passes the curse onto someone else. What makes this a feminist horror film is how the sexuality is handled. In many horror films there is a lot of virgin worship and moralizing around sex. In this film, sex is how this curse started, but it is also a way to end it. Also, when Jay tells her friends and sister about her STD like monster, they do not slut shame Jay or see this curse as a her fault. They are horrified at how she was coerced into this situation and stick by her, even when they see how dangerous this creature can be.

Trigger warning: Even though Jay’s sexual encounters are consensual, another character is raped.