What Are They?
"The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" is a high-spirited show about a vibrant young woman adjusting to modern life in Manhattan after 15 years spent living in an underground doomsday cult bunker.
"It Follows" is a movie about a sexually-transmitted disease that manifests as a person walking toward you that only you can see. It never stops following you. And if it catches you, things don't go so well for you. The only way to get rid of it is to pass it on to someone else, who will then be followed forever, or until they're caught. And once they're caught...you're in trouble again.
So What's the Connection?
Both of them are about loss of innocence and dealing with bad things beyond your control.
In "Kimmy," a naive and angry young girl was taken in by a cult leader and tricked into living underground with him and three other women, believing the world has ended.
In "It Follows," a naive but normal young woman loses her virginity and discovers that she has been put in a position of unimaginable horror, as an unstoppable monster in human form is coming after her.
As the show's title suggests, Kimmy never breaks. In all the bunker flashbacks, she remains strong-willed and vivacious. And no matter what challenges she faces in her new life above ground, she maintains her hope and sense of humor, inspiring and uplifting the people around her.
The forgettable young woman in "It Follows" caves in on herself as she's constantly terrorized. She has good friends who stay by her side and protect her as well as they can. But she remains a haunted and withdrawn cipher throughout, sometimes literally dragging her friends down with her. Even when they try to fight "It," she's half-hearted and despairing about it.
Both approaches work. Both girls lose their innocence and deal with it as well as they can. Kimmy is never so sweet that she's overbearing. She has an edge. And it's okay that the girl being followed makes dumb decisions and doesn't have much of a personality- she's a young woman who hasn't experienced much. Plus, her blankness invites the viewer to project one's own personality and fears on her, making the movie that much more engaging and disturbing. The movie would probably be unbearable to watch if she was as colorful and cheerful as Kimmy.
Are They Any Good?
To paraphrase Abe Lincoln- if these are the kind of things you like, you will like these things.
"It Follows" is a near-perfect exercise in nerve-jangling terror. There are logic holes and some story points that might leave you scratching your head, but they're forgivable if you accept it all as a nightmare operating on dream logic. Music hasn't been used this intensely in a horror film since "Suspiria." It delivers subtle and over-the-top scares and it never lets up.
"Kimmy Schmidt" is a funny, uplifting, ribald sitcom. Lots of belly laughs and funny subtle throwaway gags. If you like the pilot, you'll like the show.
-Phony McFakename
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