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The Following: Why I’m Still a Follower & Summary for 1×07 Episode Let Me Go

Posted on March 11, 2013 Written by ripitup

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The Following 1X07 Kevin Bacon
Ryan Hardy chasing Carroll out in the world again. Screencap from 1×07. Image via ytimg.com

 

The Following: Why I’m Still a Follower & Summary for 1×07 Episode Let Me Go

I know I missed by summaries from 1.04-1.06, but not because I quit on the show in any way.

I kind of cheated on this blog with other writing, and I apologize.

But I’m back, and The Following has seen a lot of changes.

The Following 1.07 Let Me Go Summary with Spoilers!!

The ever manipulative Joe Carroll (James Purefoy) uses his three broken fingers (courtesy of Ryan, at the end of the pilot) to make the warden grant him a transfer. Ryan (Kevin Bacon) is rightfully pissed, and he gets Mike (Shawn Ashmore) to look into the Warden. Yes, breaking prison fingers is not exactly law enforcement code, but considering what Joe did (in addition to the murders of the girls that got him in the prison of the first time: he escaped from prison after killing several guards, having trained a guard to become a serial killer, have his cult members play his last surviving victim…….Yes, it goes on.), surely any guard in his right mind would have let that slide.

So as it turns out Ryan was right. Joe’s followers have kidnapped warden’s daughter, and were using it as leverage to ensure his escape during transfer. The daughter happens to be imprisoned at the same garage where Emma (Valorie Curry) and Joey are waiting for. Of course Joey, being the nice and clueless kid that he is, tries to free her, gets into trouble, gets Emma in trouble but all but the hostage are saved by the arrival of Charlie (Tom Lipinski)-the guy who had kidnapped Claire (Natalie Zea) but later interrupted by the arrival of the FBI.

But by the time Ryan and Mike got their research results and stopped the transfer truck, Joe had already travelled safely in his lawyer’s car. To get his kicks, he gets the lawyer to call Ryan (who was on his way with Mike to them through lawyer’s cell) and kills her while she is still on the phone.

Ryan does get to Joe, but not before he is met by some followers who fly him out in a helicopter despite his best efforts. But he has one of them in custody, and with Parker’s approval, he tortures the information out of him, getting to where the daughter is held. Of course Joey and Emma are long gone, and a very frustrated Claire is taken under protective custody, and even Ryan, by choice, doesn’t know the location.

And Joe gets united with all of his followers in a secluded big house, where he also gets to see Joey and to his joy, his son recognizes him.

*

The Following 1.07: Let Me Go Breakdown: The cool, the improbable and the annoying

1.07 was a game changer, with Joe out of prison, reunited with followers and Joey, and Claire going into protective custody without Ryan to ensure her safety. It was fun and exciting, even its implausibility levels were a bit high.

Still it was cool to see:

1)      Joe vs. Ryan outside the prison cell with Joe seeming on the verge of losing control and killing Ryan right then and there.

2)      Ryan not buying the warden’s cooperation and waking up to the game before everyone else

3)      Ryan disarming the follower and shooting him with the guy’s gun- and later torturing the info out of him.

4)      Seeing the lawyer die. She was annoying as hell, and she was a victim of her stupidity all the way.

 

The weird, improbable and annoying:

1)      I’m bored with Claire’s only interaction with Ryan her complaints about their failure to save Joey. Oh sure, FBI fails more than Joe’s followers commit crimes, but she does need to realize that her ex is such a talented psycho/actor that she didn’t have a clue something was wrong with him during their relationship- going on to have his baby and naming him Joey. She has to cut some slack when it comes to the number of his followers and how they are everywhere. Even during times when FBI would attempt at being successful, the followers screw things up.  And Ryan? He has the only functioning brain in the department, but his alcohol soaked brain cells and weak heart, along with the moles and the mistakes of others do get in his way.

2)      So Ryan won’t know where Claire is. Awesome. He is the only one he knows she can trust, and he’s leaving her to potential moles. Great move, Hardy.

3)      After Joe kidnaps Claire, or Claire goes to him for the sake of Joey, we’ll see a more frustrated Hardy and Ryan. I’m more than willing to see too-lucky-to-be-true scenarios- but please let Hardy have them for a change, and not the followers.

 

What I want to see:

1)      Ryan getting out of the kill-me-instead mood every time someone is endangered by Joe or his followers. What I want from him is to go all Brain Mills mode and stay there (you know-the famous: I’ll find you and I’ll kill you mode) or better yet, his character from Death Sentence. He might have a weak heart, but I’m sure he can pull it off as an FBI agent if his loving father-turned-into-ultimate avenger character can take down an entire group of villains.

2)      Maybe Ryan getting his own set of rogue followers who defy law and rules to catch/kill Joe and followers. That’d up the stakes in their cat and mouse situation.

3)      Have the followers turn on each other. Would be so fun if some of the followers turn out to be faking to get in and handle Joe themselves. Like maybe relatives/friends of victims? Or hired guns hired by the victim’s families?

Yeah, yeah. I’m big on revenge.

 

*

I still love The Following. Sure, the actions of the FBI drive me crazy too but it is still so much fun. I just need the lead character to go from part-time badass to full-time badass.

 

 

Favorite lines:

(parking lot scene- the guy is holding Ryan at gunpoint)

Ryan: You can’t kill me. He wants me alive.

The Follower: Then I’ll shoot you in the leg.

Ryan: (just before he moves to disarm him) Don’t miss.

Then Ryan maneuvers the gun out of him and shoots him in the leg.

*

(parking lot- the guy is on the stretcher- others have left Ryan alone with him)

As Ryan puts on medical gloves:

Ryan: So, the boy. Joey Matthews. Where is he?

The Follower: I’m not gonna tell you anything.

Ryan: You look like you’re in pain.

The Follower: I can handle it.

Ryan: Oh. That’s good to know.

Then he presses hard into his gunshot wound until the guy screams, and then some.

 

 

Also on The Following

The Following: When Both The Protagonist and Antagonist Are Writers

Mad Love: The Following Episode 4 Review – The Mad Get Madder

The Following 1×03 The Poet’s Fire Review: What’s with the FBI?

The Following 1×02 Chapter Two Review: Still cool, and yes, Hardy Needs to Toughen Up. But how?

The Following starring Kevin Bacon and James Purefoy: Epic Start

Also on Kevin Bacon

Crazy, Stupid, Love starring Steve Carell, Julianne Moore, Ryan Gosling & Emma Stone

The Awesome X-Men: First Class with James McAvoy, Jennifer Lawrence, Michael Fassbender, Kevin Bacon & Rose Byrne

Actor Musicians and Musician Actors: Keanu Reeves, Jon Bon Jovi, Kevin Bacon

Writing Humor That Cracks You Up 1: Poking Fun at Oneself Unashamedly feat. Kevin Bacon

5 Awesome Revenge Movies Feat. Gerard Butler, Kevin Bacon, Antonio Banderas, Brandon Lee and Mel Gibson

Stardust, The Air I Breathe, Playing by Heart, The Good Shepherd, Hairspray & He’s Just Not That Into You: 6 Good Movies with Brilliant Casts

 

 

 

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Filed Under: TV shows Tagged With: james purefoy the following, james purerfoy, Kevin Bacon, kevin bacon the following, Kevin Williamson, the following, the following 1x07 episode summary, the following let me go review, the following tv series

The Following starring Kevin Bacon and James Purefoy: Epic Start

Posted on January 25, 2013 Written by ripitup

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the following-kevin bacon-james purefoy
The Following starring Kevin Bacon, James Purefoy, Natalie Zea & Shawn Ashmore.

Ryan Hardy (Kevin Bacon) is a “retired” FBI agent who quit the agency after catching the serial killer John Carroll (James Purefoy) whose victims were his female university literature students and were killed brutally, with references to classic horror writer Edgar Allen Poe.

Not everyone wants him back, and he doesn’t want to be back. But when John escapes from prison to kill his only surviving victim, Sarah (Maggie Grace), he doesn’t have a choice. Sarah is heavily protected, and so is Claire (Natalie Zea)-John’s ex-wife.

Even though Ryan Hardy has literally written the book on Carol, things will be even more difficult this time: Carroll has formed a huge following-ready to kill or be killed for him. And Ryan has a battery operating heart, no longer in great physical condition, and the FBI agents working for him won’t always listen, with the exception of fan Mike Weston (Shawn Ashmore). Oh, and there is another minor complication-Hardy had an affair with the killer’s ex-wife…

*

Let there be blood…Kevin Williamson Style

There is anyone who knows to utilize clichés better than anyone else, it is the writer/creator Kevin Williamson. It’s not to say he doesn’t thrown a bit originality here and there, but his signature is to get well-known clichés, make some homage, make fun of them a little, add something from himself and get hits, no matter the genre.

But while the first Scream movie was good to watch, the series became a bore, leading to way too many slashers, several of them written by Williamson himself.

But just when you thought he is all about slashing teens, he came up with Dawson’s Creek, where all the teen problems and angst came together pretty seamlessly, until he decided to go all Melrose Place on us and have all the characters hook up with each other.

But he is great with beginnings, and The Following pilot, to me, is the best thing he has ever done. Admittedly, I was positively biased towards the show. Hello, it is regular Kevin Bacon on TV! And it does have a compelling plot, and I do love a good cat and mouse.

As for the clichés some viewers have been complaining about, well stuff was probably original when Poe wrote them, but today, you need to give the writers a break. I am not saying it is OK to write sloppy and stupid, but The Following makes the best of its material.

And Williamson has picked the best cliché to begin with. And the first fictional serial killer Purefroy’s character reminded me of is Red John of The Mentalist. It made me feel like they were showing how Red John is operating.

I like that the agent didn’t lose a family member of his to the killer (The Mentalist, Se7en, The Watcher…), I like that with his first encounter with the psycho, he got injured right away before going all Taken on Purefroy’s ass. I like that he really cared about Sarah, but got involved killer’s wife. I liked that the killer had an unsuspecting wife and a son.

The pilot was really something, but then again, it is all relative, and it does depend on what you expect. I got what I was waiting for:

A chilling and cool thriller with interesting character interactions, on-the-edge protagonist, and that the fact that the villain is writing his “next novel” with the ex-agent.

So yeah, it’s well worth watching, even if just to check out Kevin Bacon alone.

There are few actors who ace the psycho, the good, the grey, and Bacon is one of them.

P.S. Another cliche that works? Marilyn Manson’s version of Sweet Dreams in a horror/thriller setting.


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Filed Under: TV shows Tagged With: james purefoy, james purefoy the following, kevin bacon the following, Kevin Williamson, maggie grace, maggie grace the following, natalie zea, shawn ashmore, the following, the following cast, the following kevin bacon, the following tv series

Soon: Scream 4 starring Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette. Feat. Adam Brody, Hayden Panettiere, Emma Roberts, Kristen Bell& Anna Paquin

Posted on February 23, 2011 Written by ripitup

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Scream 4 starring Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette. Feat. Adam Brody, Hayden Panettiere, Emma Roberts, Kristen Bell and Anna Paquin.
Scream 4 starring Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette. Feat. Adam Brody, Hayden Panettiere, Emma Roberts, Kristen Bell and Anna Paquin. Image via moviepostershop.com

Seriously? Another one? Coming to the theaters in April, we are faced with the 4th and hopefully the last installment of Wes Craven’s Scream saga.

The first Scream was fun. It was entertaining, a little refreshing and well, thrilling enough. It was 1996 and director Wes Craven and screenwriter Kevin Williamson had created a nice teen-slasher that had a pretty cool cast too: Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Neve Campbell, Skeet Ulrich and Matthew Lillard.

Well, with the exception of Skeet and Matthew, Courteney’s news reporter Gale, David’s Deputy Dewey and then student Sydney made it to Scream 2. Then 3 and finally, to Scream 4.

While I don’t hold a grudge against all sequels as a habit, horror/thrillers usually have a lesser chance of making the audiences happier as opposed to action or comedy flicks. Notice how Scream 1 started with 7.2 on IMDB and Scream 3 is currently at 5.3. I don’t necessarily always agree with the user ratings there, but this sounds fair- if not a little too generous.

But of course when you make a 4th film, ,it is only a good marketing plan to add more famous people to the cast like Adam Brody, Hayden Panettiere, Emma Roberts, Kristen Bell and Anna Paquin – and I didn’t notice half of them in the trailer.

It wasn’t just Scream that failed with the sequels, by the way. Horror-films mockery

Scary Movie was, despite being a little too crude at times, was hilarious. I barely remember Scary Movie 2 and 3 and I didn’t bother to see 4th.

So back to Scream 4. We’ve another mask-wearing psycho (or maybe more than one) with, a ridiculous motive, hunting after the cast. We will see if Neve Campell will survive. But I hope not because it just might indicate a 5th film.

I am really not excited about Scream 4. Are you?

Fun notes:

* Courteney Cox and David Arquette met in 1996, during the making of the first Scream movie. They got married in 1999 and separated in 2010. So yep, the Scream saga outlasted their relationship.

* Courteney Cox isn’t the only Friends cast member Neve Campbell co-starred in a movie with. She also has a movie with Matthew Perry.

* Kevin Williamson is one of the developers & writers of the popular series The Vampire Diaries.

Also on Courteney Cox:

Courteney Cox Trivia

Cougar Town starring Courteney Cox, Josh Hopkins, Dan Byrd, Busy Phillips & Josh Hopkins

Hollywood Stars in Friends

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Filed Under: Movies and Actors Tagged With: Adam Brody, Anna Paquin, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Emma Roberts, Hayden Panettiere, horror, Kevin Williamson, Kristen Bell, matthew lillard, Neve Campbell, scary movie, scream 4, scream 4 cast, Scream 4 movie, scream movies, Skeet Ulrich, teen slasher, thriller, wes craven

Cursed starring Christina Ricci, Joshua Jackson & Jesse Eisenberg

Posted on December 29, 2010 Written by ripitup

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Cursed starring Christina Ricci, Joshua Jackson & Jesse Eisenberg. Feat. Portia de Rossi, Michael Rosenbaum, Judy Greer. Directed by Wes Craven. Written by Kevin Williamson. 2005.
Cursed starring Christina Ricci, Joshua Jackson & Jesse Eisenberg. Feat. Portia de Rossi, Michael Rosenbaum, Judy Greer. Directed by Wes Craven. Written by Kevin Williamson. 2005.

Cursed starring Christina Ricci, Joshua Jackson & Jesse Eisenberg

Ellie (Christina Ricci) is working for a TV show & living with her high school student younger brother Jimmy (Jesse Eisenberg). They have lost their parents a while back.

Ellie’s main problem is her boyfriend, Jake (Joshua Jackson), who used to be a player and she is afraid he may not want to commit.

Jimmy has the typical geek problem – the girl he likes is not even aware he exists. Moreover, she is dating a jerk who loves giving Jimmy a hard time.

However, none of these problems however will hold a candle to what happens one night on Mulholland Drive- they get attacked by what seems like a werewolf. Jimmy is sure of it, but Ellie is skeptical. What are the odds, right?

From then on, they go through changes – heightened senses, more strength, blood appeal and more. Jimmy is enjoying his new found confidence although Ellie is freaking out. Because, as it turns out, there is a werewolf on the loose killing people. Who the hell is that?

**

Cursed is as fluff as horror/comedies go. It is better taken as a parody and let go of the horror/thriller label completely as the movie is more amusing than chilling. OK, it is not chilling at all. A little gross at parts, but that’s it.

Frankly, I never really got the horror/comedy concept as what scares me typically doesn’t make me laugh and vice versa. The only successful example of this hybrid genre I recall is The Frighteners with Michael J. Fox. It was creepy and funny enough. This piece by Kevin Williamson works as a comedy but it is troubling if Williamson attempted to frighten us out at all.

As I said, fluff. It is better watched, multi-tasked with some other activity.

*Stuff I liked:

–  Portia de Rossi as a fortune teller

–  Jesse Eisenberg’s later haircut and his wrestling scene

–  Joshua Jackson’s looks

– Michael Rosenbaum’s nice, uncomplicated role. It is different than his Lex Luthor in Smallville.

* Stuff I didn’t like – potential spoilers:

– The giant werewolves. A couple of years ago, my friends and I shot a mock horror flick, with a giant evil teddy bear as the villain. This movie’s werewolves looked just as scary as our scary bear. Yes, I am disappointed given that the effects were done by Rick Baker and he is better than that.

– The twists and turns with Joshua Jackson’s character Jake. I mean really? First, he acts like a guy who seems just not that into Ellie, then a misunderstood romantic, then a concerned boyfriend, and then….come on…Don’t make me spell out the last part. You know Kevin Williamson.

The point is a curse is not enough to explain Jake’s actions. I think Jake has MPD (Multiple Personality Disorder).

Written by Kevin Williamson, directed by Wes Craven. 4.8 on IMDB.

Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec (co-producer here) are better when they are writing The Vampire Diaries episodes together. At least Vampire Diaries have nice shapeshifters and not “wolf-men” with ridiculous make-up.

My favorite wolf movie is still Wolf starring Jack Nicholson, James Spader & Michelle Pfeiffer.

**

More on Cursed Cast & Crew:

Cursed Movie Cast & Crew Trivia Feat. Joshua Jackson, Christina Ricci, Portia De Rossi, Kevin Williamson & More

Other Posts on Joshua Jackson

Fringe starring Joshua Jackson, Anna Torv & John Noble

Fringe Trivia: 13 Facts About Fringe Cast, Crew, Plot Feat. Joshua Jackson, Anna Torv, Mark Valley…

The Shadow Dancer starring Joshua Jackson, Claire Forlani and Harvey Keitel

Other Posts on Jesse Eisenberg

The Social Network starring Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield, Justin Timberlake and Armie Hammer

The Hunting Party starring Richard Gere, Terrence Howard and Jesse Eisenberg

Other Posts on Christina Ricci

Penelope starring Christina Ricci and James McAvoy

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Filed Under: Movies and Actors Tagged With: Christina Ricci, comedy, cursed, cursed 2005 movie, cursed movie, horror, jesse eisenberg, Joshua Jackson, judy greer, julie plec, Kevin Williamson, Michael Rosenbaum, movies, portia de rossi, shapeshifters, thriller, werewolves, wes craven

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