Overview
A writer's obsession with strangers leads him into a dangerous world of crime and deception.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- paranoid
- gritty
- disorienting
- late night viewing
- film school discussion
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the film as a taut, efficient neo-noir showcasing Christopher Nolan’s emerging talent through nonlinear storytelling and hard-edged suspense.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The film uses a disorienting, layered flashback structure to reveal Bill's account and the older man's knowledge in stages.
Black-and-white photography and a fluent handheld aesthetic turn London streets and interiors into an austere criminal maze.
Bill begins by following strangers and observing them, then becomes entangled in burglary, surveillance, and manipulation.
The callow writer moves from detached observation into break-ins, stalking, and participation in a deceptive criminal scheme.
Films like Following, and why
Memento
shared neo-noir atmosphere, nonlinear mystery, urban alienation, and morally compromised characters
The Conversation
shared voyeuristic perspective, psychological disorientation, shadowy urban crime, and Hitchcockian suspense
The Killing
shared black-and-white neo-noir style, criminal intrigue, fragmented storytelling, and hard-edged tone
Peeping Tom
shared stalking premise, psychological mystery, and unsettling exploration of observation and identity
Movie Details
- Director
- Christopher Nolan
- Release Date
- 1999-04-02
- Runtime
- 69 min
- Rating
- 7.1 / 10 (1979)
Cast
- Jeremy Theobald
- Alex Haw
- Lucy Russell
- John Nolan
- Dick Bradsell
- Gillian El-Kadi
- Jennifer Angel
- Nicolas Carlotti
- Darren Ormandy
- Guy Greenway
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Philo, AMC+ Amazon Channel, AMC+ Roku Premium Channel, Sundance Now
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Following about?
- A voyeuristic young writer enters a burglar’s shadowy world and finds his curiosity turning into a dangerous trap.
- What is Following like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Following as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Following violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Following as mild.
- What did critics think of Following?
- Critics broadly praised the film as a taut, efficient neo-noir showcasing Christopher Nolan’s emerging talent through nonlinear storytelling and hard-edged suspense.
- Which films are like Following?
- Films with a similar feel include Memento, The Conversation, The Killing, and Peeping Tom.
- How long is Following?
- Following runs 69 minutes.
- Where can I watch Following?
- In United States, Following streams on Philo, AMC+ Amazon Channel, AMC+ Roku Premium Channel, Sundance Now.
