Maika Monroe in Neon’s “Longlegs.” Credit: Neon via TNS)
Among a relatively dry summer movie season, whispers of a tantalizingly original, underground horror film erupted into a roar of excitement thanks to a genius marketing campaign that emboldened “Longlegs” to attract not only a die-hard horror cohort, but also broader audiences.
The film’s teasers seemingly responded to a growing exasperation with trailers revealing too much of their respective movies’ plots. Instead, the premise of “Longlegs” was left intentionally vague, as discontinuous editing was employed to display snapshots of brutal murders, ominous world building and nightmarishly surreal images of primal fears including snakes and blood.
Audiences were filled with an intrigue intrinsically born out of fear of the unknown, eager to see if the film delivered the same hellish, bizarre product advertised in its marketing materials. Unfortunately, the truth is much more disappointing: “Longlegs” is just another run-of-the-mill, albeit well-executed, serial killer film.
The serial killer in question comes in the form of Nicolas Cage as the titular character Longlegs, deformed by a heavy dose of makeup and practical effects — an appearance that was left a total mystery within the trailers.
A teaser for the film blurred Cage’s face and tracked the heartbeat of his co-star Maika Monroe — who plays FBI agent Lee Harker — as she saw him for the first time. The serial killer played by Cage is known for murdering young girls born on the 14th of any given month, dropping satanic clues along the way for the waifish Harker, who can’t shake the feeling that she is more connected to Longlegs than she may think.
The film is written and directed by Osgood Perkins (“Gretel and Hansel,” “I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House”), who shines with his meticulous directing, choosing to utilize a constantly mobile, wide-lens camera that is often positioned as though it is from the viewpoint of someone stalking Harker.
Even so, the wide lens hijacks the creative freedom of a viewer to question if there may be someone or something hiding in the liminal spaces shown. One can easily infer the attention to detail evident in the camera work was not paid to the screenplay.
Perkins, who was clearly inspired by Jonathan Demme’s “The Silence of the Lambs,” also mixed in the ambiance and possession themes of David Lynch’s iconic series “Twin Peaks.”
Like “The Silence of the Lambs,” “Longlegs” follows a female FBI agent who finds herself more intertwined than she desires with a serial killer, one who is oddly reminiscent of the villain Buffalo Bill (Simon Northwood) from the 1991 horror classic.
Unlike in “Silence of the Lambs,” this film’s protagonist has no real agency in terms of discovering the web of clues the killer has left for her. Instead, Longlegs creeps around Harker and always leaves her what she needs to find him, whether subliminally or through tangible clues.
Though this setup is an interesting dynamic inversion from the typical detective chase found in serial killer flicks, it does render Harker feeling somewhat unimportant in the story’s grand scheme.
Though Cage fully commits to his psychotic character, he’s not utilized enough to meet his creative potential. He essentially plays a version of the Joker mixed with a satanic splash of Bob (Frank Silva) from “Twin Peaks.”
Simply put, not enough is explored within Longlegs’ arc to leave substantial questions after the film’s conclusion that make him linger in viewers’ minds. For all the hype and secrecy built up around his appearance, it still ends up being difficult not to see Cage himself simply delivering a great acting performance and instead to view him as a distinct, horrifying individual.
“Longlegs” is worth a watch for any fans of the horror genre, undoubtedly causing nails to be bitten and knuckles to turn white. But as the film’s mystery unravels, those expecting a truly fresh and creative addition to the modern horror landscape may be left feeling disappointed at what they’re seeing: a slickly directed but indistinct serial killer flick, predictable far beyond what was advertised.
Rating: 3/5
