By Austin Frape
In Longlegs, FBI Agent Lee Harker (Maika Monroe) is assigned to an unsolved serial killer case, which unexpectedly reveals evidence of the occult. Harker discovers a personal connection to the cryptic killer known as Longlegs (Nicolas Cage) and must stop him before he strikes again.
It’s certainly been a while since an arthouse horror movie has captured this level of hype. Between the cryptic teasers, the expertly edited trailer, and the Monroe heartbeat clip, the marketing team has worked wonders to make Longlegs a movie to keep an eye out for. Adding to the hype is some of the early buzz declaring the film among the scariest of the year. While the movie may not have entirely met the hype, Longlegs is still one of the tensest cinematic experiences in a while.
Writer and director Osgood Perkins has proven that he has an eye for atmosphere and tone, especially with movies like 2017’s February and 2020’s Gretal and Hansel. When it comes to Longlegs, the foreboding tension expertly lingers throughout the movie. While it’s not necessarily a thrill a minute, there’s an unsettling feeling that slowly builds across the hour and forty minutes. Go figure that Anthony Perkins’ son would know a thing or two about horror! The first act is masterfully crafted with a setup akin to Silence of the Lambs, Se7en, and Zodiac. The gradual reveal is certainly unexpected and unique and, on paper, some of the material is admittedly a bit too farfetched compared to the grounded reality, but the movie does earn the twists and turns. That being said, some of the reveals and lore are a bit overexplained and don’t leave much for interpretation. But there are absolutely some aspects that would benefit from rewatches. A special shoutout to cinematographer Andrés Arochi, who meticulously captured the story with tracking shots and wide shots that keep your eyes wandering.
As the lead, Munroe provides a very subversive take on the FBI agent. Instead of a confident and no-nonsense Clarice Starling-type, Lee Harker is a very vulnerable and closed-off protagonist. Munroe flawlessly shows both the distress and capabilities of the horrors that would occur with solving murders. As the FBI supervisor, Blair Underwood provided some much-needed levity without being an eye-rolling quip machine, and Alicia Witt’s performance as Lee’s mother was quite captivating. Some of the dialogue was quite strange in a way where no one sounded like real people. Almost to the point where it seemed like Shyamalan was an uncredited writer! Some of the gradual reveals made the unusual dialogue make sense, but it just seems to be Perkins’ style of writing.
Let’s get to the meat and potatoes of the movie. Namely, Nicolas Cage’s performance as Longlegs. There’s no doubt that the internet’s favourite thespian playing a serial killer would create curiosity for most audiences, especially with how the trailers have hidden his look. After seeing the movie, Longlegs is easily Cage’s most fascinating role in quite some time. However, the performance often walks a tightrope between creepy and comical. Most of his mannerisms and movements are almost unrecognisable, and a lot of the suspense came from what we didn’t see. While the eventual reveal does certainly provide some nightmare fuel, it’s hard to not just see Cage as a pale and puffy Joan Cusack with a Michael Jackson voice. It also doesn’t help that he does have a couple of Cage freakouts, which left more chuckles from the audience than fear. However, Nic playing the villain in an arthouse crime horror further proves we’re in a new Cage renaissance and have moved past the era of the random roles he took to pay off his ridiculous debts. If you’re not aware of how a single man can spend $150 million, have a read!
Overall, Longlegs is certainly a tense, strange, and unique take on the crime horror genre. While some of the story elements are uneven, the atmosphere and performances help make the movie a very memorable experience. If you’re a fan of arthouse horror movies from the likes of Neon or A24, or just want to see Nic Cage as a serial killer, I can say that Longlegs is absolutely worth seeing. But it’s important to manage expectations, especially when it comes to individual taste in what’s considered scary.
