Genre: Crime/Thriller
Directed by: Oz Perkins
Starring: Maika Monroe, Nicolas Cage, Blair Underwood
Release Date: July 12, 2024
Platform: Theater
Rating: 4.5/5
“Longlegs is the very definition of low-key terrifying.”
The Longlegs marketing was a risky tour de force that could only have been executed by a ballsy indie studio like NEON. It worked in their favor because the hype train for Longlegs was full, and so were the theaters after a $22.6M opening weekend. Longlegs marks distributor NEON’s Did the film live up to said hype though? The answer is yes, but with a warning that the film is divisive. Some viewers are going to lock in, while others may want to get off the ride before it’s over.
In my TikTok review for Longlegs, I didn’t discuss the plot of the film because the details of the story were purposefully kept vague by the studio and filmmakers. As of this, a full synopsis has been posted to IMDB, so with that in mind we’ll take a Google Earth view of the story. Maika Monroe is a young FBI agent on the hunt for a serial killer who calls himself Longlegs played by Nicolas Cage. The journey that follows is near perfection for horror movie fans looking for a fresh way to be scared. The brilliance of Longlegs is in its aural and visual world building. The film does not adhere to the typical Hollywood horror formula. Longlegs isn’t a long film, but it does still manage to take its time getting under your skin; subtle sounds, slightly off kilter visuals, and awkward silences all build to an atmosphere of ick that swept over my audience. Once the film has dug its way under your skin it begins to amp the story and the horror. The result is an uneasy feeling for two-thirds of the film’s runtime. Longlegs is the very definition of low-key terrifying.
Longlegs is inconsistent in how it guides the audience through its story though. The visuals brilliantly do not handhold; everything is there to discover, which will inspire multiple viewings. The script however is afraid we won’t get it, so there are instances of exposition that just feel ham-fisted in comparison to the elegance of the visual storytelling. The script and Miaka Monroe’s acting do provide us with a fascinating character to follow in Agent Harker. Harker is brilliant and burdened, which makes her uncomfortable when she has to deal with people, but her determination pushes her forward. Harker’s social interactions also provide us with some very necessary comedic relief from the intensity of the film.
Nicolas Cage has crafted a new horror icon utilizing his custom brand of insanity and weirdness. Longlegs himself is where the crowd will divide. You’ll either lock in and be disturbed by his characterization or you’ll find it comedic. Cage’s near trademark ability to simmer and then boil over at the right time is terrifying here. All of the visual creep building is a perfect platform for his insane character to sit atop. Cage has a pretty incredible list of unique characters, but Longlegs easily rises to the top. The film doesn’t work without his performance.
Longlegs is a slow burn with an incredible visual personality, a spot-on score and soundtrack, and fantastic performances from the ensemble cast carried forward by Cage and Monroe. It’s such a pleasure to see a horror film striving to do something different than the white noise of horror coming from the major studios. The film isn’t perfect, but it offers something so fresh and conversation worthy that it demands to be seen.
