Being lauded at the scariest film of the decade, there is no doubt that Longlegs has been one of the most anticipated horror films of the year. Combining the morbid fascination with true crime-esque, serial killer cases, occult based horror and morbid curiosity. The film grips you tight, dragging you into the mystery and ominous dread. Boasting one of the most terrifying transformations from Nicolas Cage in recent years and another great turn from scream queen of the moment, Maika Monroe.
FBI Agent Lee Harker, after showing an aptitude finding criminals, is brought in on a decades long case. A serial killer, targeting families, calling themselves, Longlegs, has left stranger coded letters at the scene of the crime for the last 30 years. Even more strange is that Harker herself has a connection to the case than she has kept buried in her mind since she was a child.
Without delving too deep into the lore in the film, the occult hints and references to ‘the man downstairs’ taking on more than one meaning, Longlegs’ horror is fascinating as well as painstaking to watch. The hunt for a serial killer and unearthing the crimes committed are devasting to behold, but once the abhorrent truth is revealed, it does feel somewhat anti-climatic at first. With further truths uncovered and the real connection between the killer and Harker coming to light, the pieces of the puzzle fall into place with some foreshadowing storytelling coming full circle as well.
Whenever Nicolas Cage appears in a film where he is either playing a beyond unusual character or the story is bizarre, it always grabs peoples’ attention. His role of Longlegs is disturbing to the point where you spend half the time desperately looking away yet his voice even cuts deep in a uncomfortable high pitched wail. Maika Monroe didn’t even know what Cage would look like so all her reactions to his presence are genuine fear. This layer of realism is just one part of what makes this film the most talked about. The continuous uncomfortable feeling is what keeps the curiosity and terror alive in the audience. Monroe as Harker relays how the audience feels throughout, curious, determined to find out the truth and continuously disturbed at every turn of the case.
Although Longlegs does rely heavily on the jump scares the create a sense of discernability, it is the overly long ominous shots and scenes that create the feeling of dread. Director Osgood Perkins has been able to deliver a film that will stay with you when you least want it to. The horror mixture may be subjects tackled separately in previous films, but including the crime procedural with a traditional occult story helps ground the film, slightly, to something more real. Though there are supernatural elements at play, the lead up feels all too real. A devilishly clever way to have those images linger in your mind.