Unless you count plastic, comically oversized bodily features, and screaming children, there’s not much connecting the Barbie movie with Osgood Perkins’ new darkly satanic horror film, Longlegs. Despite their wildly disparate themes, they are connected by a clever, well-planned marketing campaign.
A few weeks prior to its release, The Seattle Times published a mysterious code reminiscent of the Zodiac Killer. Subtitled, Printed at the request of Longlegs, the message occupied half a page. The group behind the stunt was Neon, an independent production company that created the movie. It aroused curiosity by evoking a sense of mystery and intrigue. Around the same time, the trailer debuted, emblazoned with glowing reviews proclaiming it to be one of the year’s darkest, creepiest films. Now that the movie is available in theatres, people can go see why there has been such buzz about it.
Does it live up to the hype? To channel Kamala Harris, I believe Longlegs shows us what the future of horror could be, unburdened by what it has been.
The cinematography is exceptional. Andrés Arochi frequently plays with the aspect ratio. As demonstrated in the opening prologue, where we meet a young girl who is greeted by a very eerie-sounding man with a pale face who congratulates her on her ‘nearly birthday’. The squared-lens framing, which gives us a child’s perspective on the encounter that will impact everything to come, reminds you of an old home video from the 1970s.
Suddenly we shift to the 1990s, as evidenced by the photo of Bill Clinton that hangs on the wall of an office. We discover that the girl from the flashback is now a young FBI agent named Lee Harker (Maika Monroe), who is pursuing an elusive serial killer who manages to murder entire families without ever setting foot in their houses. The only evidence of the killer’s existence is a series of Zodiac-style notes about the crimes that are connected to specific dates on a calendar. How does the killer perform this seemingly impossible feat? Fortunately, in true Liam Neeson style, the new recruit possesses a unique set of skills.
Harker’s supposed psychic ability to find murderers leads to her being assigned to the Longlegs case by senior agent Carter (Blair Underwood). Harker discovers uncanny parallels between the murder and her own disturbing family background as she continues to delve deeper into the investigation.
Everything about Longlegs is designed to disturb you, stay in your head, and haunt your dreams long after it ends. The tension is increased by the use of low camera angles, jarring, creaking soundscapes, and slowly creeping zooms. The overused jump scare is given a wide berth, which is a relief. A sudden loud noise may startle the audience, but this is only a fleeting feeling of surprise. It is not fear. Fear is bred by ambiguity and uncertainty regarding a character’s motivations. And Longlegs gives it to you in spades.
Monroe delivers a solid performance. She is far removed from her role as Jamie Height, the ‘scream queen’ in the 2014 cult horror It Follows, playing the stoic and socially awkward Harker. She gives the character some deadpan humour, as seen in the memorable scene where she has to strike up a conversation with Carter’s daughter.
Then there’s Nicolas Cage. Despite playing the titular character, Perkins made the wise choice to exclude the Oscar-winning actor from the promotional material. For the majority of its runtime, Perkins barely lets us see Longlegs, leaving us terrified of both his appearance and his intentions. As the devil-worshipping serial killer obsessed with Marc Bolan, he is nearly unrecognisable when he’s on screen. Longlegs has an aesthetic reminiscent of both Tiny Tim and shock-headed Peter from children’s fairytales. Acting-wise, Cage is as mad as a box of frogs as usual, delivering a gonzo and almost psychotic performance that is evocative of his role in the excellent Mandy.
The odd thing is that, despite a few graphic scenes, this is not a particularly violent movie; rather, what keeps you on the edge of your seat is the sense that anything could happen. He has honed this strong and effective storyline since releasing his supernatural thriller, The Blackcoat’s Daughter, in 2015.
Despite the somewhat mediocre ending that some people might find, this is an incredibly well-paced, expertly performed scary story that will stay with you. Longlegs is among the year’s creepiest and most peculiar horror movies.
