Long Legs- A Spooky Season Review
An unnecessarily divisive movie. I watched so many critics join in on the artistic backlash of Long Legs, which originally had the vibe of being the scariest movie of the year, only to see the late stage critics writing it off as self indulgent and boring. Is it perfect? No. this is not in my Top 10 of the year either, but I can put each of the little problems in their own bubble and enjoy the totality of what was intended. And when you do that, Long Legs is just shy of brilliant.
A lot of that has to do with Nicolas Cage once again delivering the kind of performance very few actors have the chutzpah to tackle. This is what makes cage so great, is because he’s ready for a role like this. He’s almost unexplainable. His approach to the character of Long Legs leaves you in a state of wonder, just totally perplexed as to why or how someone like this could exist in this world. It is his performance that demands your attention.
Aside from Cage likely being in my Top 10 for Supporting actor of the year, Long Legs has this persistent sense of dread throughout, as a young FBI agent tries to investigate this almost mythological serial killer. At the same time, we learn she might have ties to Long Legs herself. This is how we see through flashbacks glimpses of her childhood, and things she can’t always explain.
Long Legs holds perfectly this feeling that a jump scare is just a shot away, but it rarely comes. Even with that, the jump scares aren’t obnoxious like in Smile, but rather focused on the continuation or progression of the film. Mika Monroe (it Follows) does a lovely job in the lead, and the casting of Blair Underwood as her boss is certainly inspired.
The description of Log legs, how he’s framed in certain shots, and how he devolves toward the end was all superb. There are a few grisly crime scenes that are well described, considering the genre. The audio description also does a nice job of matching this tone the film goes for, like someone might appear behind someone at any point. My only problem with the film is the happenstance of Mika becoming an FBI agent, and then being assigned to this case. It isn’t like she got to pick, and while her backstory suggests a history with Long legs, that was when she was little. The desire to become an FBI agent came from… where?
Nicolas Cage has talked about feeling like he’s near retirement, suggesting only a handful of films may remain. that would be such a shame, as he’s had such a renaissance with Long Legs, Dream Scenario, Massive Talent, and Pig, that you realize his whole thing is just needing the right project that uses his talent, and a director that has faith in Cage’s ability to make you feel like you are watching something no one else could produce.
Final Grade: B+