Seasoned actor, Nicholas Cage has been taking on unique roles in recent years, even playing himself. Now, the star is trying out a completely different role with a surprising physical appearance. Longlegs is a supernatural horror film directed and written by Osgood Perkins. The film stars Maika Monroe, Nicholas Cage, and Blair Underwood. It’s been a long time since the combination of the detective-horror genre has appeared on the market, does Longlegs have an interesting offer?
The film is set in the 1990s when Bill Clinton was still president. Agent Lee Harker (Monroe) is a young FBI agent with metaphysical abilities when she successfully completes a complex case. Her superior, Agent Carter (Underwood), assigns her a special mission to investigate a series of murders that have occurred to several families in recent years. At the crime scene, a letter is always found with a written foreign symbol with the initials Longlegs. The deeper Harker’s investigation, the more this case is related to an incident in her childhood when she was visited by a mysterious man (Cage).
From the opening, it’s clear that this film has a unique aesthetic approach. Each flashback scene, the film presents a 4:3 aspect ratio, like a tube television screen. The image tone is also old-fashioned (soft colors) with a Tarantino-style chapter concept. The shots also use a lot of long and wide shots, and rarely use close-ups. Like old-fashioned horror, this film uses music to support its “jump scares”. There are no modern jump scares that are surprising, but the horror feels suspenseful. Less is more scarier. Through its slow pace, this film provokes a sense of mystery through investigative actions and flashbacks of Harker’s past. Although honestly, for true film connoisseurs, it’s not difficult to anticipate the climactic ending.
Longlegs is a unique horror that combines investigation and horror with the director’s exotic touch and Cage’s different appearance. Cage doesn’t just stand out for his different appearance. His figure always steals the show when he appears, like the figure of Pennywise in It. Monroe, who also starred in the quality horror film It Follows, is perfect as a traumatized figure who is always in a stressful situation. Although interesting, Longlegs is likely to be difficult for the general public to accept due to its slow pace and “disturbing” story. I’m also still curious about the choice of the time setting for the story. Is there a relationship with the figure (case) of Bill Clinton whose photo is occasionally framed? There is a father who is influenced by a devilish figure (a female doll) who eventually kills his own family… hmm.
