Longlegs

"I thought this was a documentary about Spiders"

By: Connor N. F. Field

With some very relentless marketing efforts, Longlegs presents itself differently than it does on the screen. From some of its unorthodox, yet creative, marketing strategy, it creates this sense of thriller mystery film, but also creates the perception that you are walking into something paranormal. However, the paranormal expectations were not fully met (not that is a bad thing) and takes a more satanic route.

For a murder mystery, this movie did exactly that. Longlegs didn't drag you along the dirt with some dramatic irony of misleading investigation, you knew just about as much as the protagonists, and I think that's what this film does best at. It makes you confused so you're trying to piece this together along with the story.

The final act of the film does not hold up as well as the first two. The narrative seams begin to fray as the plot continues with some details that make very little sense, leading the viewer to become lost in the overwhelming disillusion of the remaining story.

Nicholas Cage offers an insane performance all within the screen time he is given. He thrives in the role of Longlegs, allowing him to be weird, quirky, and unsettlingly odd. Cage nails down the characters persona, he was told what was wanted from him and he RAN.

In total, Longlegs has a very strong first and second act with a murder mystery/ thriller relatable to that of Silence of the Lambs (1991). The story carefully unravels just as the filmmakers intended for it to be. Longlegs is a good thrilling watch but falls out in the third act where it leads astray.