afilmbro’s review published on Letterboxd:
it is unmistakable that the stigma of being the child of a horror icon has been both a blessing and a curse for perkins' career as a director and LONGLEGS operates as the quintessence of their legacies and images in the horror genre. perkins does use a lot of similar genre mechanisms and anecdotes from past thrillers such as SILENCE OF THE LAMBS & SE7EN that are clear influences here but an unusual approach that he opts to use for the purpose of increasing his scares is that he rarely shows off in his work. arochi’s cinematography is a masterclass in suspense — utilizing a lot of symmetrical framing and 'long-shots' that serves as narrative techniques in itself and it assists in producing a lot of frightening sequences that are super disturbing and accommodating to the tense atmosphere. it is not specifically regulated to the horror-drama features of the screenplay either as it does not think twice about approaching the melodramatic and sillier elements that come from the exploration of the genre that end up being a feature of the film — not an issue!
i’ve seen a lot of divisive reactions to cage’s performance as the titular LONGLEGS because of his usual over-the-top and exaggerated deliveries that are added to the role but it seemed to be a delicate choice to depict the character in such a manner and it is handled with a level of understanding that causes him to remain as a threatening presence over the course of the narrative — the cues in the plot that were met with laughs felt purposeful and much more of an involuntary reaction and that is arguably far more intimidating than pure terror. it isn't quite able to stick the landing as the third act begins to lose some of the momentum that was built up due to a predictable and questionable twist that felt cheap in comparison to the rest of the film and it ultimately leads to a disappointing finale — but it is hard to argue that the rest of the film still manages to work so well that some of the issues in here can be overlooked. it is too much to handle at points but a significant amount of it is still nothing short of a roaring success.
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