Roman K’s review published on Letterboxd:
Phantasm balls?! Really???
Very complicated feelings with this one! Was it overhyped? Yes, absolutely. Does that weigh down the overall enjoyment for some and inflate the scores of others? Yea, I believe so. Is it still a film worth watching, discussing and both praising and criticizing? Yes, yes and yes.
I started feeling iffy about "Longlegs" almost right from the get-go when they introduced the psychic aspect of its main hero played by Maika Monroe. I expected something completely grounded, a true crime thriller with an exaggeratedly evil vibe to skew it into the horror genre. But this is very very far from grounded. It actually crosses several lines into almost ridiculous territory, especially in the finale.
I remember that very first teaser image with Nic Cage as Longlegs framed by a doorway tying down a victim - that's what I wanted from this movie! Instead it has psychic powers, "Phantasm" balls, too much light shone on its main villain and a feeling of this "great" evil all happening in the same neighborhood with everyone interconnected in silly unbelievable ways.
Yet, the visuals, sound and overall vibe of this picture are impeccable! Oz Perkins could've made a barebones religious serial killer flick, but by looking like THIS it would've been easily elevated into all-time-greats status. The grounded first half proves it easily! But he, albeit true to his style, takes into this convoluted magical direction and I felt the movie crumble in front of my eyes.
I'm wondering how I'll feel about it after a rewatch not burdened by heightened expectations, but at this point I'm more disappointed than satisfied. "The Blackcoats Daughter" remains my favorite of Perkins', but "Longlegs" might have some staying power nevertheless, just on the strength of its visuals alone.
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