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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Spells &amp; Karma" data-source="post: 426534" data-attributes="member: 23">Longlegs (2023) <img src="https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fposterspy.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2024%2F07%2FLONGLEGS-Poster-3-copia.jpg&f=1&nofb=1&ipt=a0cc2a462c0dd8e037a0191e9dfc48af52575f9575e96d01731827bebe9be197" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="width: 609px" /> The image on Prime and their and one-sentence description gave me Nineties crime procedural vibes. I knew better than to hope for The Silence Of The Lambs, but had hopes it might be in the vein of the raft of thrillers that followed it: (Copycat, The Bone Collector, Seven, etc.). I kind of got my wish. Like most of the films above, it pairs the determined young newbie with the seasoned, world-weary old-school pro, and has one of them haunted by an earlier trauma. It gives us the disturbed serial killer. Of course there's  the dark, dark cinematography. Which isn't a criticism, since it looks sumptuous and shadowy, with warm orange light occasionally piercing the gloom. One thing this film has in spades is atmosphere. And some moments and imagery are disturbing. The casting is interesting enough. Most of those names with which I'm familiar are playing roles unlike anything I've seen them play before. I forgot I'd seen Alicia Witt's name and consequently didn't recognise her for the entire film. Possibly not entirely surprising since I'm most familiar with her as the smart-mouthed Final Girl from 1998's Urban Legend and as Cybill's smart-mouthed daughter. Still, though, this is a definite departure. Likewise, I mostly know Blair Underwood as one of the prettiest of the PYTs on L.A. Law so spent some time wondering "is he/isn't he"? I didn't know the lead actress, which was a help as I was able to appreciate her performance on its own merits. Must confess had I seen photos of her with platinum blonde hair wearing next to nothing before watching the film I may have pre-judged. It's a shame the film announced "And Nicholas Cage as Longlegs" over the opening credits, since I'd like to have experienced this performance without the potential judgement attached to his reputation from various poor vehicle and character choices. I don't think I would have recognised him, which would have been a plus for me. They should have held off on showing his name until the end, like with [ISPOILER]Kevin Spacey[/ISPOILER] in Seven (this film ripped off Seven's backwards-scrolling end credits, so why not go the whole way). As it is, I couldn't help being taken out of the story by thinking how strange it was to see him made up like an eccentric great-aunt*. Wish fulfilment can ultimately be unfulfilling, and that was the case here. Tonally, it did indeed tap into those Nineties crime procedurals, but I found myself feeling frustrated that I could see bits and pieces of all of them that didn't fit to a cohesive whole. It ended up feeling more like a poor man's recreation than a love letter.  The character of Longlegs began to irritate me for the same reasons. The performance combined mannerisms and traits that have been praised in other antagonists who are big characters in their own right: Buffalo Bill; Pennywise; Joker; Leatherface. There's a lot going on here. Too much. Which is a symbol of the film overall. It feels everything but the kitchen sink is thrown at it in the hope that something sticks and lands with the audience.  For me it just tries to be too many things to too many people, and ultimately feels very needy. This shows in the plot as well. As a straight procedural it would have been a better film, but it then overcomplicates things by going into more supernatural genres. The warning bells come early in the film, with allusions to the protagonist's psychic abilities. I possibly could have made peace with this. And the satanic worship element was fine. But combining both, and throwing in (I kid you not) [ISPOILER]dolls that control people's minds[/ISPOILER] just took it from potentially sublime to ridiculous. Despite my comments, I found it watchable and thought it was a very promising film... The very reason it ended up disappointing. * The film was apparently criticised for transphobia due to its lipstick-wearing serial killer, but I see this element more as an accidental byproduct of Cage attempting to channel Heath Ledger/Joaquin Phoenix/Ted Levine/Whoever Else in the hope of receiving the same level of adulation. Wow. That's certainly an unlikely pairing. Looking at the cast I see a lot of familiar names from the world of British light entertainment, so consider this one added to my viewing bucket list.</blockquote>

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