The reviews are in for Oz Perkins’ “Longlegs” and so far the film has received a universally positive reaction it seems.
With 19 reviews counted on Rotten Tomatoes, it sits at a 100% (8.2/10) rating which is incredibly high for a horror film. Whilst some of the individual review scores are mid-range 3/5 style affairs, there’s little to no outright negative reviews.
All seem to praise director Oz Perkins’ slow burn thriller that regular subverts expectations, gives stars Maika Monroe and Nic Cage a chance to deliver strong performances, and overall has a high level of production design and quality.
Many also say it’s a film where its true impact sits with them hours or days later after having seen it. Here’s a sample of review quotes:
“[A] freaky trip, a darkly disturbing experience pulsing with an evil that’s unrelenting in its subcutaneous creepiness. It might be argued that he [Perkins] stirs too many elements into the mix here… but Longlegs is his most fully realized and relentlessly effective film to date” – David Rooney, THR
“Perkins understands that jump scares are but one of the pleasures of a successful horror movie… Destabilizing audience expectations and relieving tension with unforeseen bursts of absurdity are every bit as important – both tactics he employs with expert precision. It’s a shame, then, that all these ingredients are in service of such an inadequate plot” – Peter DeBruge, Variety
“Longlegs is Perkins’ trademark aesthetic at max volume, lingering in your thoughts, under your skin, and in the pit of your stomach well after it’s over” – Matt Donato, Inverse
“Longlegs gets under your skin and stays there, immersing you so thoroughly in the repulsive, discomforting nature of evil through terrifying imagery and a tactile atmosphere that it’s unshakable” – Meagan Navarro, Bloody Disgusting
“The movie slowly builds a sense of dread, which becomes incredibly potent as it comes to its horrifying conclusion. Once the credits rolled, I found myself surprisingly shaken up by what I’d just seen, and it’s a film I’ll need to chew on in the coming weeks” – Chris Bumbray, Joblo
“The pure horror experience we’ve been waiting for. It’s easily the scariest film of the decade.” – EJ Moreno, Flickering Myth
“Longlegs isn’t the radical horror amalgamation it hyped itself to be, but Perkins does prove that his vision is an alluring, fresh perspective in the making.” – Nick Ruhrkraut, AwardsWatch
“A sturdily constructed horror film with a foundation sneakily built on shifting sands… Perkins slowly and slyly adjusts the stakes of the film until they become unmistakably different from where they began. Longlegs becomes too often defined by what it is not… All the time spent defying conventions never results in rewriting any of them,” – Marshall Shaffer, Slant
“Longlegs” is slated to open in cinemas on July 12th.
