From Street Clown to Court Jester

Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga in 
"Joker: Folie à Deux"
Photo Credit: RottenTomatoes.com

Five years ago, director Todd Phillips delivered a disturbing, yet fascinating examination of Batman’s arch-nemesis in “Joker.”  Playing out like a psychological thriller, Joaquin Phoenix portrayed the title character in a way we’ve never seen, bringing out a blazing performance that invited us into an interpretation of Gotham City that reflected the griminess of late-‘70s/early-‘80s New York City in such a way that got under your skin every bit as much as the lead performance.  Given how Phillips was mainly known for directing comedies before this, “Joker” offered a new depth into the filmmaker’s capabilities that showed something that was far, far removed from his usual style.

Phillips now returns to direct the sequel, “Joker: Folie à Deux,” this time venturing into this mythology in the form of a musical thriller.  As a film that’s vastly different from what came before, it has its flaws, but is kept afloat by its visual designs and two central performances.  

Two years after the events of the first film, Arthur Fleck (aka Joker) is in Arkham State Hospital awaiting trial for his crimes.  While there, he befriends fellow patient Harleen Quinzel (Lady Gaga).  As the two form a romance, they’ll indulge in each other’s delusions to have the world see who they really are.

Phoenix does just as well as he did in the first film when it comes to showing his severely damaged character.  He exhibits an Arthur who’s reserved in his confinement, while still showing glimpses of the cracked mentality that lingers beneath him.  However, it’s his courtroom scenes and musical numbers where Phoenix gets to showcase Arthur’s true Joker persona, where we see more of the man he became at the end of the first movie.  When he’s put on the world’s stage, Phoenix displays Arthur's psychotic showmanship that’s been building up in him that he wants to unleash upon Gotham. In the five years that have passed since he last played this role, Phoenix hasn’t lost any of the terrifying rage that plagues his character, ensuring that your eyes won’t be on anything else but him as he grabs each of his scenes by the collar and throttles them.

Although Harleen Quinzel isn’t very developed in the film, Gaga still does what she can to provide a memorable rendition of Joker’s infamous love interest who takes to his destruction dreams.  Just as she accomplished with her breakout film performance in “A Star is Born,” Gaga gets to display both her acting and singing abilities in portraying a character who shares Arthur’s need to be noticed.  She exhibits fine chemistry with Phoenix as she talks and sings with him, showing a desire to want to build a chaotic life with him.  This is Gaga’s third top-billing role, and she continues to prove that she could have a film career that’s every bit as successful as that of her music.  The concert stage might be her first home, but the big screen could easily be her second.

The main issue with the film is the screenplay by Phillips and Scott Silver, who co-wrote the first film.  With this movie being over two hours, there’s not a lot of story to make that runtime worthwhile.  Pretty much the whole movie goes between Arkham and the courthouse, and while these scenes really give the cast many chances to put their hearts into the material and have some engaging interactions, the story is pretty much kept in the same place.  Although there might be a few too many musical numbers inserted into the story, they offer a look into the minds of Joker and Harleen, all while providing some energy to the narrative in the middle of the constant back-and-forth between the two main locations of the film.  

Despite the underwhelming screenplay, Phillips still manages to craft a movie that has the same strong technical aspects as the first movie.  To score the film, he brings back Hildur Guðnadóttir, who delivers music that really makes you feel the dark nature that permeates Gotham and the mind of the Joker.  In terms of visuals, Phillips re-teams with Lawrence Sher, who provided the camerawork for the previous “Joker” and every Phillips movie since “The Hangover.”  Aside from the eye-catching imagery of the musical numbers and some subtle motifs that reflect aspects of the characters, a highlight of his lensing is a superb single-take sequence during the movie’s finale.  It’s a tense scene that drags you into the citywide tumultuousness that the Joker spawns.  There’s also accomplished production design from Mark Friedberg (another “Joker” collaborator) that has you experience the griminess of the spaces that Joker and Harleen occupy, as well as the flashy Broadway-esque set designs of the musical numbers.  Even with the relatively thin story, it’s nevertheless intriguing to see Phillips and his team try something that we haven’t seen in his other movies.

While “Joker: Folie à Deux” is a few steps down from what came before, the pairing of Phoenix and Phillips have at least given us their sparks of vision in the ever-evolving Batman mythology.

Grade: B-

Inside a Robot is the Heart and Soul of Parenthood

Lupita Nyong'o in "The Wild Robot"
Photo Credit: RottenTomatoes.com

One of many things that movies have taught us over the years, especially those that are animated, is that characters made of wires and machinery can be just as warm and heartfelt as those made of flesh and blood.  A couple of the finest cases in this matter are Brad Bird’s “The Iron Giant” and Andrew Stanton’s “WALL-E.”  Through these titular characters, we saw how they interacted with our world and expressed feelings that are all too human, and in the process, brought forth stories that resonated because of how deep their emotions ran.

Writer-director Chris Sanders now adds his stamp to this type of narrative with “The Wild Robot,” an adaptation of the first book in author-illustrator Peter Brown’s trilogy of children’s books.  Through superb voice performances, dazzling animation, and an approach that grasps the ethos of the source material, this is a movie that’ll capture your imagination.

ROZZUM unit 7134, or “Roz” (Lupita Nyong’o) is a robot who’s shipwrecked on a deserted island.  As she spends more time there and adapts to her new environment, she’ll soon become a mother to an orphaned goose, Brightbill (Kit Connor).

Nyong’o gives a soulful voice performance as Roz, bringing to life a character who becomes much more than she ever expected, finding inside herself someone who’s capable of feelings that were once beyond her programming.  As her character begins her journey, Nyong’o exhibits the humor of Roz trying to understand what’s foreign to her, exploring her surroundings and understanding how the wildlife operates.  When the film moves forward, Nyong’o makes a smooth shift from her strictly robotic cadences to that of a loving parent who tries to comprehend having emotions, and then implements them towards her newfound family.  This vocal performance has a warmth to it that has you know, even if circumstances get tough for the characters, Roz will be there to protect her friends and family, and the strength of Nyong’o’s work has you hang onto every hopeful word she speaks.

Connor has strong emotional chemistry with Nyong’o, portraying someone who feels ostracized from everyone and trying to come into his own.  The connection that they build is something that shows the affection they have for each other, but also the tension in knowing that they don’t quite have the parent-child bond that the other animals have.  The film’s best drama comes from Connor and Nyong’o bonding and trying to understand each other, and it’s a connection that, as it goes on, does well in showing how each of them will move forward in their separate journeys.

Alongside Nyong’o and Connor are some fine supporting performances from Pedro Pascal, voicing a sly fox who advises Roz about the ins and outs of the animal kingdom; Catherine O’Hara, who turns in some very funny work as an opossum who teaches Roz about motherhood; and Bill Nighy as a goose who tries to help Brightbill through his first migration from home.  Through their work, we not only get some laughs, but also moments of warmth as they interact with Roz and help her come to terms with the new emotions that she’s experiencing.

The screenplay by Sanders crafts a faithful adaptation of Brown’s bestselling book that makes the characters as lovable as they are on the page.  We get a sense of who they are as Sanders takes his time in setting up Roz’s journey of motherhood, having a lot of the first third of the movie show her getting to know the landscape and inhabitants of the island and how she’s going to navigate it all with her adopted son.  This makes way for the rest of the narrative to show the deeper aspects of these characters, displaying a strong focus on the challenges that Roz and the other animals face, both within their own groups and as a whole community.  In relation to this, Sanders doesn’t shy away from the book’s somewhat darker edges that involve animal nature and what it takes to survive, adding a layer to these characters as they go up against several threats.

Brown’s books include terrific black-and-white illustrations, and Sanders presents them through stunning animation that places 3D characters against hand-painted backdrops, allowing for a distinct visual style that provokes the feeling of seeing something wondrous.  The breathtaking images match the strong emotions of the story, immersing you in a lush, colorful world that displays the beauty and danger that encompasses nature, and this provides a grandness to the scenery that has us see the world with the same sense of wonder as Roz.  Backing up Sanders’ vibrant visuals is a powerful score from Kris Bowers that captures the dramatic highs of the characters and their perilous, yet moving adventures.

Given how Sanders and his team were able to capture the essence of Brown’s work, they prove to be a perfect match to the trilogy if they choose to adapt the other two books, “The Wild Robot Escapes” and “The Wild Robot Protects.”  As a robot getting to know the world, there’s still much for Roz to learn, and much for audiences to learn about her.

Grade: A

For the Robots in Disguise, We See How It All Began

From left: Megatron (Brian Tyree Henry), 
Bumblebee (Keegan-Michael Key), Elita-1 
(Scarlett Johansson), and Optimus Prime 
(Chris Hemsworth) in "Transformers One"
Photo Credit: RottenTomatoes.com

Given how Hasbros’ famous toy line, Transformers, has had seven live-action films since 2007, it might be easy to forget that they were preceded by an animated film and several animated series.  While there have been some animated shows over the last few years, a lot of the attention has been focused on the big-budget films from the last decade and a half.  With “Transformers: The Movie” coming out almost 40 years ago, it seemed rather unlikely that we’d see the Autobots and Decepticons on the big screen again in an animated format.

For the latest film in the franchise, there’s a return to animation, but instead of 2D, it brings the robots into 3D animation with director Josh Cooley’s “Transformers One.”  Instead of simply relying on the brand name to deliver its story, his film drives forward with fleshed-out characters, gorgeous visuals, and a surprisingly dramatic story.

The movie follows the friendship of Optimus Prime (Chris Hemsworth) and Megatron (Brian Tyree Henry).  When they come across a discovery that will change the course of the planet Cybertron forever, they’ll go on a journey where the decisions they make will eventually turn them against each other.

Hemsworth and Henry bring compelling voice work to their roles as robots who have a deep friendship that will soon be tested, providing a great anchor as the story expands.  Right from their first scene, you get a sense of their bond through the chemistry of the actors.  They’re a lot of fun to listen to as they banter and disagree on what to do in terms of their newfound mission, providing a humorous connection that soon gives way to the animosity that consumes their comradeship.  You can hear the dedication in Hemsworth and Henry’s voice work that they give to these characters, doing justice to the script and knowing that this isn’t a cartoon made just for young audiences, but is something that offers much more on an emotional level than what the live-action films gave us.  The strength of their voice acting and their commitment to their characters is a huge factor in capturing the epic feel for this world.

Acting as reinforcements to Hemsworth and Henry is a fine selection of supporting performances of Cybertronians.  There’s Scarlett Johansson as Elita-1, who grudgingly and comically has to put up with Optimus and Megatron’s antics; Keegan-Michael Key as the never-shuts-up Bumblebee; Steve Buscemi as the intimidating Starscream; Laurence Fishburne as the wise Alpha Trion; and Jon Hamm as Sentinel Prime, the leader of Cybertron.  Each of these cast members brings an abundance of personality to their characters, making them feel as well-drawn as the two leads.

The screenplay by Eric Pearson, Andrew Barrer, and Gabriel Ferrari has a couple of predictable elements (outside of the inevitable friends-become-foes aspect), but it’s held afloat by giving us characters that have emotional depth, instead of making them feel like they’re there to sell toys.  The story gives us plenty to see within the bond between Optimus and Megatron, showing us their alliance before slowly morphing it into the adversarial relationship that we’ve all come to know.  Although this movie has many characters and offers a lot of details in the Transformers mythology, the writers create a story that’s accessible for people who have just a casual understanding of the franchise.  Despite this being a story that's based on toys, the narrative doesn’t treat its audiences like merchandise consumers, but rather engages them with respect and gives them something that’s more than it could’ve been.  It has jokes at all of the right moments and doesn’t shy away from exhibiting the poignancy of the two lead characters breaking away from each other.

Cooley, who has a history with Pixar (including directing “Toy Story 4”), offers his talents in bringing the Transformers and Cybertron to colorful, pulsing life.  As soon as you see these characters in their environment in this format on the big screen, it’s clear that Cooley and his team have done whatever they can to absorb you in this world.  The stunning 3D animation displays the grand nature of Iacon City in the sub-levels of Cybertron, as well as the danger-plagued landscapes on the planet’s surface level, bringing across the epic scope that’s needed for a franchise with a lore this deep.  Inside these huge environments, Cooley gives us some thrilling action, such as the Iacon 5000 race throughout the city, exciting battles on Cybertron’s service, and the final confrontation between good and evil.  Aside from the action that we expect from this franchise, Cooley uses his visuals to have the character-driven moments succeed on a dramatic scale, allowing us to experience the weight of the characters’ decisions and feelings as their destinies unfold.

After several years of seeing the Transformers in live action, “Transformers One” offers a refreshing way in which to experience these characters and worlds on the big screen.  With the equal attention to both drama and action, we see how, even though the quality of the movies in this franchise has experienced more lows than highs, it can always show the potential to transform.

Grade: A-

More Than Three Decades Later, Beetlejuice is Summoned Once Again

Michael Keaton in "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice"
Photo Credit: RottenTomatoes.com

In 1988, director Tim Burton treated audiences to the devilishly entertaining horror-comedy, “Beetlejuice.”  Focusing on a ghostly husband and wife who must face off against the titular demon, we had a film that showed us the first real glimpses of the macabre style that we would see in Burton’s films over the decades that followed.  Between his unique visuals, darkly funny tone, and quirky characters, this movie became a staple of Burton’s filmography and remains as fun as ever.

Burton now returns to helm the long-awaited sequel, “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.”  While not as fresh as its predecessor, it’s nevertheless an enjoyable pre-Halloween treat that harkens back to Burton’s earlier dark fantasies.

Thirty-six years after the events of the first film, Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder), her daughter Astrid (Jenna Ortega), and her stepmother Delia (Catherine O”Hara) return to their family home in Winter River after a loss.  When circumstances arise that bring Beetlejuice (Michael Keaton) back into their lives, the Deetz family must find a way to stop his latest round of fiendish tricks.

Although Keaton didn’t have a lot of screen time in the first movie, he was the standout of the cast, making the most of every minute with his character’s delightfully cartoonish and rogue personality.  He gets much more screen time in the sequel, easing back into the character with a clear love for this role.  In doing so, Keaton is endlessly fun to watch as he interacts with the characters and settings.  With his off-color dialogue and comical movements, Keaton inhabits every bit of energy playing this role as he did in 1988, and you’re sure to become giddy whenever he invades the screen with his wicked antics.

As the mother and daughter at the center of the story, Ryder and Ortega have a fine chemistry that both encapsulates the loneliness and sense of loss that each of them feels, while also showing the rift between them that’s caused by Lydia’s belief in the supernatural and Astrid’s disbelief.  When they have a heartfelt moment here and there, the two do well in exhibiting the tension and love between them.

For the supporting cast, we have some amusing performances from Justin Theroux as Lydia’s boyfriend; Willem Dafoe as a ghost detective in the afterlife; and Monica Bellucci as Beetlejuice’s vengeful ex-wife, who has an excellent introductory scene.  However, O’Hara is the highlight, as she always makes you laugh at her character’s overdramatic persona, exposing everyone to her attention-grabbing ridiculousness as O’Hara revels in the material that she’s given.

The screenplay by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar offers entertaining scenarios for the characters, but it often tries to do too much.  It has several plot threads going on at once, with most of them feeling underdeveloped.  This is especially true for the storyline involving Bellucci’s character, who had the makings of a great secondary villain, if only she was given more time to grow.  Each of the subplots has potential for its own “Beetlejuice” movie, but it seems like the screenwriters were trying to make up for lost time between the two movies by including as much as possible.  As a whole, the narrative has creative parts to it, but those parts needed to be more fleshed out.

While the story might be the weak link of the movie, Burton’s direction helps elevate it.  With Burton back as director, the movie emphasizes practical effects over CGI, calling to mind the old-school movie magic of his ‘80s-‘90s era.  These effects are both used with the makeup for the ghostly characters of the afterlife and the production design of that setting, capturing that feeling of the actors being in those environments and conversing with those entities, just like the characters in the original film.  Burton’s signature weirdness is allowed to thrive as it welcomes audiences back into this world, and between the production design, costumes, makeup effects, and musical score, we get a movie that’s very much a Burton film in the technical aspects.  Aside from that, it’s great to see how his darkly comic sensibilities are still as finely tuned as ever, exhibiting his well-known filmmaking persona that encourages you to give yourself over to his inventive strangeness and have a good time.

Although “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” has a few drawbacks, you can still see everyone’s love for the characters and their world, delivering a sequel that’s still a worthy welcome for the fall season.  While Beetlejuice’s first go-around might be the preferred outing in the end, this continuation is a fun revisit to the afterlife as only Burton can envision it.

Grade: B

On the Sidelines of Ellen Ripley’s Story, Something Else Happened

Cailee Spaeny in "Alien: Romulus"
Photo Credit: RottenTomatoes.com

When director Ridley Scott returned to the “Alien” franchise in 2012 with his prequel, “Prometheus,” it was the first installment he directed since the 1979 original.  Although the prequel had its flaws, it was a visually mesmerizing film that set up some fascinating prospects as to where this mythology could expand.  Five years later, he gave us his followup, “Alien: Covenant,” which, despite being an okay entry, didn’t do much to move the pre-“Alien” story forward in a meaningful way.  Since then, any continuation of Scott’s new batch of films was abandoned.

Now, director Fede Álvarez brings us back to this iconic series with “Alien: Romulus.”  With this film, he doesn’t give us a prequel or sequel, but rather, a movie that takes place in between “Alien” and James Cameron’s 1986 followup, “Aliens.”  While it doesn’t reach the heights of those two films, it nevertheless shows that there’s still potential in this franchise to charter some new outer-space territory.

The story follows a group of space colonists who, while exploring an abandoned space station, must do what they can to survive when a xenomorph goes on the hunt.

Cailee Spaeny, who plays Rain Carradine, is a welcome addition to the leading ladies of the franchise, following in the footsteps of Sigourney Weaver, Noomi Rapace, and Katherine Waterson.  She exhibits the terror of being faced with a deadly, otherworldly being, while also showing the fortitude to keep as many of her group alive as possible.  It’s the type of performance that has become a staple of the series, one that carries a grit to it as Rain and her group must evade the bloody rampage of the xenomorph.  If there are more films that continue this storyline, Spaeny proves that she’s a force to be reckoned with to carry this narrative further.

Just as Spaeny succeeds in emulating those who came before in similar roles, David Jonsson does the same in his role as Andy, an android who accompanies the colonists.  Actors like Ian Holm, Lance Henriksen, and Michael Fassbender have all had a chance to portray such AI characters, and Jonnson puts his stamp on it as a robot who’s hopelessly adamant about making sure their mission directive is met.  He’s engaging to watch as you see him make decisions that he forms out of logic, but provides tension as we watch the consequences of such choices, see him come to terms with the effects, and how the rest of his group responds to it.

The screenplay by Álvarez and Rodo Sayagues, who collaborated on the scripts for Álvarez’s “Evil Dead” remake and “Don’t Breathe,” pretty much follows the basic outline of most “Alien” movies, but it still adds enough to the mythology to make the franchise’s overall story still worth exploring.  While some of the fan service can be a bit irksome on occasion, the narrative makes a few crazy, but effective creative decisions that involve some unexpected connections to other films in the series.  While the first two thirds of the film are pretty standard, but still fun and tense sci-fi horror, it’s the third act that offers quite a bit that can open some doors as to where this franchise can go.  Seven installments into this series (not including the two “Alien vs. Predator” movies), it’s great to see that there are still some enticing possibilities to be had.    

The cinematography by Galo Olivares, who’s working with Álvarez for the first time, offers both stunning visuals of space and accomplished framing of the space station’s interiors.  When it comes to the vastness of space, Olivares offers imagery that shows the beautiful and terrifying depth of outer space and what could be hiding amongst the stars and darkness.  When it comes to the space station, Olivares makes us apprehensive at the shadows of the many dark or low-lit rooms where anything can be hiding.

Álvarez is someone who’s exemplified a terrific handling when it comes to films where characters are in one location for a majority of the runtime, whether it be young adults stuck in a cabin facing off against supernatural forces in “Evil Dead,” or a group of burglars being retaliated against by a blind veteran in “Don’t Breathe.”  He takes that talent and presents it on a bigger scale with a space station and instills the terror for which he’s known.  Just as he did with “Evil Dead,” Álvarez exhibits a confidence in taking on a well-known series and providing his own sense of invention to the larger scope that has grown out of Ridley Scott’s iconic 1979 film that started it all.  He utilizes both practical effects and CGI imagery to great impact, mixing them in a way that shows a devotion to the lower-budget sensibilities of the earlier installments and the advanced effects of the later entries.

If what we see in “Romulus” is anything to go by, this series has more of those alien facehugger eggs to hatch.

Grade: B+

To Catch a Killer

Josh Hartnett in "Trap"
Photo Credit: RottenTomatoes.com

When it comes to writer-director M. Night Shyamalan’s filmography, while it may be popular to point out that the quality of his movies is all over the place, you can’t deny that it’s been fascinating to see him fluctuate between genres.  We’ve seen him tackle the supernatural with “The Sixth Sense,” sci-fi with “Signs,” superheroes with his “Unbreakable” trilogy, found-footage horror with “The Visit,” body horror with “Old,” and apocalyptic horror with “Knock at the Cabin.”  As divisive of a filmmaker as he might be, you almost can’t resist the intrigue of seeing what kind of spin he’ll put on a genre or sub-genre.

Up until now, Shyamalan hasn’t really done a film that could be seen as a straight thriller, something that doesn’t have ghosts, aliens, or superheroes.  However, he tries his hand at that with his latest film, “Trap.”  Although this movie isn’t one of Shyamalan’s best, there’s still much to enjoy with his so-absurd-it’s-good big-screen offering.

Cooper (Josh Hartnett) is a serial killer known as “The Butcher,” whose identity remans unknown.  When he takes his daughter, Riley (Ariel Donoghue), to a pop concert, he notices a heightened police presence and finds out its in place after a tip said he’ll be there.  As the concert goes on, Cooper will have to do whatever he can to avoid being found out and captured.

Hartnett looks like he’s having a lot of fun playing a villain.  He imbues his character with a slight fatherly goofiness that mixes well with his malicious side, creating a person that can make you chuckle in one scene and unsettle you in the next.  As Hartnett moves forward in the story, he does well in showing how his killer’s mind works when he tries to think on his feet as evading police presence becomes more difficult.  Hartnett shows his character with a jitteriness of being caught, but also a confidence of being able to get away with more of his heinous acts, a killer who keeps a level head, yet is anything but on the inside.  His impulse to inflict harm on his targets will have you wonder what he plans to do next, and Hartnett keeps us absorbed as a killer who’ll do whatever he can to keep his evil impulses alive.

The screenplay by Shyamalan unfolds as the most Hitchcockian narrative he’s done.  While it isn’t anywhere near as tightly plotted as the films from the Master of Suspense, Shyamalan manages to construct a story that still immerses you in the thrills.  Despite the off-kilter construction of the story, the narrative still seems pretty straightforward for the first two thirds of the film.  However, once you hit the third act, you’re in for a wallop as the story will have you grinning from ear to ear when it swerves into something that has an abundance of gleeful throw-logic-out-the-window fun.  Although the movie overstays its welcome by about 10 minutes, that certainly doesn’t dilute the whacky fun that precedes it.

One aspect of the script that provides some tension is how you pretty much experience the concert in real time.  By doing so, you feel the tension that Cooper experiences more and more as the event goes on, with him knowing that he only has a certain amount of time to accomplish what he wishes to accomplish.  This story unfolds as somewhat of a concert-thriller, and Shyamalan enhances that by including a few sequences of performances with catchy songs that were written and are sung by one of his daughters, Saleka Night Shyamalan, who plays Lady Raven, the pop star at the center of the concert.

As a director, the goofiness that Shyamalan gives some of his movies can be an enjoyable factor, so long as it doesn’t go completely off the rails, like in “The Happening.”  For “Trap,” he hits that sweet spot where he brings us enough of that humor, but doesn’t make it so that the film goes into “bad movie” territory.  Even with the bonkers nature of the third act, it’s still handled in such a way where you’re having fun instead of cringing.  In the middle of his take-it-or-leave-it brand of humor, Shyamalan still manages to keep your pulse pounding with the scenario in which he places his characters.  Part of that comes down to his collaboration with cinematographer Sayombhu Mukdeeprom, who’s working with Shyamalan for the first time.  With his camerawork, Mukdeeprom captures the many details of the setting, bringing us onstage, backstage, through the crowded hallways, and into the access-only areas.  By doing so, you’re immersed in the environment as you’re placed in Cooper’s frame of mind when he realizes there are eyes everywhere and he must avoid suspicion. 

This movie might not have all of the trappings that make for a top-tier thriller, but it certainly has enough to keep your attention ensnared.

Grade: B

A Satanic Portrait of a Serial Killer

Maika Monroe in "Longlegs"
Photo Credit: Imdb.com

When it comes to movies that mix crime-thrillers with horror, there’s so much potential to craft something that sticks with the audience because you have two genres come together that can depict disturbing acts of which people can be capable.  Whether it’s Jonathan Demme’s “The Silence of the Lambs,” David Fincher’s “Seven,” or the latter’s based-on-a-true-story “Zodiac,” these movies absorb you in the narratives of their characters as you watch them traverse the dangers of what the worst of humanity has to offer.

Writer-director Osgood Perkins is the latest filmmaker to do this with his horror-thriller, “Longlegs,” a film that’s awash in atmosphere, has great scares, and is boosted by two great lead performances, especially a very disturbing villain.

Lee Harker (Maika Monroe) is a special agent for the FBI in Oregon.  When she’s assigned to a case that has her tracking down a serial killer who’s involved in the occult, Lee will make a discovery more shocking than she could’ve imagined.

Monroe delivers a performance that shows Lee as reserved to a point where you want to peer inside her head to unravel what’s going on.  She brings a strong sense of mystery to her character through her careful, probing gaze as Lee goes about her job and attempts to fathom the frightening implications of what she’s investigating.  Behind her gaze is also a sadness that hints at someone who’s seen things that no person should see.  Just as she tries to sift through the clues, we try to understand her and her way of thinking, resulting in a lead performance that keeps you invested in the nightmare through which Lee has to delve.

Nicolas Cage has an absolute horrific blast in the role of a Satanic worshipper.  We’ve seen Cage go all-in with certain performances where you have to admire how much he’s willing to let loose, and this runs along those lines, but with a terrifying edge.  Right from his brief first appearance, Cage sets the tone for the bone-rattling chills that he’ll give you for the rest of the movie.  You keep wanting to see him again and experience what his performance has to offer, but you also feel like you want to put it off for as long as possible because you don’t want to see what terrible acts his character might commit.  He gives a performance of someone whose brain seems to have been tinkered with by the devil himself, and you’ll be left shaken once the film arrives at the point where it gives you the full dose of his crazed monstrousness.

The screenplay by Perkins brings you through a labyrinth of clues that implores you to pay close attention to what’s going on, making you want to piece everything together even while other stuff is being presented to you.  This is a scenario that pins your eyes to the screen from the very start as you try to catch whatever you can and figure out how it might fit into the bigger picture.  Even if you notice a lot upon your first viewing, Perkins crafts a narrative that will surely warrant a second viewing so you can see what you missed.  This screenplay engages its viewers to try to figure out the mystery every bit as much as it wants you to figure out its lead character, adding layers on both a storytelling front and a dramatic one.  Although pursuing serial killers is something we’ve seen several times in film, don’t let the simplicity of the plot synopsis turn you away because this movie offers much more than I can explain without giving anything away.

The cinematography by Andrés Arochi, who works with Perkins for the first time, gives us camerawork that always has you scanning the frame to either look at a space where someone sinister could appear, or take in the setting to catch as many details as possible that could help you piece the mystery together.  Arochi makes the most of the film’s dark interiors that have you feel the unease of what could be lurking in the shadows, but he also makes effective use of the exteriors. With the story taking place in a rural region of Oregon, Arochi uses his lensing to highlight the disquieting sense of isolation that you can feel outside in such a location, knowing how alone you could be and realizing that danger can come from anywhere.

When talking about the directorial nature of this film, you have to recognize two sets of films.  The first group is the one from the beginning of this review that mentions films that blend crime and horror, and what “Longlegs” does is bring its own distinct and disturbing style, joining the ranks of those chilling stories.  The second group includes Perkins’ other three films, “The Blackcoat’s Daughter,” “I’m the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House,” and “Gretel and Hansel”; and just like with those movies, “Longlegs” shows Perkins’ skill in loading his films with haunting imagery and a sense of dread that follows you from the start of the film to the end.  Mixing with this dread is the excellent use of quiet in certain scenes, which creates a sense of unease as we brace ourselves for whatever might disturb that quiet.  The mood that Perkins instills is one where it seems like all of the presence of good has left the community, only to be replaced by an evil that’s calculating and merciless.

With “Longlegs,” Perkins has you feel the combined rush of being scared and trying to figure out the puzzle, creating a horror-movie experience to which you’ll want to return right away so that you can feel that rush all over again.

Grade: A