This ‘Longlegs’ Scene Isn’t Just Petrifying, It Ties the Whole Movie Together

Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers for Longlegs.

In what many audiences describe as the scariest film of the year, Osgood Perkins‘ latest vision Longlegs lives up to the hype created by its rather ambiguous marketing campaign. In fact, the feelings of ambiguity are immediately felt by audiences when watching the film, as the opening scene offers a cryptic and haunting depiction of Lee Harker’s (Maika Monroe) first meeting with the ghastly-looking killer Longlegs (Nicolas Cage). The style and mood of the scene evoke feelings of a family home video and effectively place the viewer into the ice-cold and isolating atmosphere of the rest of the film.

Upon first viewing, audiences are naive to the major implications that this moment will have on the events that follow it. Without having watched the film previously, it would be impossible to understand that all the answers to the Longlegs mystery are staring you in the face in this opening scene. Throughout the rest of the film, the investigation of Longlegs’ crimes continuously brings you back to this moment and ultimately helps audiences understand the characterization of Lee Harker on a much deeper level. This lack-of-context approach to the film’s first moments is all the more satisfying when the true meaning behind them is revealed much later, positioning it as one of the most important moments of the entire story.

Longlegs

Release Date

July 12, 2024

Cast

Maika Monroe , Nicholas Cage , Alicia Witt , Blair Underwood

Runtime

101 Minutes

Studio(s)

C2 Motion Picture Group , Saturn Films

Distributor(s)

Neon

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‘Longlegs’ Opening Scene Is Also Its Most Important Moment

Mystery is an integral part of any serial killer investigation film, and Longlegs certainly leans into the fear of the unknown to create a sense of tension throughout the entire film. That tension is at its peak during the opening sequence of the film, as we are immediately thrown into a horror sequence without any detail surrounding the characters or environments shown on screen. The ambiguity lends itself perfectly to the feelings of fear Perkins is trying to create and effectively creates the most unnerving moment of the entire film.

The decision to provide little to no context during the opening sequence ultimately becomes an integral driver for the film’s plot, as a majority of the story involves understanding how the horrific events of that day led to the series of murders in the present. Through Lee Harker’s investigation of Longlegs’ crimes, viewers learn that the opening scene was actually a depiction of a memory she had long hidden in the deepest, darkest parts of her psyche. Audiences also learn later that Ruth Harker (Alicia Witt), Lee’s mother, was indoctrinated as a cult follower of Longlegs’ on this day as well. Ruth’s involvement in these murders serves as the film’s big reveal and ties the once irrelevant opening sequence back into the heart of the story in a very profound way.

‘Longlegs’ Opening Scene Forever Changed Its Main Character

The opening sequence doesn’t just have a profound impact on the audiences experiencing it; it also has life-changing consequences on the life of the film’s protagonist and, subsequently, the story itself. When we first meet Lee Harker, she is characterized as a socially awkward introvert who has recently landed a job as an agent of the FBI. Whilst her social skills may appear off-putting, she seems to have a sort of psychic sense for solving crimes. Although this remains unexplained for the majority of the film, audiences eventually learn that the moments depicted in the opening sequence are where her intuition stems from.

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Longlegs, in his taking over of the Harker household, created a satanic doll that was able to take control of many aspects of Lee’s psychology. Through this doll, Longlegs effectively wipes all traumatic memories of their interactions from Lee’s mind, including the moments in the opening sequence. The metal ball contained in its head seemingly acts as the source of the dark magic that allows her to be so skilled at solving crimes, which is ultimately destroyed in the final act of the film. Since both the doll and Longlegs himself first entered the Harkers’ lives on the day of the opening scene, this moment changed Lee and her mother forever, whether she can remember it or not. Whilst many may feel that the opening sequence is a simple attempt at creating a sense of dread in the film’s first minutes, the scene becomes much more integral as it is contextualized in Lee Harker’s life.

Osgood Perkins Reflects His Own Life In ‘Longlegs’

The opening scene, and the subsequent scenes that provide context around it, beautifully encapsulate Osgood Perkins’ intention to mirror many of the truths from his own life in telling this story. As mentioned before, the scene is shot in a 4:3 ratio, and aspects of the production design evoke the vibes of a ’90s family home video. Perkins has described this scene as a “strange ode” to the years following the death of his father — Anthony Perkins of Psycho fame. Perkins has spoken at length about his childhood and its connection to his work on Longlegs, most notably the similarities in how his own mother and Ruth Harker attempt to hide the truth about their family’s secrets from their children.

This scene begins the long history of Ruth Harker trying to protect her daughter by shielding her from the truth, particularly when she makes a deal with Longlegs in order to keep him from killing them. Although Lee is depicted as being alone in the opening moments, it is later revealed that her mother was present the entire time. Even though Ruth was there to protect Lee, the film ultimately speaks to the idea of the inevitability of children being affected or hurt by the actions of their parents.

Longlegs opening scene serves a much larger purpose than simply fulfilling the jump-scare quota for the horror genre. Through its meticulous ambiguity, story-defining implications, and inspirations from the real life of director Osgood Perkins, it ends up being the movie’s most fateful and significant scene, even if we don’t realize it until much later.

Longlegs is in theaters now in the U.S.

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