Nicolas Cage’s “Longlegs”: The True Crime Connection
Osgood Perkins’ 2024 thriller “Longlegs” weaves a narrative that feels eerily reminiscent of multiple episodes of “The X-Files” playing out simultaneously. At the center of the film is FBI Agent Lee Harker, portrayed by Maika Monroe, who taps into vague psychic abilities to track down a serial killer known as Longlegs, played by Nicolas Cage. This killer has an uncanny modus operandi. In a shocking series of events, a family member brutally slaughters their loved ones before taking their own life. A chilling note at the scene, written in the distinctive handwriting of Longlegs, claims responsibility for these horrific acts. Intriguingly, Longlegs seems to prey on families with nine-year-old girls born around the 14th of the month.
As the narrative unfolds, unsettling clues emerge, including a life-sized doll discovered in an attic, harboring a mysterious metal orb. What lies beneath this layer of strangeness? As the film progresses, viewers uncover an eerie connection between Harker and Longlegs. The doll itself plays a significant, dark role in the killings, channeling sinister energy into the homes of its victims, adding to the film’s ghostly ambiance. Critics have praised “Longlegs” for its unsettling atmosphere and Perkins’ unique stylistic approach, even if the storyline defies complete logic.
The inspiration for the unsettling life-sized dolls in “Longlegs” draws from the notorious JonBenét Ramsey case from the late 1990s. Perkins revealed that he was deeply affected by the details surrounding the murder of six-year-old pageant star JonBenét Ramsey, who was tragically found dead in her family home on December 26, 1996. One of the most disturbing aspects of the case was that Ramsey was murdered just 15 feet from a life-sized doll created in her likeness.
In the early investigations, family members were suspected of the crime due to the horrific nature of the violence involved. However, as the investigation progressed, DNA evidence cleared family members of wrongdoing. The Ramsey family’s questionable parenting practices, common among “pageant parents,” fueled public suspicion. The life-sized doll remains a haunting aspect of the case; it was intended as a Christmas gift for JonBenét, representing a surreal and unsettling detail within an already tragic scenario.
Perkins drew inspiration from this bizarre detail when crafting his film, emphasizing the chilling implications of dolls used in rituals. He remarked on the symbolism of creating a doll as a means of exerting power over someone, and he found a magical link between the doll’s presence in the Ramsey case and the dark narrative of “Longlegs.”
With the Ramsey case still officially unsolved, theories continue to circulate, and the case remains a painful chapter in American history. Had she lived, JonBenét Ramsey would be 35 years old today, and her tragic story looms large, echoing through the themes presented in “Longlegs.”
