Long legs it’s not out in theaters yet—July 12 is the big day—but the creatively creepy marketing alone is enough to give a man nightmares. The latest trick in Neon’s big book of scare tactics is to release an audio chart of Maika Monroe’s actual heartbeat from the first time she saw Nicolas Cage in character as the titular serial killer.
Sure, it’s a big moment, as Monroe’s FBI agent character is finally able to face her coveted quarry, and possibly some of the racing heart is due to the pressure the actor felt to take part in such a tense, pivotal scene opposite from an Oscar winner. But you also have to assume some of it was the fact that it’s so painfully disappointing. Watch the video here, which superimposes a black box over Cage’s face to avoid spoilers.
The first time Maika Monroe saw Nicolas Cage as Longlegs, her heart rate reached 170 bpm.
LONGLEGS hits theaters Friday: https://t.co/3tgjmFAPLc pic.twitter.com/DaweYaDgxM
— ↃL⊥\Ↄ—\ᘰ (@LonglegsFilm) July 8, 2024
As writer-director Osgood Perkins explained in an interview with io9, he actually had no input into Long legsmarketing, although he is very pleased with the way it captures the otherworldly spirit of his film. He also talked about how Monroe and Cage actually only share one scene together — the one you see above — in a sequence that maximizes the contrast not only between their characters, but also their acting styles. She is more restrained and internal. it’s fine, it is Nic Cage. “I was aware of the fact that I had two very counterbalancing, compensating actions,” Perkins said. “Luckily, I was able narratively to keep them apart… then when they do connect, it’s a very charged moment. And so their opposite charges work even better.”
So charged, apparently, that Monroe had a very physical reaction to Cage’s appearance. And if a trained performer got such a shock watching him, imagine how the cinema audience will feel! You can push the limits of your circulatory system, and possibly your ability not to pee your pants in terror, when Long legs arrives this Friday July 12th.
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