All very different films, but all rather good in pretty different ways.
Cadejo Blanco
In Spanish culture, the Cadejo is a mystical spirit that usually takes the form of a dog. While the black guise signals a dark omen of death, the white form of the creature serves as a spiritual protector for the individual during times of danger. The white spirit accompanies Sarita on her journey of discovery in Guatemala as she attempts to locate sister Bea following her disappearance during an impromptu night out.
Sarita’s subsequent infiltration of a local gang has the potential to be degraded by schlocky gore and gross Latino stereotypes as she tries to extract information from Bea’s gang-affiliated boyfriend. However, director Justin Lerner (Cadejo Blanco marks Lerner’s first venture into Latin America) treats the narrative with care, choosing to keep most of the acts of violence off-screen as Sarita comes to terms with the complexities of her sister’s fate.
Longlegs Review
Nicolas Cage has been having a renaissance recently. A recagessance, one might say. Or not. The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent had the potential to be a bit tacky, but Cage knocked it out of the park with his zany and heavily self-referential performance. Pig was astounding, potentially the best work that Cage has ever done. And Colour Out of Space was another performance to add to the crazy Cage canon, but one which was very effective in evoking its Lovecraftian atmosphere. Oh, and he sweettalks a peach in that particular flick. Thought you’d like to know.
In his latest film, Cage plays the titular serial killer. While his eerily high-pitched voice might come across as unnecessary cheese in a lesser actor, Cage makes his heightened tones convincingly eerie as he taunts FBI agent Lee Harker during a series of gruesome murders. The Silence of the Lambs’s influence is alive and well, but the film still manages to shock with some effective jump scares. Even though I’ve never been properly jump scared since The Dark Knight. But that’s another story. Like all great horror figures, Cage doesn’t appear until the film has got going, and he still doesn’t appear all that much throughout. Scary stuff.
Deadpool vs Wolverine
Yes, the MCU hasn’t been doing so good recently. But don’t you worry, your friendly neighbour fourth waller Deadpool is here to frequently remind you of that fact. And in a funny way, not a particularly annoying way. And if you were as concerned as I was that the MCU were resurrecting Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine after he was categorically offed seven years ago in Logan, then don’t worry, Deadpool’s got your woes covered there too. Sure, it’s covered with that slightly irritating multiverse excuse, but that excuse ultimately paid off.
It doesn’t feel like there’s much of a threat here, which is slightly refreshing. Sure, there’s a secondary baddie tinkering with the timeline and a primary baddie threatening to destroy the time, but we’re mostly just allowed to chill with Pooly and Wolvy beating the heck out of each other until they eventually reconcile. There are a lot of laughs to be had along the way, and the whole film is a major improvement on the slightly disappointing Deadpool 2. Plus there are a few cheeky cameos. Come for the foul comedy, stay for the emotional ending credits.