Daddy Longlegs

Released May 14, 2010

1h 38m

Comedy

Drama

List

80%

Tomatometer

35 Reviews

51%

Audience Score

500+ Ratings

After months of being alone, sad, busy, sidetracked, free, lofty, late and away from his kids, Lenny (Ronald Bronstein), 34 with graying frazzled hair, picks his kids up from school. Every year he spends a couple of weeks with his sons Sage (Sage Ronaldo), 9, and Frey (Frey Ronaldo), 7. Lenny juggles his kids and everything else all within a midtown studio apartment in New York City. He ultimately faces the choice of being their father or their friend all with the idea that these two weeks must last 6 months. In these two weeks, a trip upstate, visitors from strange lands, a mother, a girlfriend, "magic" blankets, and complete lawlessness seem to take over their lives. The film is a swan song to excuses and irresponsibilities; to fatherhood and self-created experiences, and to what it's like to be truly torn between being a child and being an adult.

Read More

Read Less

Critics Consensus

Raw, honest, and jarring, Daddy Longlegs sets a spellbinding new standard for DIY cinema.

Read Critics Reviews

Lisa Schwarzbaum

Entertainment Weekly

Rated: C+

Sep 7, 2011

Full Review

Walter V. Addiego

San Francisco Chronicle

The film's grungy, ultra-low-budget look, thanks to the Safdie's handheld camera, is just right for catching the crummy, hardscrabble, rat-infested milieu.

Rated: 3/4

Jul 8, 2010

Full Review

Tom Keogh

Seattle Times

Hitchcock would have loved it, even wrapped in the Safdies scruffy enigma of a movie.

Rated: 3/4

Jun 25, 2010

Full Review

Kathy Fennessy

Seattle Film Blog

Daddy Longlegs [is] the opposite of escapist entertainment. But if your father, like mine, was a character first and a dad second, you'll probably relate. And maybe you'll even feel a little less alone.

Rated: 4/4

Jun 18, 2023

Full Review

Brian Susbielles

InSession Film

It was the first feature film for the Safdies as a duo, starting their renegade drive as a new indie force not seen since the Coen Brothers.

Feb 15, 2023

Full Review

James Kendrick

Q Network Film Desk

both humorous and harrowing, and even though it drags at times, its sense of repetition is crucial to its protagonist’s primary flaws

Rated: 3/4

Sep 14, 2022

Full Review

Read all reviews

Dana S

This is the Safdie brothers' Mean Streets. Beautiful and painful.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/24/24

Full Review

Audience Member

Really quite good, absolutely nails the NYC divorced dad who doesn't have his shit together and all that. And there's a lot of great moments. But there's continuity stuff that's annoying, and the resolution doesn't feel important enough. Too lukewarm, which I know is 'the point' and a trope of movies like this, but still, it's an unsatisfying end. Definitely worth watching though. It's so accurate it's ridiculous.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/19/23

Full Review

harrison r

Moving, great acting, funny, human, absurd, great soundtrack, great set design and art.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

walter m

In "Daddy Longlegs," Lenny(Ronald Bronstein), a film projectionist in New York City, is given custody of his two sons(Sage & Frey Ranaldo) for two weeks. So, he takes them to play racquetball and his unstable girlfriend Leni(Eleonore Hendricks) brings them a lizard. In return, he cheats on her with Roberta(Dakota Goldhor) who he met in a bar and then follows her and her boyfriend(Aren Topdijian) upstate, bringing the boys along for a little waterskiing. Overall, "Daddy Longlegs" is as aimless as its anti-hero, never being able to make up its mind about whether he is reckless or just irresponsible, nor what kind of movie it really wants to be without really the kind of energy to even be cringe inducing. What is true about him is what I am fond of saying in general in that some people should never have kids, especially Lenny who has trouble taking care of himself, much less two of them. As harsh as it may sound, one imagines him making the boys' future mother(Leah Singer) laugh before she wisely came to her senses.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

If watching a terrible parent making terrible decisions sounds good, well, you'll enjoy this movie.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

02/26/23

Full Review

Audience Member

New title "Go Get Some Rosemary" for this film. I preferred to review this one I saw last year on the old titles page because this title is much better, I think. This is such a personal film that you really feel like you're apart of these peoples lives. The wrting here is quite brilliant as well. I hope I can find the dvd or blue-ray for this at some point. Anyways, don't miss this gem if you can get your hands on it anyways..

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

Full Review

Read all reviews

Post a rating

Benny Safdie

Director

Ronald Bronstein

Lenny

Sage Ranaldo

Sage

Frey Ranaldo

Frey

Victor Puccio

Principal Puccio

Eleonore Hendricks

Leni

Show Less Cast & Crew

Show More Cast & Crew

Critics Consensus: Robin Hood Isn’t A Merry Time

View more photos

Synopsis

After months of being alone, sad, busy, sidetracked, free, lofty, late and away from his kids, Lenny (Ronald Bronstein), 34 with graying frazzled hair, picks his kids up from school. Every year he spends a couple of weeks with his sons Sage (Sage Ronaldo), 9, and Frey (Frey Ronaldo), 7. Lenny juggles his kids and everything else all within a midtown studio apartment in New York City. He ultimately faces the choice of being their father or their friend all with the idea that these two weeks must last 6 months. In these two weeks, a trip upstate, visitors from strange lands, a mother, a girlfriend, "magic" blankets, and complete lawlessness seem to take over their lives. The film is a swan song to excuses and irresponsibilities; to fatherhood and self-created experiences, and to what it's like to be truly torn between being a child and being an adult.

Director: Benny Safdie
Distributor: IFC Films
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Release Date (Theaters): May 14, 2010, Limited
Runtime: 1h 38m