By Logan Fairfield
March 18, 2022, saw the release of Ti West’s “X,” a homage to 1970’s exploitation and horror films.
“X” was filmed in New Zealand during the COVID-19 pandemic. While waiting out the mandatory two-week quarantine, Ti West and lead actress Mia Goth collaborated via FaceTime to write the prequel, “Pearl.” A24 greenlighted the movie before “X” even started shooting.
“Pearl” was secretly filmed simultaneously with “X”’ You will immediately notice the previously run-down farmhouse as our setting for “X.” It is now a pristine, bright, vibrant home in “Pearl.” The location of the farmhouse makes for a real character on its own.
Our title character, Pearl, is the very same old woman from “X” and once again played by Mia Goth.
Set in 1917, World War I is on the brink of ending, and it’s the height of the influenza epidemic, flooding the town scenes with old-fashioned pedestrians donning white face masks. Sound familiar?
Pearl dreams of dancing in the movies, but her strict German mother refuses to let her out of her household duties, namely taking care of her sickly father. Pearl resents her parents, especially her mother, and sneaks out to meet the mysterious projectionist at the local movie theater.
When a dance audition comes to town, Pearl will do absolutely anything to get to it. I won’t go into further details after that, but you can assume this is where the bloody good gore comes in.
Mia Goth’s performance was remarkable enough with her dual roles in “X,” but “Pearl” brings a whole new level of performance under her belt. If you weren’t convinced in “X,” you certainly will be once Pearl breaks out into (what feels like) a ten-minute monologue in which the camera never shies away from her face.
The writing is lovely, and the acting is excellent, but the cinematography deserves a shout-out. While a grimey dulled “X” yellow tint, “Pearl” shines vibrantly with bright colors reminiscent of 1950s Technicolor.
The way Ti West will hold the camera on a single frame (as mentioned above) adds an extra uneasy feeling to the film. The last shot, for instance, is simply a static shot of Pearl’s face as she holds back tears with a strained smile and a quivering lip; specks of blood splattered over her face. That single shot does it all to put you in Pearl’s unhinged mindset.
Both are easily some of the best horror films we’ve had in a while. Now, if the third and final film of this trilogy (“MaXXXine”) lives up to its predecessors, we are likely to have one of the greatest film trilogies in decades.