The titular character in Ti West’s “Pearl” is played by Mia Goth, and if you’ve seen West’s previous film, “X,” then you soon realize she’s the insane old lady from that movie.
The drama here takes place in 1918, when Pearl was just 17-years-old and blinded by her ambition to become a glamorous dancer. She desires a life greater than the one she’s been given. The fact that her dreams will inevitably be squashed by an overbearing mother won’t sit too well with this deranged girl.
Trapped on her mother’s isolated farm, Pearl lusts for the glamorous life she's seen at the movies. When an audition for a touring dancer comes calling into town, she quickly pounces on the opportunity. We all figure that if she’s denied the part, she’ll probably snap.
Set during the 1918 pandemic, with plenty of townspeople wearing face masks, “Pearl” ends up making you want to watch “X” again. It builds and fully fleshes out its anti-heroine. Here’s Ti West, buzzing from having already released “X” this year, with a superior prequel to that horror movie.
Of course, just like in “X,” subtlety is thrown out of the window here. West very much succumbs to a few too many horror tropes by the end, we know a killing spree is inevitable, but what we don’t see coming is the humor. “Pearl” can be very comedic at times in its full-blown acceptance of the crazed titular character naïveté.
West directed this new film back-to-back with “X” during the pandemic in New Zealand. Both star the fantastic Mia Goth. I far prefer “Pearl,” which was shot with the kind of beautiful photography that recalls 1950s technicolor. The colors pop in this one.
After the film’s midnight screening, West announced to the audience that he would complete his trilogy with a third film, this one called “MaXXXine,” a 1990s set story that takes place in the porn world. [B]
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