The first time I think actress Mia Goth made an impression on me, it was in the 2020 film adaptation of Jane Austen’s Emma where she played the kinda dumb Harriet Smith, Emma’s clumsy friend and matchmaking opportunity. However, everything else I have seen her in was a horror movie. She seems to have become something of a 21st century Scream Queen. Given the third of Ti West’s horror trilogy Maxxxine, all of which star Goth, is out this week, I thought it might be worth it to take a look at the other two movies in the trilogy, starting with X.
Oddly enough, X wasn’t streaming anywhere without a rental like I thought it was. Oh well.
Opening on an active crime scene where a local sheriff finds a whole lot of bodies, the movie soon flashes back 24 hours as Maxine (Goth) is leaving for Hollywood with her producer/director fiance Wayne (Martin Henderson) and a plan to make some porn flicks along the way. Along for the ride is lead actress Bobby-Lynne (Brittany Snow), actor Jackson (Scott Mescudi), tech guy RJ (Owen Campbell), and RJ’s mostly silent helper/girlfriend Lorraine (Jenna Ortega). Wayne had arranged for the group to stay at the guest house near a decrepit old farmhouse run by Howard (Stephen Ure) and Pearl (also Goth). While there, they decide to film their movie involving Jackson as a stranded motorist having some fun with the farmer’s daughters.
There’s just one small problem: Pearl had some dreams of her own, and seeing the youngsters doing what they do makes her a mite mad. Howard is more than happy to help his old wife out, especially as his heart condition means he’s afraid to have sex with her. There’s only one way to deal with that: murder the filmmakers. The old farm has some boobie traps around, and it looks like this won’t be a first killing for the old folks. Maxine wanted to make it in Hollywood. Wayne had even said she had some indefinable thing that would make her a star. But she’ll need to live to get out to L.A. if she wants to see her dreams come true.
So, I’m sitting here in 2024 knowing that before 2022 was out, writer/director Ti West released the prequel Pearl showing how the old lady came to have her own dreams dashed. As such, I can see a lot of significant dialogue, especially between Pearl and Maxine, showing parallels between the two characters as Pearl repeats many of Maxine’s lines from earlier in the movie. It makes for a nice contrast, especially since the biggest negative I have about the movie is the Pearl old age make-up Goth is wearing. It doesn’t look quite right, but hey, good job for the filmmakers to at least try it. It makes the movie a little more interesting than the sorts of movies that inspired it.
That concept seems to carry the movie as a whole. West gave the movie a very low budget, 70s exploitation style look, but the themes and characters are far deeper than I think the average movie of that sort could hope to achieve. It’s a throwback and homage first, and a good movie in its own right second. People want to be famous, and they get frustrated when those dreams don’t happen. Will Maxine end up another Pearl as Pearl predicts at one point? Well, that may be up to the final movie in the trilogy. As for this one, it was a good opener to an unexpected trilogy.
Grade: B+
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