Pearl

Pearl is an absorbing character study of a woman who mentally and emotionally unravels, leading to devastating effects for those closest to her.

It is a well crafted story, cleverly peeling back the character of Pearl and providing a great contextualisation to the events of Ti West's X. That being said it totally stands up as a film in its own right for those who haven't seen X.

The highlight is the leading performance from Mia Goth. I just can't get over how good she is as Pearl. She is utterly compelling and gives one of the most intriguing and punchy performances I've seen. She is undoubtedly a star and is now one of those actors whose films I will always seek out as I know I'll be getting a magnetic performance. It shouldn't go unmentioned that the supporting cast (limited as they are) are all terrific, but this is Goth's show from start to end.

Ti West puts such a distinct and vibrant stamp on this film, he really directs the hell out it. It is visually arresting with a vivid colour palette and a retro, period feel to it all that works so well. Simply put I just loved looking at every second of this film. The music as well is superb. It sets the tone for the whole thing perfectly.

Ti West is well on his way to creating not only one of the best horror trilogies of all time, but perhaps one of the greatest trilogies full stop.

Pearl (2022) is a movie my wife and I saw in theatres last night. The storyline follows a young lady in 1918 who lives on a farm with her handicapped father and over burdened mother and whose husband is off at war. The young lady has delusions of grandeur and feels she should be a movie star and far away from her farm. Her family needs her to stay and help with chores and keep them alive. When there's tryouts for a traveling dance team she plans to audition whether her family wants her to or not.

This movie is directed by Ti West (Them) and stars Mia Goth (A Cure for Wellness), David Corenswet (The Politician), Emma Jenkins-Purro (The Brokenwood Mysteries), Matthew Sunderland (The Lost City of Z) and Tandi Wright (Jack the Giant Slayer).

The cinematography in this movie is outstanding, as is the attire, depiction of the era and the performance of Mia Goth (who co-wrote and produced this movie with West). This is more of a character piece with horror elements than a traditional horror movie. There's elements that worked for me and scenes that left me scratching my head. I will say I was very frustrated watching this movie. Every scene with the alligator was awesome. There's a pitchfork scene, fight with the mother and explosion I adored. The father was also a solid, creepy character (the bath scenes made me cringe). However, the movie feels like it is trying too hard to prove Pearl is insane. The scarecrow scene felt rediculous and didn't work for me. How people reacted to her behavior at times felt off (they tolerated her uncomfortably long). The monologue scene was great acting but felt unrealistic from the sister in-law's perspective. The ending was sudden and I wanted more.

Overall, there's things to like about this movie and components that dragged and was overdone. I would score this a 5.5/10 and recommend seeing it once.

Pearl should be praised for its visual presentation. It likens itself to that of Wizard of Oz and movies of that time, and very faithfully sticks that overall aesthetic. I also really loved the political undertones of the war and the Spanish Influenza and their influences, but not much else can be said to praise. Mia Goth is amazing as usual, and Ti West continues to prove that he is a talented voice behind the camera. The same can't be said for the writing and pacing.

In the end, it just felt very dragged out and extremely predictable. I get that it's a prequel, but nothing felt shocking or surprising. It just felt...boring, which is more of a sin than anything for a "horror" movie. I wasn't too crazy about X either. I'm glad Ti is getting the attention he deserves, and I am looking forward to see what he does next with this trilogy in Maxxxine, but I was very disappointed with Pearl. Horror is best when you go all out. This one felt very safe.

If you're looking for something exciting and unpredictable, go see Barbarian.

Many who liked "X" will probably find themselves disappointed with this prequel, as it never comes close to reaching the levels of shock and intensity that the former reached.

In fact, "Pearl" isn't really a horror film at all (let alone a slasher), but rather a slow-paced descent-into-madness character study that uses it's brutal violence sparingly. And it's a great character study at that.

If you're ok with that, then you're in for a psychological treat.

Highest praise must be given to Mia Goth. She co-wrote the screenplay this time around and it's clear she understands the character profoundly. Her performance is terrifying. On a dime, she is able to flip from sweet & innocent to bloodthirsty & vengeful to remorseful and empathetic all within the same scene, sometimes even within the same shot.

It is, no hyperbole, one of the best lead performances I have ever seen in the genre.

When the protagonist of your story is a murdering psychopath, obviously there is a risk of alienating the audience. But that never happened because the script keeps all of Pearl's actions rooted in the festering grudges she holds toward her unfulfilling responsibilities and the subjectively monotonous life that she feels anchored to.

Pearl remains a sympathetic character because she is written as what a lot of us would become if we snapped and acted on every thought we had in our minds.

Lastly, the cinematography and other visual choices elevate the journey of madness we are following by adding surreal, otherworldly qualities to Pearl's fantasies that she indulges.

The only complaint that I have is that some of the dialogue could have done with a bit more polish. I understand that they were trying to mimic the over-the-top style of older films, but there were times when the spoken words felt cheesy when they should have had more power.

I was not expecting it to be as psychologically hard-hitting as it was. And what an emotional gut-punch of an ending that was.

It's a great film. Ti West's best work.

Extremely entertaining throwback-appearing (think old Hollywood cinematography and score) blood-soaked origin story of a girl with big dreams. After hints of malevolence, a chain of circumstances and events leads Pearl down a dark path.

The key here is Mia Goth's performance. One minute she comes across as a sympathetic character, the next she is beyond creepy, and there are still times in this film with laughter interspersed between moments of horrific violence. Perhaps the best moment in the film is a monologue that is best described as otherworldly. Really good watch, tremendous performance.