Movie Info
Movie Name: X
Studio: A24/BRON Studios/MAD SOLAR
Genre(s): Horror
Release Date(s): March 13, 2022 (South by Southwest)/March 18, 2022 (US)
MPAA Rating: R
Wayne and Maxine Make a Porno
Wayne Gilroy (Martin Henderson) has rented a building on the farm of Howard (Stephen Ure) and his wife Pearl (Mia Goth). Unknown to the family, Wayne is planning to make a porn with Bobby-Lynne (Brittany Snow), Jackson Hole (Scott Mescudi), Maxine Minx (Mia Goth), and filmmakers RJ Nichols (Owen Campbell) and Lorraine (Jenna Ortega). Breaking into the porn industry is challenging, but the cast and crew is about to find that it could be killer.
Written and directed by Ti West, X is a horror thriller. The movie was premiered at South by Southwest and received positive reviews.
This definitely isn’t getting high ratings on Airbnb
I heard a lot of buzz about X, but I’ve had mixed reaction to Ti West. When I finally got the chance to see X, it was a simple but fun horror film that feels like a traditional grindhouse. Due to aspects of the story, a ******spoiler alert****** exists for the rest of the review.
The movie feels like a grindhouse partially because of the setting. A throwback film, the characters can’t benefit from modern technology and the brutality of the attacks also holds an old feel. The story itself is a bit of a stylistic bait and switch with a long, long set-up to the horror which dominates the last third of the movie (as foreshadowed in the dialogue about changing directions in films).
The movie starts out about the group but quickly focuses on Mia Goth. Goth’s character has a desire of fame and will take any path to it. She is contrasted by Lorraine who looks down on pornography and “the work”. The stars of course are the hideous Howard and his insane wife Pearl also played Goth…which helps push the idea that age changes everything and that young people eventually become old too.
Now Pearl and Howard Make a Porno…
The movie has a grimy look that it needs to have. So many people have tried to emulate the prime slasher horror movies like Last House on the Left, The Hills Have Eyes, or The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and this movie is primarily an ode to the latter. The film is gruesome and feels like a traditional “vintage” horror movie.
X is a fun new entry in the horror world. I like that it is original and a little different. It isn’t revolutionary, but it is a real throwback to a type of horror that we don’t have often now. As with a lot of movies, this originally has led to a “X” universe…for better or worse. X was followed in 2022 by a prequel film (shot back-to-back with X) called Pearl with a sequel to X called MaXXXine is also in production.
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