Pearl

Sophia Luckey 

Staff Writer 

Arts

A24’s new horror film Pearl brings audiences the epitome of what a prequel should be. Not only that, but it does a great job of helping build up depth and anticipation for their next film in the X franchise, MaXXXine. 

Written by Ti West alongside lead actress Mia Goth, Pearl tells the story of a farm girl yearning for fame. Set in 1918, Pearl awaits for her husband Howard to return from war. While doing so, she tends to her animals and assists her mother and ill father. However, her desire for fame consumes her life, and she ends up hurting many of those around her. 

The first movie follows a group of people making an adult film on a farm. However, it isn’t long until the old woman in the farmhouse, who is Pearl, finds out what they are doing. Because of her past, she becomes deranged and starts to kill all of them. 

There are many things that make Pearl so remarkable, one of them being that the movie was written and shot during the same time that the first film X was being filmed. Ti West and Mia Goth came together and wrote a prequel for X. They then shot Pearl while shooting the first film.

 Mia Goth’s performance is another factor in what makes this movie extraordinary. In X, Goth played both the villain and protagonist. Now, she can be seen playing the younger version of the antagonist. With playing Pearl in a movie specifically focusing on that character, Goth gives the character so much more depth. Her ability to portray a psycho killer is outstanding, and she delivers a nine minute monologue to end the movie that adds to the element of horror. 

Pearl’s cinematography contributes to the film’s greatness. The movie immerses audiences with the location and unique visuals, capturing the old Texas homestead. There are many scenes where the saturation is higher, helping it feel more like the early 1900’s.  The movie captures frames that will set the standard for future horror films. 

Pearl’s great costume design as well as its use of other design elements bring the movie to life. The timely suits and dresses the characters wear help deepen the audiences understanding of them. For instance, the symbolicness of Pearl only changing twice the entire movie. This change occurres on camera both times, and resembles her leaving her life as a farm girl behind in pursuit of becoming a star. 

The twisted story ends with an even more twisted ending. However, that ending is what audiences have all been talking about. The film ends on somewhat of a cliffhanger, with Goth staring directly at the camera smiling while the screen slowly shrinks to a small circle. This only further promotes Goth’s masterclass acting, as well as her writing. 

This horror slasher film proves to be much more than that with it’s exceptionally developed characters and unique storyline.