Directed by Ti West (X) — Screenplay by Ti West.

In spite of its late release in my corner of the world, Pearl — a prequel to Ti West’s horror hit X — was initially released in the very same year as X was in the United States. Together they present us with a fascinating horror period piece exercise centered on the power of the craft of filmmaking, being and feeling seen, and the American Dream. Whereas X was set in the 1970s, Pearl takes place in 1918 and follows its titular character (played by Mia Goth), a young woman who lives with her German immigrant parents on a farm in Texas. This is, indeed, the same elderly woman that Mia Goth played while covered in make-up and prosthetics in X (one of her two roles in that film), and this film thus serves as an origin story for that character. In the film, we see how Pearl feels trapped and lonely partly due to the fact that her husband (played by Alistair Sewell) is fighting in World War One in Europe, while her strict mother (played by Tandi Wright) insists that she does chores on the farm. Meanwhile, Pearl becomes increasingly infatuated with entertainment and dancing, and she is desperate to one day get up on a stage and gain mass approval — which a theater projectionist (played by David Corenswet, who was recently chosen to be the next Superman) ensures her she is ‘pretty enough’ for.

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