Pearl: A Murderous Melodrama That Proves Mia Goth Kills
Trapped on her family's isolated farm, Pearl must tend to her ailing father under the bitter and overbearing watch of her devout mother. Lusting for a glamorous life like she's seen in the movies, Pearl finds her ambitions, temptations, and repressions all colliding in this stunning, technicolor-inspired origin story of X's iconic villain.
If you weren’t already convinced that Mia Goth is an incredible actress, then Pearl is here to set that record straight once and for all. Although the film is designed as a prequel to X that shows the murderous roots of its titular villain, its primary function is as a Mia Goth vehicle, and it’s filled with many opportunities that allow her to fully shine. There are monologues, and freakouts, and murders, oh my! There’s also a bit of dancing and some scarecrow dry humping — you know, your standard movie stuff, really — and Goth fully embraces it all.
While its lead performance undeniably keeps the whole thing afloat, Pearl still suffers from many of the issues that plagued X. Like its predecessor, it’s sorely lacking in tension and fright factor. Its journey — enjoyably deranged as it may be — is a totally predictable one that travels the course you’d suspect based on prior knowledge and the film’s trailers. It’s a weird and wacky and whimsical ride, rendered in glorious technicolor and streaked with gore, which is admittedly intriguing, but its overall trajectory, like X, veers a little too much into the anticlimactic.
As a prequel, it does very little to enrich what was already there. Sure, we’re given a bit more background into the twisted tragedy that is Pearl, but the film doesn’t really present us with any new information that creates new layers or a deeper reading to X. It gives us a clearer contrast between Goth’s Pearl and Maxine (an aspect that wasn’t completely necessary), but it also unfortunately removes even more tension from X and makes its experience more surface level than it already was. If you’re anything like us though, you’re likely so enamored by Goth’s performance and the film’s Golden Age aesthetic to feel too shortchanged.
Stylistically, Pearl feels much more cohesive (and less cringy) than X. The decision to lean into melodrama gives the film more licence to go over the top. This should invite the horror to go big, but Pearl doesn’t really swing for the fences in that regard. While blood is certainly shed, it’s less about the grandiosity of gore and more about how captivating it is to see Goth go from “golly gee” to scary sociopath. The whimsy and nicety of old school Hollywood interestingly contrast Pearl’s sadistic, sociopathic tendencies, and the more unhinged Goth becomes, the more enjoyable the film is to watch. Its final moments, which reach the kind of uncomfortable intensity you wish the rest of the film would have tapped more into, are the perfect example of this.
It’s easy to see that if placed in the hands of another actress, Pearl just wouldn’t have quite the same x-factor to it, but even with a powerhouse performance shining brightly at its center, it’s hard not to feel like its an unnecessary origin story. We’re given a bit more insight into Pearl’s character and motivations, but not enough to feel totally satisfied, and we’re left with a lot of important questions unanswered (like why her husband Howard would stick around). It’s entertaining enough, but there’s not much about it that’s memorable, save for Goth’s terrific performance.
Recommendation: Pearl is worth a watch for Mia Goth’s committed performance. We liked it a bit more than X, but still found it to be a mid-tier effort.
Murderous for more?! Check out the links below:
X review
High Life review
Suspiria (2018) review
A Cure For Wellness review
What do you think? We want to know. Share your thoughts and feelings in the comments section below, and as always, remember to viddy well!