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Pearl (2022)


 
Pearl is written, edited, and directed by Ti West. Pearl is a prequel to X which came out earlier this year. 

Ti West had some bold choices when he wrote this movie with Mia Goth. It's certainly fresh when it comes to ideas and difficult to compare it to other movies when it's so unique. How many movies are a prequel set sixty years before the first one about the origin story of a psychopath? There were so many details that were very specific that it's a shame West won't receive an oscar nomination for either of these movies as horror gets snubbed stereotypically. I also had no idea that West did a segment in V/H/S, and his direction makes me want to go watch The House of the Devil, which is still on my list.

Mia Goth has so many moments that will remain in my memory. Her performance is an instant classic and will be a reference material for future film majors. Since she was in both X and Pearl the parallelism between the two characters is just perfect, almost like as if X is now set up for a sequel. Goth is seemingly competing with Jenna Ortega for the next Horror Queen of the 2020s, as they are building up a large body count for horror. You might remember Goth from Suspiria and A Cure for Wellness.

When I left the film I was feeling like this was my favorite movie this year since The Northman. I knew it had to be high on my list. I don't really want to spoil what the movie is about, especially if you haven't seen X yet. I would watch X first if it was up to me. After thinking about which was better or which I enjoyed more The Northman won out as there was one scene in Pearl that kept it from being one of my favorite films. You might, after seeing the film, know which one I am talking about. It involves a scarecrow.

So far it's number two on my list this year and earned the same grade as The Northman. If there are going to be better movies coming out in December like normal I hope Pearl stays in my top ten. Pearl easily earns an A.

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