Movie: MaXXXine (2024)
Production Companies: Motel Mojave, Access Entertainment
Distributed by: A24
Producers: Ti West, Mia Goth, Jacob Jaffke, Kevin Turen, Harrison Kreiss
Directed by: Ti West
Written by: Ti West
Starring: Mia Goth, Elizabeth Debicki, Kevin Bacon, Moses Sumney, Giancarlo Esposito, Bobby Cannavale, Michelle Monaghan, Halsey, Lily Collins
Review by: Cam Wiggs

I’m a silver linings kind of guy. Frankly, most aspects of life are out of my control and I find that terrifying. That said, if I can identify a positive outcome of the chaos, it doesn’t bother me as much. Even in the COVID-plagued years of 2020 through 2022, when chaos and calamity were the soup and salad du jour on the menu of life, I would always look for some small, hope-flavored dessert to keep me centered. For me, some of those microscopic morsels of hope and joy came from the films that released in those years.

Now, I know what you’re thinking. Those COVID years were some of (if not THE) worst years in the history of cinema: theaters were closed, productions were halted, and we were stuck with crappy Netflix reality shows. But, remember, we are talking about silver linings. And one major silver lining in the film industry at the time was seeing projects that would’ve faded into obscurity in any “normal” socioeconomic climate get a few extra minutes under the spotlight. One of those projects, was the first installment in Ti West’s horror trilogy, X (2022). Despite its meager $1 million budget, X thrilled entertainment-starved movie goers with its subversive horror narrative and its signature late-1970s period aesthetic. Those same fans were then delighted to learn that a prequel to X, titled Pearl, had been shot immediately following the original film leading to a rare Irish twins sort of scenario wherein both of the first two films in the series release in the same year.

Fast-forward two short years and we have arrived the end of the now critically-acclaimed X trilogy with this weekend’s release of MaXXXine. In this third installment, we find our heroine (?) Maxine Minx, played by Mia Goth, on the verge of her first real Hollywood break. She has managed to shake the dust (or, perhaps in this instance, glitter) off her feet and leave her life as an adult film star for a role in an upcoming horror sequel. But, when the killings of the mysterious L.A. prowler, the “Night Stalker”, begin to intersect with Maxine’s new life, she realizes those bloody footprints following her from her past may be harder to cover up than she thought.

As she steps into her new Hollywood life, Writer/Director Ti West effortlessly mirrors this transition in Maxine’s life in a “form follows function” sort of way by seamlessly swapping the 1970s rural, Texas Chainsaw Massacre-esque aesthetic with the neon-drenched Outrun aesthetic of early-1980s Hollywood. And though West does take the period tie-ins a bit too far, leaning into heavy-handed ’80s references like New Coke, horror movies of the era, and real-life serial killers, he keeps the series’ trademark period authenticity in tact. From obvious aspects of production like hair & makeup, costume design, and soundtrack all the way to the use of anamorphic lenses for that ultra-wide, CinemaScope aspect ratio (2.39:1) and ’80s-style film editing choices, Ti West’s commitment to period-accurate production remains impressive.

In addition to the more technical aspects of the production, Ti West has also assembled his most-skilled acting ensemble of the series to complement Mia Goth’s fabulous portrayal of Maxine. Newcomers to the franchise, Elizabeth Debicki, Kevin Bacon, and Giancarlo Esposito all deliver delightfully campy and caricaturish performances as persons of influence in Maxine’s life. Even beyond the primary players, the movie has myriad other names and faces (most of which are familiar, some of which are not) that all turn in solid performances.

Tragically, it is the writing that fails this gorgeous production and talent-packed cast. Despite another superb performance from Mia Goth, this new version of Maxine feels emptier and less connected to the story as it unfolds around her. And, astoundingly, the story being told in MaXXXine – you know, the movie about a serial killer, an ex-porn star, and drug-, sex-, and violence-filled 1980s Hollywood – borders on entirely uninteresting throughout the 104-minute runtime of the film. Counterintuitively, the movie is somehow both overcrowded in terms of characters and subplots but also paced so slowly that you have no choice but to check your watch during each entirely superficial monologue. Sadly, fans who enjoyed the blood-soaked, heart-pumping slasher dynamics of the first two films in the series will be left heartbroken by MaXXXine (and, no, not in the fun, literal axe-through-the-heart kind of way either).

Now, if you are thinking that all sounds pretty bad, remember this: I am a silver linings kind of guy. And, thankfully, MaXXXine does not roll credits before delivering one big parting gift to all fans of the franchise: the perfect ending for its main character. Obviously, I cannot go into too much detail on the ending given the spoiler-free nature of this review. That said, I was pleased that after a tumultuous first hour plus of the film, the third act (albeit a bit unhinged in its own right) lands our girl exactly where she needed to be to piece this trilogy together thematically.

Overall, MaXXXine is easily the least effective of Ti West’s trilogy. It’s much more contrived than its predecessors, over-indulging a bit too much in the 1980s period and forgetting what brought the audience to theater in the first place. Mia Goth and the supporting cast are excellent but the writing holds them back for the majority of the film before surprisingly delivering a thematically-sound and satisfying ending despite meandering tediously on its way there.

6.1 out of 10 Kernels

Thanks for reading!

-Cam