_Pearl_ is a great character study that dives deeper in the stakes that an individual will go to attain success. It is unquestionable that the main question people will ask is, does it live up to X? While I do think it is a good film that I thoroughly enjoyed, it does not overtake its predecessor and that is completely okay. They are two entirely different movies but achieve their goals brilliantly. This film is the textbook definition of a slow burn. The movie drags on and continues to provide this eerie tension as the viewer knows what the end result of this tragic film will be, but still remains locked in to see how it will unfold. I really enjoyed the first act, the character introductions were fantastic, and the audience has an instant connection with Pearl. But the second act drags a little more than I would have liked, but by the minute it is getting stale the third comes to pick up the pace and deliver a satisfying conclusion. Mia Goth is utterly fantastic in this film. There is a solid six-minute monologue of just her acting her ass off. One take, one angle, and somehow, she was able to lock me in completely. She has burst on to the scene with X and Pearl, and I cannot wait to see where her career goes from here. Overall, this film is great, but expectations should be had going into it. It is not going to be an action-packed slasher like its predecessor, but those elements are sprinkled in and work well with the overall film. If you enjoyed X, you should definitely watch this. **Score:** _81%_ | **Verdict:** _Great_

MORE SPOILER-FREE MINI-REVIEWS @ https://www.msbreviews.com/movie-reviews/mini-reviews-2022-edition/ "Pearl may be a prequel to X, but Ti West turns this slasher into an incredibly complex character study represented - and co-written (!) - by Mia Goth. The new star of the horror genre deepens the protagonist Pearl, exploring her tremendous desire to fulfill her dream of wanting to become something more than a mere farm girl, including a mesmerizing monologue of nearly ten uninterrupted minutes, where raw, insane, wholly genuine emotion of the character comes across in a fascinating manner. Extra appreciation for the practical effects and the fact that basically the entire movie is shot during broad daylight. Gore sequences become somewhat repetitive, and the narrative doesn't escape its predictability, being an overall less captivating film than its predecessor." Rating: B

Despite quite a characterful effort from Mia Goth as the title character here, I wasn't really very impressed with this film. She lives on a farm whilst her young husband is off fighting on the Somme. She shares her life with her Germanic, rather authoritarian, mother "Ruth" (Tandi Wright) and her profoundly disabled father who cannot speak and who is entirely dependent on these two women. "Pearl" longs to escape. On one of her occasional visits to town to collect her father's laudanum, she encounters the local projectionist (David Corenswet) who shows her a (quite racy) film and suggests that maybe a new life could be her's. Meantime, her life at the farm is becoming unbearable and her options for escape lead her to realise that drastic action may be needed - a plan that is accidentally put into play after an altercation with her mother. It's perfectly watchable, this, but it's also perfectly forgettable. The story is weak and thin, and though the photography is attractive, the whole thing just doesn't catch fire for me. There's no menace. It's not an horror film - it's a film about a mentally ill girl that offers us a few mildly entertaining scenarios that peter out as quickly as the plot does before an ending that screams sequel loudly and defiantly. It certainly does not need to be seen on a cinema screen.