Movie Man Darian Watching All Night Long

Pearl 

This film is liked the wizard of Oz soaked in blood! Now this is a fantastic character study on insanity and psychological trauma. It’s a prequel to X and Mia Goth delivers truly one of the finest performances of the year in this film Pearl that gives bone chilling scares and truly an engaging story that will have you mesmerized. 

Firstly, Pearl has amazing well thought out themes that will stick with you long after the film is over. It is a very eerie tale that touches upon strokes of isolation and what that can do to a person when left alone for to long with little to no social interactions outside of their little bubble. As the girl the story is centred around Pearl she stays within what she knows and doesn’t stray outside her comfort zone and because of that she has a lot of untreated and unusual quirks that can be deemed weird or outright unsettling and on top of that her living situation isn’t the greatest due to her father being in poor health and having no ability to go out much because she has to look after him a lot. So she has to keep her emotions in check and compress her true natured feelings. And the result of that is not pretty as she can lash out very violently either in psychical means or verbally as her temper can be scary and truly scary because since she was never raised to control her emotions in a healthy way she’s had to teach herself how to do so. She has no understanding of what the appropriate way is to talk to someone so the more she is treated like an outcast and pushed aside the more she gets boxed into a corner more and more emotionally until she cracks which we see slowly over the course of the film and when it reaches that conclusion is shocking but yet so engaging due to what Mia Goth is delivering onscreen mixed with the incredibly strong writing at hand. Then theirs themes of the want to be famous and her desperate ways of trying to get famous and her motives are understandable as she has a love for the movies but she also wants to do it to get out of the tiring living situation she’s in. Now In the beginning you can understand why she would want it so bad but as it progresses she makes being famous and her name up in lights the only thing she strives before and it becomes a very unhealthy obsession as she lashes out on the people who try to help her. Another great theme is sexuality as since she never was told about that part of her body growing up she had to figure out how to explore her intimate sides of her life in the way she sees fit and how she expresses that to give herself pleasure is not exactly normal. To her it’s totally appropriate but it also shows how poorly structured her life was growing up. And that she wasn’t educated on basic living tools in order to function in society not as normal but just get by without having to take things to the absolute edge which she dose a lot if it’s her rage sexual drive or even passion. Then you have the way the scares are built into the narrative as it’s not just some spooky cheap scare but it’s the slow build of the anger storming around her heart. And the unpredictable nature of her actions  keep you on edge as you never know what will see her off. So the way Ti West captures that intense nature is more terrifying then a jump scare that he easily could go for But instead he builds it over the course of the story and gets you when you least expect it. By doing that  I find it more affective scaring the audience and in such a great well thought out way. He has this fantasy old 1950’s feel to the frame with a horror backdrop and it blends so well as it feels like a golden age of cinema movie with blood splashed on it that’s the way the film looks style wise. It was so engaging to see a horror film taken in that light sure we’ve seen style horror films in the past but the way it’s edited and the sound design is done down to the costumes it was greatly brought to life. So the themes and style of this film work incredibly well and is one of the core reasons why Pearl is so Damn engaging from beginning to end. 

Secondly, Then you have the performance of the year given by the incredible Mia Goth delivering what I think is the best work of her career so far. She showed us a peak into who this woman was in X earlier this year but for when to explore the depths of her as person in her youth was captivating to witness. She gives a unhinged performance that will have you amazed and your jaw on the floor as she chews up every scene she’s in with subtlety and then rage filled emotion by the third act. It’s a performance that deserves award attention just like how Toni Collette deserved award love for Hereditary Same can be said for Mia Goth in Pearl as what she delivers is outstanding. Now their are  other truly fantastic performances in the film such as Tandi Wright who doesn’t share a lot of screen time but for the moments she does get my god does she shine as their is a specific scene when she confronts Pearl at dinner in a Monologue that Truly gave me goosebumps she was terrifying, emotionally raw and it’s a performance that should not be slept on as it’s a terrific supporting turn that damn good. Now everyone else did a splendid job but it’s the momentous performance given by Mia Goth that will have you truly in awe. 

Lastly, Pearl is a slow burn character piece of what happens when you isolate someone who’s been pushed to the brink with no support, love or social skills and the total rage and Hopelessness they feel in their heart. It’s a prequel that gives a great context to who Pearl was and is a showcase of a truly phenomenal performance by Mia Goth. It blends drama with horror in a way that works so well and gets into your head from the well executed psychological thrills and scares that will linger with your head long after the films over Ti West knows how to give an audience a great horror film and he does just that once again with Pearl one of the years best films and a truly smart, well acted and entertaining film that You’ll want to rewatch again and again. I recommend everyone go check this film out. 

This is a prequel to the character in X telling the story of Pearl and her upbringing and what made her such an unhinged person and the damage her family and society did to her heart and soul to make her the violent person she became. 

Rated R : strong violence, Gore, strong sexual content and nudity

Mia Goth : In my opinion Mia Goth’s performance in Pearl is the  second best onscreen performance I’ve seen all year! Now she amazed the hell out of me earlier this year with her fantastic work in X. That was not only a solid execution of her character Maxine but she also played a older version of Pearl as well in a terrifyingly engaging performance where you couldn’t even recognize it’s her from the truly incredible makeup. Her performance as Pearl in X was her at the end of her life the journey she had already been on and when the damage had  already been done and we see the sheer emptiness of her soul in X. Now what this film shows of her is how that damage was caused and the deep rotted trauma to act the way she does in X. Now what Mia Goth delivers is extraordinary as she gives this multi layered character such depth and your heart breaks for her as she is trying to be a good person but society and the world around here keep pushing her down until she eventually cracks. She has this sadness and optimism about her that is tragic to watch as you see the light of joy in her eyes of wanting that future of being a star if it’s as a dancer or a life in the movies she has big dreams and just wants to be loved. That wonder and sheer joy she tries to feel in her heart is vibrating through Mia Goth’s terrific delivery of explosive dialogue mixed with her ability to convey those emotions so strongly with just her facial features showing such tenderness. That being said you also can feel the darkness that starts lurking in her heart and eating at her brain as the film progresses as she is unpredictable in her way of going about things and that sense of not knowing what could make her explode in a fit of rage makes it more terrifying. When she does start to become darker Mia Goth fully takes on that emotional weight and when she raises her voice and goes on these emotionally packed monologues her eyes go black her words  becomes sharp and you are truly amazed by what she’s presenting onscreen. As Mia isn’t saying what her actions she’s doing is excusable no not at all but she’s showing the reason why she’s the way she is and to a extent you can feel for her but once she crosses that line of truly becoming dark and violent Mia eats up the scenery with her ability to truly utter every word out of her mouth with realistic and honest delivery that can be felt through every ounce of emotion. Theirs two scenes in particular in this film that is the reason why besides Michelle Yeoh’s work in everything everywhere all at once why hers is the second best performance of the year their is a scene where she asks a man why he’s acting different after she did something in this amazing emotionally heavy scene. Then theirs another scene at the end of the film where she gives this 5-8 minute monologue where she opens up her true thoughts that occupy her brain and she presents herself for who she is and doesn’t hide her true nature anymore in a jaw dropping truly brilliant scene. Mia Goth gave the second best performance I’ve seen all year in this unhinged, unpredictable and truly captivating performance that will have you in total awe. 

Ti West : Ti Gives another brilliant directed film with his work on Pearl. Now he amazed me  this year with X that is one of the best horror films of the year. Here he takes a character from that film and expands upon her arc so we find out why she became the way she is in X and in a very captivating way may I add. As this film feels like the wizard of Oz soaked in blood as it has this fantasy type tone feel to the frame that just radiates off the screen. You can see the sheer passion he has for this character and this world he’s set up with the X series. As Pearl is a very sensitive girl with  deep rooted trauma and family problems and he doesn’t make fun of her in his telling of her story but he shows that trauma and emotional emptiness she feels in a very real and honest way. As yes it is a horror film and he delivers on that still very well but to me it feels more like a character study and I love that. As he sets up all of what makes her tick and her failed attempts of being good and so by the time we get to the final act he presents the horrors in very brutal ways sometimes verbally and other times psychical and it’s big and bloody and tough to see at times. Ti West captures that unpredictability so well and the performance he was able to get from Mia Goth is truly amazing his ability as a storyteller to tell not just a captivating story but immerse the audience in this warped fantasy type world was so well executed. His vision for character and story is truly impressive and he’s brought a lot of solid concepts to the horror genre that I cannot wait to see what he does best as Pearl was a great companion piece to X and his mixes of hard hitting Emotion with horror just worked beautifully for this film. He did a truly great job at tackling very tough topics while still scaring the hell out of the audience in a fantastic way overall Ti West wrote and directed this film very well and it’s another Damn good directed film by him.