Pornography and horror movies go hand and hand. Both have such a very interesting impact in our society. Genres of filmmaking that make some people super interested and others disgusted. Combining the two just makes sense. Ti West returns to the horror genre and delivers the horniest blood bath that we have ever seen on the big screen. Slashers and sex sells. This movie explores sexuality, relationships, struggles and so much more. Behind this gory slash fest, there is so many different themes that hit just as hard as the kills in the movie. This movie fucking rules and I’m so happy to have checked this out at SXSW. With high expectations being a Ti West fan, I was not disappointed. Diving into the many pleasures people enjoy, his storytelling drives charisma and chaos. A perfect blend of what makes storytelling so great in film. This movie doesn’t skip a beat and is perfectly executed throughout its runtime.
Performances in the movie X are unparalleled to the many movies that were released this week at the film festival. This ensemble of a cast is the best in show, in my opinion. This is the year of Jenna Ortega! She has been in four movies within the first six months this year and rightfully so. She is able to bring such a diverse performance of being the “innocent one" of the group and later becomes a total badass. I swear, she will indeed win an Oscar in the future. I truly loved seeing her role in this movie and hope she continues acting within the horror genre. Brittany Snow is a bombshell and truly brings the sex appeal to the movie. She delivers some of the best acting sequences throughout the movie. She is both charming, charismatic and has a great back and forth with the antagonist of the movie. A scene that will have the audiences laughing and then screaming. Mia Goth indeed has the X factor in this movie. Her character arc in this movie is in-depth and so rewarding by the end. Each character is perfectly explored. There is a great balance of screen time shared amongst them all. Kid Cudi also is very great in his role and super happy with his acting capabilities. He has gone a long way and can't wait to see what he does next.
This movie delivers the horror. Ti West is well known within the horror community and this movie is evidence of why he is loved. He knows horror and how to tell a very compelling story. There is huge amount of blood, guts and more. Never for the sake of just having it in the film neither. Every moment is warranted and has a big impact that shock the entire audience in my screening. Our main antagonist that we have in the film, without spoiling anything, is one of the scariest new slasher killers out there. The movie shares the person’s back story and you can’t help to feel for this person and understand, to some extent, where they are coming from. This is storytelling at its best. A truly frightening story that drives on all cylinders. My god the death scenes are brutal as well. There are some creative kills that literally almost made me look away. This movie is not for the faint of heart. Disturbing moments that will even get the veteran horror fans to flinch.
Overall, my thoughts are that this movie is near perfect. There are some well designed scenes and amazing shots that had me gasping. The use of tension is done so meticulously and precise. There are some amazing overhead shots that show the viewer what the character doesn’t see and it is so damn effective. The entire ensemble did a great job. Everyone had standout scenes. The movie flies by and is perfectly paced as well. When the mayhem starts, it doesn’t end until the credits start rolling. Each character was well fleshed out and I mean that in both senses of the meaning for some. Brutal as hell and delivers some of the most iconic horror scenes in a very long time that people will reference for some awhile. Again, this movie is also very horny. I mean that in a very positive manner. It goes deep into a lot of themes and ideology that I think a lot of people are going to appreciate. It is super intelligent and brings up a lot of interesting points. There are so many great themes that just work so well for the movie. X blew me away and I can’t wait for everyone to check it out. One of my favorites from the festival.
95/100
Images Courtesy of A24