Mia Goth reprises her role as Maxine Minx in Ti West’s messy but ambitious trilogy closer. Here’s our MaXXXine review.
2022’s X was a bit of a surprise hit for A24, the studio behind Ti West’s sleazy, gory homage to the horror flicks of the 1970s. Pearl, a prequel which took its visual language from dazzling Technicolor films, came mere months later and the trilogy now comes to a close with MaXXXine.
MaXXXine brings back Mia Goth’s Maxine Minx, the only survivor of X. As we find Maxine in 1985’s LA, she’s trying to graduate from porn to horror films. She’ll do anything to become a movie star, but pretty soon, people begin to die around her. Again.
West sets his action against the hunt for the Night Stalker, a real-life serial killer who terrorised California with a string of murders in the same era. But if you’re looking for an epic showdown between a notorious mass murderer and one of the most famous final girls of the 2020s, you might want to adjust your expectations.
If you asked me what MaXXXine is really about, I don’t think I could give you a straight or simple answer. The film is mostly concerned with Maxine’s tireless efforts of becoming famous, and the horror elements of the story almost feel like they only slow things down. If X was a full-on gore fest and Pearl a deranged Disney movie, MaXXXine is a sleek 80s thriller, but one that can’t quite let go of the horror elements.
Nothing about MaXXXine could be described as “formulaic” or “traditional”, in good ways and bad. West’s trilogy closer is highly stylish, but its structure may prove its biggest issue. The film opens with Maxine attending an audition where she is extensively, disapprovingly asked about her past of making adult films before she is allowed to perform – and nail – a monologue. The audition ends with the casting agent asking to see her breasts.
It’s a striking, sharp start to a film that somewhat loses itself and its purpose in the middle. The large cast includes Halsey, Kevin Bacon, Michelle Monaghan, Elizabeth Debicki and Bobby Cannavale to name a few, but West struggles to give them each time to shine. On one hand, MaXXXine is a thriller about catching a killer, but it’s also about filmmaking and stardom. It’s a mix that doesn’t work as well as it should.
Read more: Ti West has plans for another entry in his A24 horror series
Although it’s been described as one, MaXXXine isn’t a slasher. In fact, it’s barely even a horror. Despite some excellent gore and a deliciously bonkers ending, West is mostly exploring other avenues without completely committing to them. The dramatic tension is uneven and the story doesn’t always feel very organic; the ending seemingly comes out of nowhere and juxtaposing the action with the Night Stalker’s killing spree adds little to the drama.
It’s a bloody good time, though. Goth once again proves herself to be one of the most magnetic actors working today, effortlessly commanding the screen and crafting Maxine into something more than just your regular goody-two-shoes final girl.
West also recreates the 80s vibes immaculately. What’s most remarkable about this trilogy is just how fluent West is in adapting his filmmaking to a specific time period or style. It’s a skill you rarely see done with this level of care and knowledge without it feeling like a gimmick.
I suspect MaXXXine will benefit from several rewatches to really peel the layers of West’s cinematic onion. West seems less sure about what kind of a film he wants to make with MaXXXine, but it’s still an ambitious, stylish and entertaining closing chapter of West’s trilogy.
MaXXXine is in UK cinemas 5th July.