A 2022 period horror flick has swiftly carved its way into the annals of great slasher movies, and it’s now frighteningly easy to enjoy from the comfort of your sofa.
As a standout entry from one of the highly praised trilogies of recent times, this enthralling, emotionally charged thriller boasts a “show-stopping” turn by a renowned actor.
Transporting audiences to the 1910s, the film acts as a prequel to Ti West’s X, plunging into the origins of that unforgettable tale with nightmarish flair.
Mia Goth delivers a career-defining performance in the lead role of Pearl, a deranged hopeful of silver-screen fame driven insane by heart-wrenching rejection.
Drawing dark parallels with The Wizard of Oz and the pursuit of stardom in a burgeoning Hollywood, this brooding psychological scare-fest resonated with cinephiles and is now streaming on Netflix, reports the Daily Record.
If you find yourself captivated by Pearl’s twisted journey, keep an eye out for the equally enthralling third part, Maxxxine, available for rent or purchase on platforms like Prime Video and Apple TV.
The movie has mesmerised audiences primarily due to Goth’s entrancing central portrayal.
Praise rains down from Little White Lies, which remarked: “At the end of the day, Pearl is a film which will live or die on your tolerance for Goth’s nitro-powered performance, in which she plays a character who only projects in extremes.
“The calculatedly rictus smile she wears during a failed dance audition flips on a dime into a roof-panel-shaking primal scream.”
CGMagazine’s review observed: “Aesthetics aside, a movie like Pearl lives and dies off the lead performance, and Mia Goth delivers a show-stopping performance here.”
On Google, an enthusiastic five-star review exclaimed: “I didn’t expect anything nearly as good as this. Flawlessly innovative and brave film-making.
“The searing technicolour palette and score reference Douglas Sirk but the narrative and universe is dark, complex and very very edgy.”
“Mia Goth is a total triumph,” they added, “and her performance only makes me more furious that the Oscars turns its nose up at ‘horror’ so performances like this go unrewarded.
“She is breathtaking in this and gives a startling, moving and unsettling performance the likes of which I don’t think I’ve ever seen before.”
On Letterboxd, another glowing five-star review echoed the sentiment that Goth’s performance warranted major accolades.
“I’m not saying that Mia Goth should get a Best Actress nomination, but Mia Goth should definitely get a Best Actress nomination. Just saying,” the review read.
Another raved: “How is it that a film that features a bunch of brutal kills and a woman making out with a scarecrow is one of the saddest and deeply beautiful tragic horror films ever made? I have no idea.
“In a perfect world, Mia Goth will be the number one front runner for winning Best Actress come this award season. But because award shows are allergic to performances in horror films for the most part, that sadly won’t happen.”
Although she didn’t secure an Oscar nomination, Goth has been hailed as one of the emerging ‘Scream Queens’ of her era. Don’t miss her most memorable performance yet.
Pearl is available to stream on Netflix.