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MaXXXine (Ti West, 2024)

In recent years, Mia Goth has turned into a Hollywood star. A status that her characters Maxine Miller/Minx and Pearl Douglas have craved. Together with director Ti West, the first two instalments of their film trilogy X (2022) and Pearl (2022) has netted them critical praise and fans in the franchise. Therefore, the third entry, MaXXXine (2024) was always going to be eagerly anticipated, especially when it's set in Hollywood during the mid-eighties.

MaXXXine never relents in its mission of showcasing the overly familar eighties aesthetic which has been pastiched for decades now. Cue an abundance of neon lights, video filtering and the retro sound of cold synths and sleazy saxophones. It's a remarkable achievement in MaXXXine; a nostalgic trip to a world defined by films from a given era rather than adhere historical authenticity. Both The House of the Devil (2009) and the previously mentioned X were testament to West's expertise in recreating past decades, thus, it's hardly a surprise MaXXXine's cinematic world is easily its strongest asset.

Ironically, West's devotion to visual aesthetics, film references and various homages have come at the expense of a focused plot, character developments and a worthy final act. Worst of all, the levels of suspense and terror, which were part and parcel in the very films which inspire MaXXXine, are largely absent. These egrious errors result in the weakest entry in the X trilogy.

As talented as Mia Goth is, Maxine has regressed to a two dimensional character. Aspiring to transition from a porn star to a Hollywood starlet is not only her ultimate goal, but her entire personality. Her ruthlessness is largely on the back burner and only appears in a few scenes; one of which involves an unfortunate Buster Keaton impersonator. For the most part, she's either being harassed and stalked by Kevin Bacon's slimy P.I, or taking career advice from Elizabeth Debicki’s snooty horror director. Meanwhile, Michelle Monaghan and Bobby Cannavale have little to work with as cops on the hunt for L.A's serial killer, the Night Stalker, other than light relief. Similarly, Giancarlo Esposito as Maxine's agent hardly offers little in the film with the exception of look amusing wearing a wig on his head. The rest of the cast are even less fortunate. Maxine's close circle merely exist for the bodycount. Throw in the obligatory Satanic Panic hysteria from the era, and you have loads of elements that come across as scatterbrained. They all lead to an unsatisfying conclusion, unfortunately. The big reveal was no different to the nonsensically, eye-rolling ones featured in the Scream sequels.

Still, fans of genre films, especially lovers of the slasher and the giallo, might get more mileage out of the film than normies. Notable setpieces include a beautifully filmed Argento style kill à la Tenebrae (1982) inside a seedy video store. Tyler Bates supplies a fantastic score for it; which sounds like a mashup of vintage Goblin and Your Vice is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key's soundtracks. Fans of eighties Friedkin and De Palma won't go hungry, either. Biggest surprise of all is the severed head on a bed homage from the video nasty Nightmare in a Damaged Brain (1981). There are of course less obscure references like the parallels between Pearl and Norma Bates; made all the more obvious with the former peering out of the iconic house adjacent to the notorious Bates Motel. Maxxxine is loaded with many movie references and easter eggs for easily pleased cinephiles. All distractions from the film's aforementioned flaws.

To conclude, MaXXXine is an enjoyable, but significant step down from its predecessors; plenty to appease horror fans and eighties nostalgia heads, but lacking in offering anything truly meaningful. Which is a genuine shame, since Ti West and Mia Goth were a winning combination over the last couple of years.