X (2022)

Smith’s Verdict: ***1/2

Reviewed by Tanner Smith

I was very curious and excited about the new horror film “X,” because it’s writer-director Ti West’s return to the horror genre. (I got into his chilling works in my college days–“The House of the Devil,” “The Innkeepers,” and my personal favorite, “The Sacrament.” Until Mike Flanagan came along, I was calling Ti West the king of modern horror.) I liked his previous film, a Western called “In a Valley of Violence,” but I wondered what a return to his roots would’ve been like…

It didn’t disappoint. In fact, “X” may even rank superior to his prior horror works. I kinda loved it.

Oh and it’s from A24, the studio that produces horror films that are too twisted for Blumhouse to touch (films like “Hereditary,” “The Witch,” “Midsommar,” and “The Lighthouse”)…or maybe they just give horror films the extra care that others normally wouldn’t.

“X” is very much “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” with a little “Boogie Nights” thrown in (and some callbacks to “The Shining” too, particularly in the music score). Set in 1979 rural Texas, “X” follows a group of filmmakers who make adult erotica. They rent a small cottage in the middle of nowhere, right next to a house where an elderly couple live, so the filmmakers can make their new adult film, titled The Farmer’s Daughters–guerilla-style, without the old folks knowing anything, and thus no one gets hurt…well, that’s the plan anyway. (You don’t really think things are gonna turn out smoothly in this atmospheric, depraved, chilling period-piece horror film, do you?)

Before the blood hits the fan (and it is a slow-burn movie), we get to know our lead characters–they’re all identifiable, somewhat relatable in one way or another, and they have an interesting dynamic together. We get to see them making their movie, and we also get to see them wind down and chill after wrapping for the night in a scene that also includes a nicely-done acoustic cover of Fleetwood Mac’s “Landslide” (vocals by Brittany Snow and acoustic guitar playing by Scott Mescudi aka rapper Kid Cudi).

All of the actors are terrific. Mia Goth plays Maxine, a cocaine-addicted actress who wants to be famous (“like Lynda Carter”). Martin Henderson has a McConaughey-like smoothness as the film’s producer/mastermind Wayne, who has a knack for talking his way out of anything. Brittany Snow is the free-spirited Bobby-Lynne, who delivers the lion’s share of the T&A for the movie. Scott Mescudi (again, Kid Cudi) is solid as a Marine who is willing to step into this film genre and have some fun at the same time. Jenna Ortega (sheesh, this is the FOURTH movie she’s been in this year, after “Scream,” “The Fallout,” and “Studio 666”–take a break, kid!) is a PA named Lorraine–her character arc, I’ll leave for you to discover, but it’s intriguing and especially chilling in hindsight.

They’re all memorable and the actors all do capable work, but my favorite character was the film’s director: RJ, a young up-and-comer who is heavily influenced by the French New Wave style and determined to make this the first “good adult film”–however, everyone is reminding him that people will only watch the film for the sex and nudity; it doesn’t matter how good the filmmaking is. (Also, RJ is played by Owen Campbell, who starred in “Super Dark Times,” one of my favorite horror films from the last 5 years–it’s good to see him again.)

We get to know our villains a little bit too, with carefully chosen lines of dialogue and enough subtlety to give us what we need to know without informing us that we need to see a prequel involving this old couple. (And fun fact: there IS a prequel to this movie, supposedly already made by West in secret. Wonder how that’ll turn out.) It’s made even more fascinating when you find out who is the actress that played the creepy old woman in this movie…

I don’t think I’m giving “X” the credit it deserves by simply acknowledging the characterizations and the horror callbacks. There are also themes of blooming sexuality, moral values, judgment, and religion–every now and again, we’ll catch glimpses on an old TV set of a televangelist warning those who give in to the temptations of the human flesh. I’m going to see this film again just so I can try and interpret what this little detail means or what that small aspect meant. I love movies that allow me to do that.

Oh and it’s bloody. Very, very bloody.

But it’s also very funny too. (The humor, again, comes from the lead characters’ interactions with each other.)

“X” is a horrific, tense, atmospheric chiller about how real people get into a real horror of a mess they didn’t expect…and possibly can’t get out of.

Welcome back, Ti West. This is your best film yet.