Wednesday 25 May 2022

REVIEW: X (2022) - Starring Mia Goth, Jenna Ortega, Martin Henderson, Brittany Snow, Owen Campbell, Stephen Ure, and Scott Mescudi

Review by Jon Donnis
Set in 1979, aspiring pornographic actress Maxine Minx (Played by Mia Goth) is on a road trip with her producer boyfriend Wayne Gilroy (played by Martin Henderson) and fellow "actors" Bobby-Lynne (Brittany Snow) and Jackson Hole (Scott Mescudi), along with director RJ Nichols (Owen Campbell) and RJ's girlfriend Lorraine (Jenna Ortega), they are off to film a porn film called "The Farmers Daughter". They have found the perfect location to film it, at the farmhouse of Howard (Stephen Ure) and Pearl (also played by Mia Goth in makeup)


RJ is trying to sell the whole idea of the film to his religious girlfriend as a piece of serious cinema that just happens to include porn.


Upon arriving at the farmhouse, filming begins without the knowledge of Howard and Pearl. Pearl sees some of the sex being filmed, and starts stalking Maxine, Pearl is turned on and wants Howard to have sex with her, but due to his age and bad health he refuses. Pearl makes an advance on Maxine, but is rejected.

As night falls things start to get even more freaky, and this is where the killings start.


As horror films go this is a proper old school slasher type of horror, not only is it set in the late 70s, it almost feels like you are watching a film from that era, and although there isn't really anything new in the killing scenes, everything is done in a classic style, with decent special effects.

My one complaint with the film is that because they are making a porno within the film, we have some of those scenes in it, along with the exaggeration of such a scene, now I like to watch films through my speakers, but I found myself having to quickly turn down the volume as the last thing I want is my neighbour thinking I am watching a real porno on full blast! Usually, sex scenes in films usually have music over them. I felt that the same story could have been told without the sex scenes.


Also, there is nothing supernatural about the film, and there is no big twist that you usually get in horror films, so for me the ending felt a bit flat.

The Good
Everything looks great, nice direction, the actors all play their roles well.

The Bad
A flat ending and pointless sex scenes, not to mention it takes a LONG time for the actual horror elements of the film to start, at least an hour before anyone is killed!
The name of the film is terrible too, how is anyone supposed to find the film in a search engine?

Overall
X is a perfectly passible old fashioned slasher film. Although it doesn't offer anything new, it does have a decent story, and some creepy as hell antagonists

I score X a fair 7/10

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