Ti West’s latest film, X, is one of the most recent releases to come from indie film and distributor powerhouse company A24 and is the latest horror film to come from the studio. X works well with the company’s reputation of visually pleasing and aesthetic cinematography with story exploration of topics typically not given attention by larger studios, allowing X to be completely authentic to the erotic horror nature of its plot.
Without spoilers, X is set in the 1970s in rural Texas. Exotic dancers Maxine (Mia Goth) and Bobby-Lynne (Brittany Snow), their producer, Wayne (Martin Henderson), adult actor Jackson (Scott Mescudi, or Kid Cudi), and their director RJ (Owen Campbell) and his girlfriend Lorraine (Jenna Ortega) head out of the city and visit a farm in the deep countryside in order to produce a film to contribute to the growing home adult film industry. Once they reach the farm, the group meet the older couple who own the property, a couple with traditional values and a dark secret. Following the footsteps of slashers that paved the way in the genre, you can guess how much of the main cast are left alive by the final credits (hint: not many).
This film is gory but no more than any other films that fall under the ‘slasher’ umbrella so if you can stomach Texas Chainsaw Massacre or Halloween, you can handle West’s latest project. West and the actors do a fantastic job blending comedy, sex and horror into the film in a way that is seamless and fun to watch as an audience member. Not to mention the soundtrack that this film is set to is phenomenal, especially if you are a lover of 1970’s music such as Loretta Lynn and Fleetwood Mac. The way these actors were able to portray the gory events of the film while still exuding the sexual element of the story and creating fun visuals is so reminiscent of the tropes laid out by early films of the genre. X fulfills most tropes with the ‘innocent woman’ archetype, promiscuity being a reason for violence and outlandish and unsettling demises for our main cast. This film was a delightful homage to the slasher canon and I believe it has cemented itself as a stand-out film without the genre and highly recommend that if you are a fan of the horror genre, go see it in theaters soon! But be sure to stick around after the main credits as West may have filmed a prequel to the events of X while filming this original movie itself and the teaser for the upcoming expansion to the story might play!