Horror trilogies tend to be disappointing. You get amped up on the first film which absolutely kills it—well, someone’s usually getting killed, anyway—and then the second film falls flat. Very flat. But you’re committed, so you watch the third one hoping it redeems the second. And it usually does not.
The X Trilogy—X, Pearl, and MaXXXine—is not like this. While MaXXXine serves up Maxxxine Minx as the sum and progression of her experiences in X, the flashback in Pearl really drives home one of the main themes across all three films. Beyond this, there are common elements that weave through all the three, tightly connecting each with the others. This is common enough where trilogies are concerned, but here we have a wonderful diversion from the norm in that the films do not have to be seen alongside one another to enjoy them.
You can watch any single one and enjoy the film on its own. Pearl is disturbing all on its own, but adds context to X. X is fucked up all on its own, but adds context to MaXXXine. Watch all three and get a bird’s eye view of how fucked these characters all are.
You can watch any single one and enjoy the film on its own. Pearl is disturbing all on its own, but adds context to X. X is fucked up all on its own, but adds context to MaXXXine. Watch all three and get a bird’s eye view of how fucked these characters all are.
Now, as the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, we recommend watching them all together, which can be done in one of two ways:
Release Order, where you’ll just watch them in the order they were released, which provides some thoughtful consideration after viewing. X sets the stage (ha! puns) and delivers a brutal punch to get the whole thing going; Pearl takes us back in time to understand why Pearl is so goddamned fucked up; and then we're back to the future, following up with Maxine Minx as she makes her way in Hollywood, in MaXXXine; or
Chronologically: Pearl, X, MaXXXine--where you’ll watch them in the order events occur across the films.
We’ll go into a little detail in either case further down, but you cannot go wrong any way you watch them. Just save MaXXXine for last. However you choose to enjoy these films, remember that in the end, it's all showbiz, baby! You can find the list on Letterboxd here:
Okay, so what’s the big deal? Here is a porn-themed horror series. Not the first of its kind, either. Just another gritty look at the underbelly of the porn industry, with some murder thrown in for good measure. You know, gotta keep it real.
Real bloody, that is. It is, after all, good ol’ grindhouse horror. West does not shirk at blood, with plenty of it being spilled over all three films. But that’s nothing new when it comes to horror either. Just another titillating slasher, when you narrow it down to its bare essentials.
Except, these films do a fantastic job at maintaining a bare-essentials-level that sits far above standard porn-murder tropes. As Elements of Madness puts it, West “embraces both sleaze and sophistication” and does a killer job in executing on them both1. This is not your normal grindhouse; nay, this is polished grindhouse! The characters are not two-dimensional; there is some depth to each, allowing for more natural interactions and incongruences to arise, making for films that flow, and are not forced. The settings give a nod to popular horror—Texas Chain Saw, House of Wax, Lost Highway—while the cinematography sets each film apart one from another, with X being 4k Grindhouse, MaXXXine being shiny eighties gritty, and the color and scenes in Pearl being reminiscent of films like Victor Fleming’s The Wizard of Oz. In each film, you’re stepping into a world separate from the rest, and yet coherently tied together, not just with the Pearl-Maxine narrative, but with fame, stardom, repression, and ambition as heavy thematic elements.
This trilogy is no pulp horror fiction to be tossed away after a single viewing. This trilogy, in all of its sex and gore, is made to be savored.
Continued after the break
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A traveling merchant finds himself in quite the predicament when he manages to win a duel, leading him down a dark path. A tale from the Odds ‘n’ Endings Boutique.
So how best to savor it? Do you watch them in release order? Do you watch them chronologically? It really does not matter. Ideally, you end with MaXXXine, as that is the culmination of the series, though you don’t necessarily have to. If you start with MaXXXine, then everything else is a flashback. However, Pearl will feel a little out of place, given it is driven by Pearl’s story, which will seem far removed from MaXXXine. Just because you can start with MaXXXine does not mean you should start with MaXXXine.
Then what is the best film to begin with? X will drop you right into the series and introduce you to everyone all at once. The other two films break off from X, with Pearl taking you into the past and MaXXXine taking you into the future. Starting off with Pearl will take you from the very beginning to the very end in one direction. In my estimation, one isn’t necessarily better than the other, it really just depends on how you enjoy watching your films.
We here at the Calamity hope you enjoy your cinematic weekend however you decide to watch the films on this list. In fact, we would love to hear all about it! Please use the buttons below to share with us how you watched them and what you thought of them. And prepare for next week’s edition, where Calamity on Cinema will move entirely to Letterboxd. We’ll see you there!
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1 No, I will not stop using puns. This is just too rich. I’m dying laughing.