“MaXXXine” Review

Mia Goth reprises her role as Maxine Minx in “MaXXXine”, the third and final film in a trilogy of horror features made by Ti West and distributed by A24.

Among the many delights given to us in 2022 by A24 was the slasher horror film “X”. Written and directed by Ti West, the homage to 70s exploitation horror was a vibrant exercise in grime and hilarity wrapped in frights that captivated me, especially with Mia Goth’s amazing dual performance as the protagonist porn actress Maxine and the elderly murderer Pearl. What was even more mind-blowing was the fact that, following the film’s credits, Ti West revealed a teaser trailer for “Pearl”: a prequel to “X” that had already been shot and edited and scheduled for a release the same year. With the feel of a psychotic character study set in a quaint 1918 environment, “Pearl” left just as big of a mark as “X” and, like its predecessor, promised another film in a franchise that I didn’t even know I wanted. Now, after nearly two years of waiting, the third and final film in this remarkable horror series has arrived with “MaXXXine”. Far bigger in scale than its predecessors, the film still contains the savagely entertaining bite that defined the others while boasting excellent performances, bloody fun and a satisfying end for the trilogy.

Six years after the events of “X”, Maxine Minx (Mia Goth) has put the horrors of the past behind her as she leads a successful career in pornography in 1985 Los Angeles as the Night Stalker murders shake the city. However, her ambitions lead her towards mainstream Hollywood work when she lands the leading role in “The Puritan II” which could represent her big break. When a deranged, mysterious serial killer begins taking out people in Maxine’s life, she must prepare to, once again, defeat a homicidal madman. 

Mia Goth’s work in this series cannot be overstated. Not only has her acting stretched the limits of her potential but she even cowrote the script to “Pearl” with Ti West stemming from the backstory she created for the character of Pearl. In this film, Goth brings the same tenacity to Maxine that was present in “X” but there is a bit more grit to the performance since it’s years later and she has been through quite a bit of trauma. There’s this incredible vitality to Goth that makes her one of the most exciting talents right now with a complete trilogy of films to showcase her massive talent. 

Writer/director Ti West has created something truly enthralling because “MaXXXine” can be viewed independently from the other two films in the series. However, to view all three together is so gratifying no matter which order you choose. From references to repeating certain shots to even a bit of meta humor, watching “MaXXXine” was extremely pleasurable since I am such a fan of the series. When Molly Bennett (Lily Collins), an actress in “The Puritan II” working with Maxine, says that her screaming face in the first “Puritan” has become iconic, I swear that West was making a tongue-in-cheek reference to Jenna Ortega’s now iconic scream from “X”. 

“MaXXXine” loves to subvert the tropes of 1980s slashers, like the main character being sexually active as opposed to the “pure virgin final girl”, while also embracing the bloody gore that defined many slasher horror films of the decade. The energy of the 1980s is on full display without feeling too much like a neon-soaked caricature, mainly because the scummy side of the decade is explored. The visual aesthetic of “MaXXXine” feels like a combination of “A Nightmare on Elm Street”, “The Terminator”, “Scarface” and “After Hours” with juxtaposing camp and grit. 

Unlike “X” and “Pearl”, which felt pretty contained in the Texas countryside, “MaXXXine” is far more expansive with Hollywood as the setting and a large cast of heavy-hitters. Granted, the first two films featured remarkable talents like Jenna Ortega, Brittany Snow, Kid Cudi, David Corenswet and Martin Henderson but the cast of “MaXXXine” is insanely packed. People like Halsey, Lily Collins and Moses Sumney all bring their vibrant personalities to their parts and are quite memorable. Bobby Cannavale and Michelle Monaghan could have starred in their own buddy-cop movie with their insanely comedic chemistry and Giancarlo Esposito is delightful as Teddy Knight, Maxine’s agent who actually isn’t a scumbag to his client. Yet another cliché that has been upended by Ti West. 

Elizabeth Debicki is quite intense as Elizabeth Bender, the director of “The Puritan II” who sees something special in Maxine and has put her own career at risk by demanding a pornographic actor be in her film. With a frankness that she must possess to stand out amongst male directors, Bender is the kind of hands-on, caring and to-the-point director that I found to be an interesting addition to the cast. And then there’s Kevin Bacon. Sweet Jesus, Kevin Bacon is so crazy and so incredible as this cocky, private-eye stalking Maxine with a less-than-subtle Cajun accent that I just love. 

The underlying mystery of the killer stalking Maxine was pretty engaging because you do fear for her safety but I was also interested in seeing Maxine just navigating the world of Hollywood. Amongst the Satanic Panic of the 1980s (one of many reasons I’m glad Jerry Fallwell is dead), her journey from pornography to studio pictures is interesting as we see how certain characters, like Teddy Knight and Elizabeth Bender, actually support her and her passions while others in the industry have a more cold and exploitative nature. The way this entire franchise approaches the relationship between art, sex and violence is quite intelligent, especially when you consider the hypocrisy that massive amounts of violence (as long as it’s not too gory) can get a film a PG-13 rating while sex (including intimate, consensual, romantic scenes) gets an automatic R rating. 

But while I did have a good time with “MaXXXine”, I must confess that this is my least favorite of the series. However, I think this is due to my personal tastes since the film is of good quality like its predecessors. I just preferred the 1970s grime of “X” and the 1920s Golden Age of Hollywood look of “Pearl” to the 1980s video slasher aesthetic of “MaXXXine”. But that’s the beautiful thing about this series. I can imagine people that love the series having widely different opinions about which film is their favorite. 

With this series now complete, I am eager to watch all of these films together and to experiment with the order I watch them in. I want to see how they reflect each other while standing out on their own. “MaXXXine” is most certainly going to appeal to fans but I hope it also attracts newcomers to the wild world of Ti West’s crazy tales and Mia Goth’s multifaceted work.