Pearl
Movie, 2022, The 2020s, Set in The same farm, 1918
Pearl is #25 of 37 in release order and #25 of 37 in chronological order in the A24.
The story
Trapped on her family’s isolated farm, Pearl must tend to her ailing father under the bitter and overbearing watch of her devout mother. Lusting for a glamorous life like she’s seen in the movies, Pearl’s ambitions, temptations, and repressions collide.
Pearl recap
Pearl (2022) goes back to 1918 to show the young Pearl, later the killer of X, stuck on her German immigrant parents' Texas farm and dreaming of stardom. Ti West directs and co-writes with Mia Goth, who returns in the title role. With her husband Howard (Alistair Sewell) away at the war and the Spanish flu keeping the family isolated, Pearl tends her paralyzed father (Matthew Sunderland) under her stern mother Ruth (Tandi Wright), and feeds the animals she kills to an alligator in the pond. Trips to the picture house introduce her to a charming projectionist (David Corenswet) who shows her a forbidden stag film. When her sister-in-law Mitsy (Emma Jenkins-Purro) mentions a chorus girl audition, Pearl begs to go; Ruth calls her a failure, the fight ends with Ruth's dress on fire, and Pearl locks her in the basement. She then kills the projectionist with a pitchfork. It is the second film in the trilogy, a prequel set 61 years before X.
Pearl ending explained
Pearl ends with Howard coming home to a horror. At the audition Pearl is rejected for not being young, blonde and all-American enough. Back at the farm, she pours out every secret to Mitsy, then makes her admit she won the spot, chases her down the drive and kills her with an axe, feeding her to the alligator. Having already smothered her father, she seats her parents' rotting bodies at the dinner table. When Howard walks in, Pearl tells him she is so happy he is home and holds a long, strained smile. Sixty-one years later, the couple are the killers in X.
Post-credits scenes
No. The end credits roll over Pearl's long, forced smile; a teaser for MaXXXine followed them only at the Toronto festival screening.
Where to watch Pearl
Pearl is streaming on Prime Video, Hulu, Kanopy, Hoopla, Fandango at Home Free, and Plex in the US. You can rent or buy it on Amazon, Apple TV, and Google Play.
Ratings
IMDb 7.0/10, Rotten Tomatoes 93%
Where it fits
Cast
- Mia Goth as Pearl
- David Corenswet as Projectionist
- Tandi Wright as Ruth
- Matthew Sunderland as Father
- Emma Jenkins-Purro as Mitsy
- Alistair Sewell as Howard
- Amelia Reid as Margaret
- Gabe McDonnell as Woman
- Lauren Stewart as Pianist
- Todd Rippon as Director
- Grace Acheson as Ticket Taker
- Shaman Theron as Crying Girl (uncredited)
Directed by Ti West.