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MaXXXine

Review by Rich Cline | 3/5

MaXXXine
dir-scr Ti West
prd Mia Goth, Jacob Jaffke, Harrison Kreiss, Kevin Turen, Ti West
with Mia Goth, Elizabeth Debicki, Kevin Bacon, Giancarlo Esposito, Bobby Cannavale, Michelle Monaghan, Simon Prast, Halsey, Moses Sumney, Lily Collins, Toby Huss, Larry Fessenden
release US/UK 5.Jul.24
24/US A24 1h44

bacon esposito monaghan
See also:
Pearl 2022



Is it streaming?

goth and debicki
A third chapter in writer-director Ti West's blackly comical series about the quest for stardom, this 1980s-set story once again weaves in some seriously grisly horror. Essentially a fiendishly cynical comment on how only the most ruthless people survive Hollywood, it's shot period-style with a wonderful VHS-style vibe, a superb song score and outrageously gruesome in-camera effects. And Mia Goth goes for it in the title role.
In 1985, Maxine (Goth) is determined to transition from porn to mainstream movies, so she puts everything into an audition for the sequel to The Puritan by rising star filmmaker Elizabeth (Debicki). And she lands the role, which thrills her shady agent Teddy (Esposito). But as the Night Stalker is murdering women around the city, the swaggering private eye John (Bacon) is following Maxine with threats from her religious Texas past. Soon people around Maxine are being murdered, apparently by a satanic cult. And two police detectives (Monaghan and Cannavale) are on the case.
Playing heavily on 1980s paranoias, the story includes piles of cocaine and protests at studio gates about demonic influences in the movies. Everyone is on edge that a serial killer is on the loose. This low-down, gritty ambience allows West to throw in some random violence, quickly establishing Maxine's fearlessness when it comes to facing off against any physical threat, and then some. Much of this unfolds in a tongue-in-cheek way, deliberately going far over the top with wry references, deranged comedy and extreme gore.

Although Maxine has no character arc, Goth finds intriguing textures in this ambitious young woman who is willing to do whatever it takes to become a star. She finds nuance in various scenes, particularly with the magnetic Debicki. Other characters are designed to be cartoonish, so the actors have a lot of fun. Bacon is particularly amusing as a riotous loose-cannon who seems oblivious to his own mortality. And Esposito is hilariously full-on as the mafioso-style entertainment lawyer.

West assembles this with attention on stylised visuals rather than the story, so it looks fantastic even if it never quite resonates or satisfies. Fanatical Christianity is depicted throughout the movie as little more than a joke in a father-daughter power struggle. And other pastiche elements are similarly superficial, silly rather than pointed as they poke fun at what, in this case, is literally a cut-throat industry. Thankfully, there's also a glimmer of subtext in the idea that stardom is something supernatural.

cert 18 themes, language, violence, sexuality 1.Jul.24

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© 2024 by Rich Cline, Shadows on the Wall
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