---
title: "Pearl"
year: 2022
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/pearl"
fi1m_id: "pearl"
imdb_id: "tt18925334"
tmdb_id: 949423
wikidata_id: "Q111669794"
fi1m_score: 76
critics_score: 75
critics_reviews: 17
published: "2026-09-10"
updated: "2026-09-18T08:38:01.652094+00:00"
region: "US"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Pearl (2022)

Directed by Ti West · 1h 42m · MPA R · Horror

## Identity

Pearl

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/pearl
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** pearl
- **IMDb ID:** tt18925334
- **TMDB ID:** 949423
- **Wikidata ID:** Q111669794
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt18925334/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/949423, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q111669794

**Fi1m score: 76** · Critics 75 from 17 reviews

*In a sentence:* Technicolor, a farm girl who wants to be in pictures, and an alligator in the pond that is not the problem

> Ti West’s prequel to *X* is a Technicolor melodrama with a horror film inside it, and Mia Goth is the whole reason to see it. The picture around her is slighter than its colours, but she makes 102 minutes pass quickly.

## Synopsis

Pearl (Mia Goth) is a young woman on an isolated farm during the influenza epidemic. Her husband Howard (Alistair Sewell) is away at the war. Her mother Ruth (Tandi Wright) runs the house and the money with a tight hand, and her father (Matthew Sunderland), paralysed and silent, needs feeding, washing and turning. Pearl wants to be a dancer in the pictures. On a trip into town she meets a projectionist (David Corenswet) who talks to her about the films he shows, and her sister-in-law Mitsy (Emma Jenkins-Purro) mentions an audition for a touring dance troupe. Pearl decides she will go, whatever her mother says. Ti West directs a prequel to his earlier film *X*.

## Review

Pearl (Mia Goth) lives on a farm with her mother and her paralysed father. She feeds the animals, talks to the alligator in the pond and wants, more than anything, to be a dancer in the pictures. Her husband Howard (Alistair Sewell) is away at the war and the influenza has everyone in masks. Ti West’s *Pearl* is a prequel to *X*, the slasher he released earlier the same year, and it sets out to explain how the old woman with the pitchfork got that way. It is a good film with one remarkable performance in it, and the performance is the reason to go.

West wants a horror film that looks like a studio musical, and Eliot Rockett gives him the colours: a sky the blue of a paint chart, corn the yellow of butter, and a red on Pearl’s town dress that looks as if it would come off on your fingers. Tom Hammock builds the farmhouse out of dark wood and one bare bulb, so that every time Pearl steps outside it is like a door opening onto Oz. Tyler Bates and Tim Williams write the sort of swelling strings Douglas Sirk used to lay under women weeping into their gloves. Malgosia Turzanska keeps Pearl in a blue pinafore for the chores, and nobody involved pretends the film has not seen [*The Wizard of Oz*](https://film.one/film/the-wizard-of-oz).

Goth, who wrote the script with West, plays Pearl in a voice pitched high and sweet, like a girl reading aloud in Sunday school, and the trick of the performance is how long she can keep that voice steady while the eyes go somewhere else. She is good at small wrongness: a smile that arrives a beat late, a hand left on her father’s arm a moment past comfort. When the dance number comes it is with a scarecrow in a cornfield, and it begins as a Judy Garland routine and ends somewhere no studio would have let it.

The scene the film will be remembered for comes late. Pearl sits at the kitchen table across from her sister-in-law Mitsy (Emma Jenkins-Purro) and tells her, at length, exactly who she is. West, who edits the film himself, does not cut. The camera stays on Goth for what felt to us like ten minutes while her face goes from pleading to boasting to weeping and back, sometimes inside one sentence. We laughed once, early on, at a line about her husband, and then we stopped laughing and did not start again. It was the refusal to cut that did it: any other film would have given us Mitsy’s face to hide behind, and West gives it to us only when Pearl has finished.

The film around that scene is slighter than it looks. Pearl wants to leave, her mother Ruth (Tandi Wright) will not let her, an audition is coming, and a projectionist in town (David Corenswet) shows her a film she should not see. The projectionist is the weakest strand, a young man written to say the things Pearl needs to hear, and Corenswet has little to do but be handsome and kind about it. The middle hour goes into town and back to the farm more often than it needs to, and when the violence arrives it is quick and blunt, with none of the invention *X* found for its killings.

As a prequel it also has a problem West does not solve. *X* told us, in one line and one look, why Pearl does what she does; this film takes 102 minutes to say the same thing, and the extra time decorates the answer without changing it. What it adds is Wright, whose Ruth is hard, frightened and right about nearly everything, and a dinner scene between mother and daughter as tense as anything in the film with a blade in it.

West has made patient horror before, in *The House of the Devil* and *The Innkeepers*, films that waited an hour for anything to happen. This is his brightest and loudest, and the patience survives in the way he holds a shot. Watch it after *X*, not before. On its own it is a well-coloured sketch of a woman the other film had already finished drawing.

*Fi1m score 76, published 10 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

The critics agree on one thing above all: Mia Goth. Almost every review, positive or not, singles out her performance as the young Pearl, and several point to a long monologue late on as the film’s high point. The praise also clusters around the look, a saturated Technicolor pastiche of old Hollywood that most find witty rather than arch, and around the sincerity West brings to a character who could have been a joke.

The reservations are about the script. IndieWire argues the prequel over-explains a figure who worked better as a mystery in X, and the Los Angeles Times, Variety and Polygon each wonder whether the film adds much to what the first one established. The lone real dissent is Slant Magazine, which calls it an empty exercise in homage. The spread is wide, from full marks to a shrug, but the balance is firmly favourable, and even the doubters keep Goth out of their complaints.

## Straight answers

**Is Pearl worth watching?**

*Pearl* is worth watching, chiefly for Mia Goth, and we scored it 76. Ti West's prequel to [*X*](https://film.one/film/x) is a horror film dressed as a Technicolor musical, and the picture around Goth is slighter than its colours, with a middle hour that goes into town and back too often. Watch it after *X*, not before.

**How long is Pearl, and what is it rated?**

*Pearl* runs 1h 42m and is rated R by the MPA in the US. It is a horror film.

**Where can I watch Pearl in the US?**

*Pearl* is streaming on HBO Max, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video and Disney+ in the US, and it is also available to rent from Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV from $3.99. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**How violent or frightening is Pearl, and is it suitable for children?**

*Pearl* is a 15 in the UK and R in the US, and it is not for children. The violence, when it arrives, is quick and blunt rather than elaborate, and the film spends more time on melodrama and unease than on gore. The most disturbing scene is a long, uncut monologue at a kitchen table, which older teenagers and adults will find harder to shake than any of the killings.

**How does Pearl compare to Carrie?**

*Pearl* and [*Carrie*](https://film.one/film/carrie) are both films about a girl nobody will let go to the dance, each with a mother who rules the house by fear. *Carrie* is the more frightening and the fuller film, and we recommend it more warmly, with a reservation about where De Palma's camera sometimes lingers. *Pearl* is the brighter, stranger sketch, and Mia Goth is the reason to choose it.

**What should I watch after Pearl?**

After *Pearl*, try [*X*](https://film.one/film/x) (2022, Fi1m 74): The film this one explains; grubbier, funnier, and with Goth playing both ends of the story. Then [*Carrie*](https://film.one/film/carrie) (1976, Fi1m 86): The other girl nobody let go to the dance, with a mother to match Ruth; and [*Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?*](https://film.one/film/what-ever-happened-to-baby-jane) (1962, Fi1m 82): Old Hollywood, a house nobody leaves, and stardom wanted long after the offer closed.

### Reviews we read (24)

- **The AV Club**, Phil Pirrello (A-): The critic hails the film as one of the year's best overall, crediting West with elevating horror through emotionally grounded character work. Mia Goth's lead performance is singled out as a star-making turn that makes Pearl's tragic spiral deeply relatable. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/pearl-movie-review-x-prequel-ti-west-mia-goth-1849530900)
- **Little White Lies**, David Jenkins (2/4/4): West pays homage to The Wizard of Oz in this prequel to X, but Mia Goth's nitro-powered performance really makes it sing. It lives or dies on tolerance for her extreme, beguiling portrayal of a character projecting only in extremes amid gory murders and a Spanish flu setting. [Read](https://lwlies.com/reviews/pearl)
- **Radio Times**, Matt Glasby (4/5): This prequel details the backstory of X's antagonist Pearl, creating a Technicolor psychodrama steeped in classical Hollywood lore. Goth gives dignity and depth to a character like the love child of Carrie White and Norman Bates. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-3m84jv/pearl/)
- **The Guardian** (80/100, inferred): The critic praises the film as a gloriously demented homage to old Hollywood, with witty cine-literacy and explosive bursts of deranged bloodshed. Mia Goth delivers a phenomenal, riotously entertaining performance as the deranged teenager with a monstrous need to be loved. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2023/mar/18/pearl-ti-west-mia-goth-demented-technicolor-homage-to-old-hollywood)
- **Time Out**, Anna Smith (4/5): West and co-writer Goth have fun asking whether Pearl was born bad or pushed over the edge in an entertaining blend of shockfest and movie pastiche. Goth is bewitching in the lead, with a riveting monologue offering insight into a sociopathic mind. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/pearl-2023)
- **The New York Times**, A.O. Scott (75/100, inferred): The critic praises the hallucinatory intensity and Mia Goth's earnest, bizarre performance as the homicidal farm girl, noting the film's sincere tenderness toward its heroine despite some thinness. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/15/movies/pearl-review.html)
- **The Telegraph** (75/100, inferred): Mia Goth is tremendous in this ripe and riotous prequel, moving through a considerable breadth of talent in her lead role. The film explores the hardscrabble early life of the villain from X with stylish bloodbath elements and Technicolor musical unreality. [Read](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/0/pearl-review-mia-goth-tremendous-stylish-bloodbath/)
- **The Hollywood Reporter**, David Rooney (70/100, inferred): The critic sees the film as a campy Sirkian slasher prequel that prioritizes lush midcentury melodrama stylings over genuine horror scares. Mia Goth's performance is singled out for its compelling mix of doe-eyed innocence and sinister unraveling. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/pearl-ti-west-mia-goth-x-prequel-1235211363/)
- **Variety**, Peter Debruge (70/100, inferred): The critic finds the Technicolor prequel an appealingly odd antihero origin story with a distinctive look and strong Mia Goth turn, though it feels like an afterthought that doesn't deepen the prior film's mythology. [Read](https://variety.com/2022/film/reviews/pearl-review-mia-goth-ti-west-1235351591/)
- **Los Angeles Times**, Robert Abele (65/100, inferred): The review highlights Mia Goth's enjoyably demented performance and the film's colorful period melodrama but questions whether the prequel adds much beyond what was already established in 'X'. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2022-09-15/review-pearl-x-horror-ti-west-mia-goth)
- **IndieWire**, Kate Erbland (C+): The critic argues that the prequel over-explains the character from X in a way that diminishes both films, with a rickety screenplay beholden to the original. The Technicolor visuals and Goth's presence are acknowledged but ultimately fail to elevate the uneven result. [Read](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/pearl-movie-review-ti-west-prequel-1234756105/)
- **Slant Magazine**, Derek Smith (40/100, inferred): The critic dismisses the film as an empty stylistic exercise that prioritizes referential homages over meaningful character exploration. Goth's versatile performance is the main element singled out for praise amid complaints of tonal whiplash and narrative thinness. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/pearl-review-mia-goth-ti-west/)
- **Empire**, Kim Newman: The film is an ambitious, impressive centrepiece in the X trilogy and an American gothic shocker with much to say. The critic singles out Mia Goth's awards-worthy lead performance for particular praise. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/pearl/)
- **Screen Daily**: Pearl is a terrific showcase for Mia Goth as a young woman whose grip on sanity is slipping fast. It pivots to an engrossing study in strangeness that stands on its own unsettlingly odd merits as a minor gem in its genre. [Read](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/pearl-venice-review/5173787.article)
- **Sight and Sound**: The prequel to X is a smart, sharp affair with plenty of blood in the franchise's veins. Mia Goth delivers a tour de force performance as the younger Pearl, with a bravura monologue highlighting her elastic facial features and sociopathic self-actualisation. [Read](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/pearl-gory-gift-that-keeps-giving)
- **The i Paper**, Christina Newland: Pearl is a demented and charming Wizard of Oz-like horror that is all the more disturbing because it does not look like a horror movie. The critic singles out Mia Goth's strange, deceptively childlike yet sinister performance for particular praise. [Read](https://inews.co.uk/culture/pearl-review-mia-goth-world-samey-starlets-2211552)
- **Total Film**: Ti West's period psycho tale is clever, violent, and wicked with a fabulously unhinged turn from Goth. The critic singles out the lead performance and inventive cinematic flourishes for particular praise. [Read](https://www.gamesradar.com/pearl-review-x/)
- **The Skinny**, Zoe Crombie (5/5): A wonderfully camp yet disturbing Technicolor prequel that cements Mia Goth as a genre icon through her sweetly unhinged portrayal of a woman driven to violence by crushed dreams and repression. [Read](https://www.theskinny.co.uk/film/new-releases/pearl)
- **Den of Geek**, Bernard Boo (4.5/5): The prequel improves on X thanks to Mia Goth's spellbinding lead performance as the young Pearl, whose descent into violence is explored through a striking Technicolor style and psychological depth. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/pearl-review-a24-horror-improves-on-x/)
- **NME**, Paul Bradshaw (90/100, inferred): West crafts a visually dazzling character study of a repressed would-be star whose inner darkness erupts violently, anchored by an extraordinary, tour-de-force performance from Mia Goth. [Read](https://www.nme.com/reviews/film-reviews/pearl-review-mia-goth-horror-3414788)
- **/Film**, Lex Briscuso (8.5/10): The critic calls the film an ambitious and bold work of horror that questions what it means to deserve love. Mia Goth's performance is singled out as utterly transcendent and the film's standout element. [Read](https://www.slashfilm.com/993383/pearl-review-mia-goth-goes-bonkers-for-fame-and-love-in-her-biggest-breakout-role-yet-venice/)
- **Polygon**, Rafael Motamayor (65/100, inferred): The critic calls Mia Goth's performance mesmerizing and a tour-de-force that cements her as a horror icon, while praising the film's vivid Technicolor visuals and score. They criticize the meandering plot, thin character development, and lack of purposeful pastiche or deeper commentary compared to X. [Read](https://www.polygon.com/reviews/23351534/pearl-review-mia-goth-ti-west-prequel/)
- **Deadline**, Damon Wise: The critic finds Pearl a terrifically enjoyable horror prequel that artfully drills down into the essence of its predecessor X. Goth's powerhouse performance is singled out as elevating the material and delivering one of the most committed female horror-comedy turns in years. [Read](https://deadline.com/2022/09/pearl-review-ti-west-mia-goth-venice-film-festival-1235107676/)
- **The Wrap**: The critic calls Pearl a stunning prequel that illuminates and recontextualizes X, dramatically improving an already acclaimed film. Mia Goth's sad yet scary performance is singled out for making the film genuinely frightening and unforgettable. [Read](https://www.thewrap.com/pearl-film-review-x-prequel-ti-west-mia-goth/)

## Details

- **Director:** Ti West
- **Director:** Ti West
- **Writer:** Ti West, Mia Goth
- **Cinematography:** Eliot Rockett
- **Editor:** Ti West
- **Music:** Tyler Bates, Timothy Williams
- **Production design:** Tom Hammock
- **Costume design:** Malgosia Turzanska
- **Producer:** Jacob Jaffke, Harrison Kreiss, Kevin Turen
- **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
- **Runtime:** 1h 42m
- **Certificate (MPA):** R
- **Release (the US):** 16 September 2022
- **Genres:** Horror
- **Budget:** $1 million
- **Box office:** $10 million
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5PW5r3pEOg

## Where to watch in the US

- HBO Max: streaming, uhd
- Hulu: streaming, uhd
- Amazon Prime Video: add-on, uhd
- Disney+: add-on, uhd
- Amazon Prime Video: rent $3.99, sd
- Apple TV: rent $4.99, hd
- Apple TV: buy $19.99, hd
- Amazon Prime Video: buy $19.99, uhd

*Checked 2026-09-10.*

Also available in: AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, ES, FI, FR, GB, HU, IE, IT, JP, MX, NL, NO, NZ, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## Awards

- Saturn Awards 2022: Best Independent Film (won)
- Sitges Film Festival Best Actress award 2022: Sitges Film Festival Best Actress award (won)
- Sitges Film Festival Best Director award 2022: Sitges Film Festival Best Director award (won)

## If you liked this

- *X* (2022), Fi1m 74: The film this one explains; grubbier, funnier, and with Goth playing both ends of the story. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/x.md)
- *Carrie* (1976), Fi1m 86: The other girl nobody let go to the dance, with a mother to match Ruth. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/carrie.md)
- *Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?* (1962), Fi1m 82: Old Hollywood, a house nobody leaves, and stardom wanted long after the offer closed. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/what-ever-happened-to-baby-jane.md)
- *The Love Witch* (2016): Another woman in Technicolor who wants to be loved and will not take no.
- *Sweetie* (1989): Jane Campion’s first film, an Australian family with a daughter they cannot manage.

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/pearl