Why We Were Disappointed MaXXXine SPOILER Discussion 

Now I can’t get the idea of Maxxxine being haunted by a stalker dressed up as old Pearl from my mind. I really want to see THAT movie!

Really love this in-depth discussion. The two of you do great work!

Personally, I loved this movie. One big reason why is I loved the theme. I haven't seen anyone succinctly state this, but I think this franchise is completely meta and is about the ruthlessness and borderline sociopathic personality type that is required to be famous. It feels like an indictment of Hollywood, especially in the post me too era. Pearl never made it because while she was ruthless, she was never persistent enough. She crumbled after one bad audition instead of persisting and working harder. Maxine had it all: the x factor, sociopathic behavior, persistence, and hard work ethic. Maxine was undeniable. Pearl was flawed. Maxine is not supposed to be likable. She treats the death of her friends as minor speed bumps on the road to her fame. The one personal connection she had that was holding her back from being a full-blown sociopath was her father. You can see that she drops the gun when she discovers he's the killer. This is her moment of weakness, still clinging to this one genuine connection. The finale sees her ascend as a true sociopath and sever that last connection by literally blowing its brains out. In doing so, she is truly ready to be a star. No connections, only self interest. I felt as though this film was more giallo like than DePalma like. Style over substance (even though this one did have a lot of subtext), black glove killer, obvious murder mystery with an unbelievable amount of convenient circumstances, femme fatale, blood over gore, and the quintessential giallo style kills (video store scene in particular). These are all hallmarks of that genre. They even show a short clip where the video store guy is watching The Great Alligator. One of the only non-giallo films directed by the master of giallo, Sergio Martino. He made it when he was trying to break out of that genre. It didn't work out and was a terrible movie. I found that to be a fun reference. I also liked the theme of porn actresses not being taken seriously for mainstream roles, even though a lot of the actors in those films had legit acting chops, especially in the 80s. The 80s were the golden era of porn. It is when porn became just as much about plot as the dirty acts. This golden era is alluded to when the video store clerk is shown watching Behind The Green Door, which is a landmark film in the golden era and is lauded for its themes more so than its erotic scenes. It's highly likely that if Maxine was a big star during this era of erotic cinema, then she likely would have been qualified for mainstream roles as well. Maxxxine tries to rewrite this history of discriminatory practices by the Hollywood system by having the porn girl get the big role and become a mainstream star. I would say give it a second chance at some point with these things in mind.

Just running in at top speed for the algorithm...not stopping....staying spoiler free! Happy 4th July from this Brit xx

@ 41:26, Sasha Gray's transition into Hollywood was Steven Soderbergh's The Girlfriend Experience.

I loved this, but I am so confused as to why they went the route they did. If they wanted the father to be the killer, alright, but it would have been so much cooler if there was a showdown between Maxine and her father and her way of beating him. Her venting about the anger and grief she has been experiencing long before the massacre in X, a parallel to Pearl. 2 cops with handguns completely destroying an entire compound of cult members with machine guns, but then one dude killed both cops? A helicopter surrounding Maxine telling her not to shoot, she does, then no repercussions of that? All realism of the movie completely went away. In fact, I thought that Maxine was going to get blamed for everything and end up in jail, another parallel to Pearl coming so close to her dream then it failing due to her actions and emotions getting the best of her. So much they missed out on. I loved this movie so much that my love for it overshadows my dislikes. However, the decision making behind the cult drops this at #3 to my ranking of this trilogy. (Wrote this before watching the whole video, I’m so glad yall agree!)

Yeah, I didn't know her being famous was dream sequence when it kept flashing back and forth.

Happy 4th of July! It’s time to bask in this discussion.

Just realized that the ending reminded me of JaY and silent Bob strike back. You know? When they had the whole shootout at the end

The shootout at the end reminded me of Beverly Hills Cop

Are you guys catching Long Legs? Got my tickets for Thursday night’s show! Stoked!

I already commented on your spoiler free review but I'll support your opinions here as well. I mostly didn't care for this film either. When the director scoffs at Psycho 2, I was thinking "sure Psycho 2 has a few issues but I'd much rather be watching that than this". I was checked out by 25 minutes in.

Great discussion

Sibel Kekilli also made the transition from P××× to a serious actress. You might know her as "Shae" in Game of Thrones

Honestly MaXXXine was everything I expected it to be. For some reason, I wasn't expecting this to be an intense, brutal slasher, and I think that is what elevated this movie for me - my expectations being in line for what this movie turned out to be. Man this was my personal favorite out of the three and my favorite horror movie of the year! Ti West DELIVERED. For most of us at least. It's okay you didn't love it, thank you guys for the in-depth discussion!

Great review guys 👌👌. I am really hoping for a trilogy box set myself!. A24 should really take the opportunity to release a box set of the trilogy maybe with an extended cut for Maxxxine IF the kill scenes were watered-down in the editing room but I have never seen a Ti West film that has a extended/directors cut as far as I know so I doubt it . Cant wait for Longlegs!🎉

Even though i don't like the way it was executed, i do love that the final showdown took place at the Hollywood sign its so fitting.

Another masterclass review. I have 2 film for you that are due out shortly Hugh Grants Heretic & The inheritance. I also watched a horror film called new life very good 👍

The film is a lot to digest. It’s definitely more of a hard-boiled crime/whodunnit with horror elements; not a straight-up slasher. It feels like Ti West’s love letter to the 80s in terms of the whole aesthetic- the color palate, music choices, filming style, everything. The whole Night Stalker angle was just a distraction to make the ‘big reveal’ more grandiose; I’m still not sure how I feel about that either. I don’t even wanna rate MaXXXine on a scale of 1-10 yet because it’s gonna take a couple more viewings. Like you said, the influence of Pearl on her life could have been explored more. Overall I enjoyed it but it didn’t blow me away like X and Pearl did. That could change the more I watch it 🤷‍♂️

But ya youre right. A lot of mis-steps here in this film. A couple of changes of direction and this couldve been a really good film. More kills for instance.

Nitpick hot take: Mia running might be the 2020s answer to Shelly from Friday 3.

Also epic fail is hilarious 😂

Dang. Yea after I saw pearl (my favorite) & X, my expectations was through the roof. I was hoping they focused more on the religious angle & the trauma that comes from it

Plot armor gone wild

I’m conflicted on it I liked it, but didn’t love it like I wanted to. I guess I’ll have to rewatch it

I didn’t understand the point of the NightStalker being in the movie. Like why bring him into it if he has nothing to do with the story? They could’ve gotten really creative with that. My main draw to the movie was the involvement of the NightStalker

TY WEST IS AT HIS BEST WITH A SMALLER BUDGET BECAUSE HE CAN GIVE US WHAT WE ALL WANT TO SEE WITH A BIGGER BUDGET THEIRS MORE INCENTIVE TO MAKE MORE MONEY ON THE STUDIOS RETURN

I liked how Los Angeles this movie feels, though it was the weakest of the three however good cast. Thought Kevin Bacon was good.

Tha actual Hillside Stranglers in LA did not kill their victims w/cinema worthy gore, so this killer is more acurate.Richard Ramirez targeted asians, & was more gruesome.

Barbi Benton did x ray slasher movie but i dont know iff she did more after that

Just got out of Maxxxine and I found it messy. I didnt hate it...just a let down. But id watch it again....eventually. i l love Mia Goth

"Epic fail" went the way of sweater vests and cargo pants. Jason, we're getting old. Why did that have to happen? MaXXXine is the second-best movie in the trilogy for me. X was the best.

My question is this: how is Maxine's resolution any different than the daydream she has before blowing her dad's head off? Like, that daydream seems to indicate that she's sacrificing her goals by killing her father... but it all comes true anyway? What the fuck? For all of my problems with MaXXXine, the biggest issue for me is that it's a thematically weaker film than X or Pearl. X and Pearl are clear and concise when it comes to what they're trying to say. MaXXXine isn't. It fels like more of a vibes movie.

Hard agree on the 3rd act

It wasn't bad but couldve and shouldve been much better. Much more of a crime thriller than a horror slasher as it shouldve been. Like u said, much more style than substance, mia goths performance was excellent. X was above and beyond the best of the series. This one to me was on par with Pearl. Just kind of meh. Cheers.

Man alive.. saw it last night. It was so bad 😢😢😢 so disappointing. The writing and plot were not great.

I still say epic fail!! Lol Maybe it's a phrase only certain ages/generations appreciate

Seems like it’s Angel besides being an actress.

pearl had the same thing

So my take on the ending (and the whole movie overall) is that she is running from her past, she’s trying to ignore it and act like it doesn’t exist, even before the events of X. She runs from her life and is willing to do whatever it takes to be a star, but her past follows her no matter what, and gets in the way. But her inability to actually confront it causes it to ruin her future, over and over, So in the end, she finally is confronting it, head on, and instead of trying to ignore it, kills it, and in doing so is willing to give up the future she wants, But at the same time, in so doing, actually achieves the he future she wouldn’t have had if she kept running.

No stakes, no suspense, so many needless plot tangents and that looney toons cringe af ending…oof. And not to be pervy, but for movie about the p*rn industry, there was zero nudity, wtf. This is the biggest disappointment of the year so far.

I've enjoyed many of your reviews but do we need nearly 54 minutes to discuss whether MaXXXine is worth watching? A few minutes is all that's required. There are now so many really lengthy RU-vid reviews online it's killing off people's interest

can you guys review Bones and All please ? 🥹