Women Who Kill #17 Pearl from X and PEARL
by Victoria Potenza, Staff Writer
No, I'm a star! Please, I'm a star! Please, somebody help me! Please help me! Help me!
Seing X in theaters this past March, I was mostly worried about my dad’s reaction it (yes I took my dad to see this). I was so excited for a new Ti West and this did not disappoint on many levels. So when the movie ended and a trailer for Pearl popped up, I was excited but also had no idea what to expect from the prequel. We do not always get opportunities to dig deeper into the psyche and identity of our slashers. And when we do, it often feels forced or the mythology behind the character is so strong in people’s mind that a prequel never lives up to the expectations. So just a few months later when we sat in our seats for a screening of Pearl, I simply hoped it would be as entertaining as X. I spent the entire moving beaming from ear to ear. There was so much to love about Pearl, but what truly struck me was how much I empathized with, and even related to, this murderous woman. Her wish for a better life in hopeless times and her fears that she never quite fit in made Pearl feel like a character I could truly understand.
When we meet Pearl (Mia Goth) in X, she is an old woman who has clearly lived out her entire life on her farm with her husband Howard. It’s the 70s and to make some extra money they rent out their farmhouse. They are clearly unaware that the group of people that wind up on their doorstep are there to film an adult movie entitled The Farmers Daughter. While Howard is hostile towards the group, Pearl is clearly drawn to them, particularly Maxine (also Mia Goth) who is hell bent on becoming a star. Maxine reminds Pearl of the life she wanted for herself and ultimately the intimation that she is too old to pursue her dreams of stardom sets her on a vicious killing spree. When we flashback to 1918 in Pearl, we see how she dreamed of leaving the farm. Her husband is off at war, her town is living in fear because of the influenza outbreak, and she is isolated with her strict immigrant parents. The one thing that brings her joy is going to the theater and dreaming about being in a movie.
Why does Pearl kill? When we meet her in the prequel, it is immeidately clear that Pearl is not your typical innocent farm girl. Her resentment towards her life is clear from the beginning as we see her display typical warning signs of a disturbed mind; she kills farm animals and abuses her infirm father. She lives in a fantasy world that grows increasingly strong as her familial situation gets worse and her need for stardom grows. With her husband away at war, it is also clear that she is lonely and when a handsome projectionist catches her eye she begins longing for the physical relationship she is missing. With the help of a scarecrow she plays out a fantasy in which she has sex with the projectionist and uses the scarecrow to get herself off. Pearl seems like a fuse waiting for a flame. The combination of her mental state and the environment she lives in make it clear that it is not a question of if she will kill, it is a question of when.
The first opportunity strikes when her mother finds a pamphlet from the movie Pearl saw, being strapped for money and incredibly religious she makes it clear that it is not acceptable for Pearl to spend her time this way. The idea of taking away this one last form of happiness drives her to push her mother into a flaming hearth, burning her beyond recognition. With both of her parents unable to stop her, she goes to the theater and has sex with the projectionist. The projectionist sees things differently in the light of day when he goes to Pearl’s farm and it becomes clear that something is amiss. He attempts to leave and makes it clear how uncomfortable she is making him and so she stabs him repeatedly with a pitchfork while screaming “Why are you leaving me if I didn't do anything wrong? I don't understand, I thought you liked me!” Her last shred of happiness lies in an audition to be a part of a traveling dance troupe that her sister-in-law, Misty, tells her about. But after being rejected and finding out Mitzy won the audition, Pearl kills her with an ax. While there is still a huge gap in time between X and Pearl it would seem that she attempts to abandon her dreams and become a good wife to Howard after his return. Maybe they even lived happily, until a fateful group of adult actors came to their home and reawaken the life Pearl had hoped for herself.
Pearl is perceived in various ways between these two films. While her father cannot speak, it is clear that her mother is scared of Pearl. She sees the growing darkness within her and sets strict rules in order to keep her on the farm and away from the outside world. But as Pearl says later in the movie “all I really want is to be loved. I've had such a hard time without it lately,” making ig clear this upbringing has also put a mental toll on her. And the way she is perceived is not lost on her. She kills the projectionist because he makes it clear that he is scared of Pearl when she shows him who she really is. When she finally opens up to Mitzy who encourages Pearl to pretend she is her husband, Pearl is finally given the opportunity to share all of her truth. She is sad, lonely, and she knows that deep down there is something wrong with her. This 9 minute monologue confession is powerful and raw but it is also given to Mitzy, an affluent young woman who could never empathize with her sister-in-law, and she also becomes terrified of the person Pearl is. All her attempts to put herself out there end in rejection. Even at the audition, she is confronted with the fact that she is not “all American” looking to be in the troupe. She can try to hide who she is but changing her looks is another story and this rejection shakes her to her foundational core.
While Pearl is a killer, her fears about herself and her life are not that different from the anxieties and fears we all have. In her monologue she says:
I want what they have so badly... to be perfect... to be loved by as many people as possible to make up for all my time spent suffering. Sometimes I wake in the middle of the night and a fear washes over me 'cause what if this is it? What if this is right where I belong? I'm a failure. I'm not pretty, or naturally pleasant, or friendly. I'm not smart, or funny, or confident. I'm exactly what Mama said I was: weak. But I don't know why. What did I do? Why wasn't my family like yours? I hate what it feels like to be me and not you. I'm so scared that when you finally come home you'll see me and be frightened like everyone else is.
Pursuing my dreams in the midst of late-stage capitalism, during the COVID-19 pandemic, while also dealing with various mental health issues, makes me feel connected to Pearl. Her sentiments about feeling like she is different and unloveable are also easy to empathize with. It makes Pearl’s fate in X even more tragic. We know she never got to leave the farm. Howard kept her there out of either love or fear and she was never able to experience the world or be a star. She sees Maxine, the literal perfect image of herself, and she remembers what it was like to be young, sexual, and having the fire to pursue a passion. Seeing Maxine have sex in one of the scenes of the adult film even reminds Pearl that she does not have the physical capacity to have young and passionate sex. She begs Howard to “fuck her” but they are so old that sex could actually kill them. She even tries to seduce Maxine, either because she is attracted to her or because she wants to feel that close to youth and desire. The ability for Maxine to fuck, fight, and persue fame drive Pearl crazy and trigger the murderous rage that she had all the way back in 1918.
Most of us don’t kill in the pursuit of our dreams, but that deep pit of doubt and the fear of aging without doing what we wanted to is a feeling that haunts us as we age. The waves of joy, anxiety, excitement, and disappointment are always the most powerful when going after what we want. Pearl is a terrifying killer because she is a reminder of those feelings and a warning to our future selves. Do we want to wake up one day and realize we lived a life full of regrets and missed opportunities? Those dreams are so powerful but are they as powerful as all the forces that can be against us? And what if the people we love are also a hindrance to that dream? When speaking to imaginary Howard she says “You wanted to stay here with me on our farm and it made me so angry. How could you? I'm certain you knew I hated it here. You must've. How could you be so selfish and cruel after all I've done to make you happy?” Despite her actions, Pearl is a tragic figure, a caged animal that doesn’t know how to do anything but lash out when given the chance.
Another piece of Pearl that is brought up in her monologue is her rejection of motherhood. She continues by saying “I was pregnant with your baby. I never wanted to be a mother. I loathed the feeling of it growing inside me. Felt that sickness. Pulling, sucking on me like some needy animal in a barn. How could I be responsible for another life? Life terrifies me. It's harsh, and bleak, and draining. I was so relieved when it died. It was one less weight keeping me here but then the war came and you left me too.” This is a fear for what bringing life into this world would mean both for her and for a child. While motherhood can be a joyous experience for some, it comes with a lot of grief and terrible realizations about ourselves and our environment. It requires giving a huge chunk of yourself away and while it might be seen as selfish, sometimes we simply cannot give away that piece of ourselves. It also makes it that much sadder that these events lined up in a way that made it feel impossible for Pearl to be loved, fulfilled, and happy.
Pearl feels like an outsider much like other women covered in this column like May, Eveline in Play Misty for Me, and Dorine from Office Killer. They all want connection, love, and attention but there is something off about them and they do not fit in within our world. She also pursues impossible dreams like Cheng Lai Sheung in Dream Home, and Mary Lou in Prom Night II. Whether fighting the housing market or literally coming back from the dead to be crowned prom queen, they go to any and all lengths to pursue what they think is owed to them by life. Pearl also brings up the trauma of motherhood like Inside, how men can trap us like Dawn in Teeth, and how womanhood curses us like Ginger in Ginger Snaps. There are pieces of Pearl scattered across these killer women because these outsiders often fight impossible structures. Those in our society, and those within ourselves.