In 1979, a group of young filmmakers set out to make an adult film in a rural Texas farm, but when their reclusive, elderly hosts catch them in the act, the crew find themselves fighting for... Read allIn 1979, a group of young filmmakers set out to make an adult film in a rural Texas farm, but when their reclusive, elderly hosts catch them in the act, the crew find themselves fighting for their lives.In 1979, a group of young filmmakers set out to make an adult film in a rural Texas farm, but when their reclusive, elderly hosts catch them in the act, the crew find themselves fighting for their lives.
- Director
- Writer
- Stars
- Awards
- 4 wins & 43 nominations total
Geoff Dolan
- Deputy
- (as Geoffrey Dolan)
Matthew J. Saville
- Officer Mitchell
- (as Matthew Saville)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Summary
Reviewers say 'X' is a horror film that blends 1970s slasher aesthetics with modern elements, praised for its atmosphere and visual style. Mia Goth's dual performance is lauded for complexity, while themes of aging and sexuality resonate deeply. The film's practical effects and gore receive mixed opinions. Some appreciate its thematic richness and artistic qualities, while others criticize its slow pace, predictability, and lack of originality. The transition between the film's halves sparks debate, with varied reactions to its pacing and structure. Overall, 'X' is a mixed bag, appealing to horror enthusiasts yet disappointing some with its flaws.
Featured reviews
I can't with movies full of characters that just walk around without any instinct doing the absolute dumbest things they could possibly choose before they're murdered. It's literally the whole movie. The 'action and gore' is actually pretty tame. The sex is explicit. The characters are idiots.
A decent slasher, but does not deserve a 96% rating on RT. The kills felt conveniently cheap and honestly everything was underwhelming. I was hoping to to feel paranoid or scared, but didn't feel much of anything. Spent most of the movie hoping it would get better or surprise me a little but we've seen this all before.
I liked it. It's a nice old-fashioned (flawlessly 70's styled) slasher horror-flick, with a fairly original premise. As in any comparable horror movie the motives for the killings are pretty farfetched, but who cares, when they are pictured so relentlessley gruesome, the gore here is definitely not for the tender-hearted. Another strong point is how the movie very gradually builds up the tension, this is a real slow burner, the apprehension of looming doom is palpable throughout the movie. This is helped by a strong direction, a very clever and inventive editing, and some great photography, see for instance the scene of one of the girls swimming in the lake, while... well, I won't give it away, but it's beautiful and hair-raisingly scary at the same time!
Add to all this some very funny dialogues and goings-on at the start, and you're in for a well made, old-school horror flick, maybe not life-changing but absolutely entertaining for those who can apprciate this kind of movie (like me!).
Add to all this some very funny dialogues and goings-on at the start, and you're in for a well made, old-school horror flick, maybe not life-changing but absolutely entertaining for those who can apprciate this kind of movie (like me!).
Pros.
It has some decent gore Mostly good acting Lots of 70s horror Easter eggs/references Martin Henderson doing what has to be the best Matthew McConaughey impression I've heard in a long time (seriously I really expected him to say "alright alright alright) The early Eaten Alive nod and final payoff are both hugely effective Really solid soundtrack
Cons.
It's very slow to get started. And not in the gradual suspenseful build up of tension sense, but that very little happens for close to an hour.
Despite wanting to be a really smart horror, the film still falls into the standard tropes of characters being morons who make dumb decisions and doesn't really bring anything original to the table besides better quality (but not perfect) cinematography When the carnage begins, the lighting gets very dark and sometimes obscures the shots and detail which may be a creative choice but does somewhat reduce the enjoyment
Overall, very decent but not a game changer Worth watching.
It has some decent gore Mostly good acting Lots of 70s horror Easter eggs/references Martin Henderson doing what has to be the best Matthew McConaughey impression I've heard in a long time (seriously I really expected him to say "alright alright alright) The early Eaten Alive nod and final payoff are both hugely effective Really solid soundtrack
Cons.
It's very slow to get started. And not in the gradual suspenseful build up of tension sense, but that very little happens for close to an hour.
Despite wanting to be a really smart horror, the film still falls into the standard tropes of characters being morons who make dumb decisions and doesn't really bring anything original to the table besides better quality (but not perfect) cinematography When the carnage begins, the lighting gets very dark and sometimes obscures the shots and detail which may be a creative choice but does somewhat reduce the enjoyment
Overall, very decent but not a game changer Worth watching.
Zero expectations or knowledge about this movie when I turned this one on. I knew it was a horror movie and that was it. Watching it, I could feel the love that the creators had for the old age of horror movies, the era of slashers and all the things that Scream once dissected and made light of, an age of horror movie rules where you expect sex to equal death and the final girl to surmount all odds and take on the horrible entity terrorizing them.
The idea of this movie seems like something I should have really enjoyed. The reality of it was more underwhelming. I never found myself connecting to the characters, so when things start to go awry, I had no investment in their existence. They were just red shirts in a horror movie. I expected them to die and most of them met that expectation. It was fine. It never really tipped the scales into love, never into hate, it lingered in the realm of quiet acceptance of what was going on, a positive tolerance that never reached proper enjoyment.
The idea of this movie seems like something I should have really enjoyed. The reality of it was more underwhelming. I never found myself connecting to the characters, so when things start to go awry, I had no investment in their existence. They were just red shirts in a horror movie. I expected them to die and most of them met that expectation. It was fine. It never really tipped the scales into love, never into hate, it lingered in the realm of quiet acceptance of what was going on, a positive tolerance that never reached proper enjoyment.
Did you know
- TriviaThe day after X (2022)'s South by Southwest premiere, writer/director Ti West revealed that during a mandatory two-week COVID-19 quarantine in his New Zealand hotel, before production could begin on this film, he wrote a prequel, Pearl (2022). A24 saw the script and greenlit the movie even before production on "X" had wrapped. He asked star Mia Goth if she wished to remain in New Zealand and film "Pearl," and she readily accepted. The prequel released later in 2022.
- GoofsThe film set in 1979 makes reference to missing persons ads on milk cartons. However, the first usage of milk cartons for missing persons was not until 1984.
- Crazy creditsThere are no opening credits. The title doesn't even appear on screen until the end.
- ConnectionsEdited into MaXXXine (2024)
- SoundtracksAct Naturally
Performed by Loretta Lynn
Written by Vonie Morrison, Johnny Russell
Courtesy of Geffen Records under license from Universal Music Enterprises
- How long is X?Powered by Alexa
Details
Box office
- Budget
- $1,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $11,769,469
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $4,275,126
- Mar 20, 2022
- Gross worldwide
- $14,745,049
- Runtime
- 1h 45m(105 min)
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.90 : 1
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