The Real Pandemic in ‘Pearl’ Is a Diseased Strain of American Optimism

The Plot: A Texas farmgirl with showbiz dreams will let nothing stand in the way of her success, even if it means going on a killing spree.

The Verdict: Hell hath no fury like a dream deferred. For Pearl (Mia Goth), that means letting her youth and dance talent waste away on a farm while her husband’s off fighting the Great War. It’s 1918, and cloth masks are in fashion thanks to a flu pandemic. Writer-director Ti West’s follow-up to the psycho-biddy slasher flick, X, also hit theaters in a pandemic. With the trilogy ender, Maxxxine, available on VOD today, we’re now clear of contagion, mostly. But you could make the argument (as our headline does) that Pearl’s “pandemic” is more a diseased strain of American optimism.

West invites the viewer somewhere over the Technicolor rainbow, to a Land of Oz where Dorothy’s more inclined to dry-hump the Scarecrow than listen to her Wicked Witch mother. Pearl wants a better life for herself, but she might suffer from delusions of grandeur. They’re the kind where the dizzy dreamer declares, “I’m special!” and, “I’m a star!” to any stable of animals or panel of judges who will listen.

That mother of hers, a German immigrant with a severe manner (“She had a hard life,” Pearl later realizes), delivers a harsh yet much-needed dose of reality. Catching her daughter on the dock, as Pearl flirts with feeding her invalid father to a lake-dwelling alligator, she tells her:

“One day you’ll understand that getting what you want isn’t what’s important. Making the most of what you have is. Life rarely turns out how you expect. You need to be prepared for that if you ever want to be happy.”

The silver screen promises Pearl the world, but her hopes quickly curdle, and carnage ensues. For his part, David Corenswet can’t seem to escape a certain row of U.S. states. Here, he’s a Texas film projectionist. In Twisters, he’s an Oklahoma storm chaser. In James Gunn’s upcoming Superman film, he’ll play a well-known hero with Kansas farmboy roots.

Pearl puts herself out there for his character and others to see, only to face rejection all-around because of how visibly disturbed she is. In her audition, she stands onstage before judges who are not easily impressed with well-choreographed dance numbers. They are all too ready to crush hopes and dreams. “Thank you, but it’s gonna be a no,” one says. He explains further that they’re looking for someone “more all-American, younger and blonde, someone with X factor.”

This calls to mind reality shows like American Idol and, well, The X Factor, which seem tailor-made for a nation of at-home dreamers. We can’t all be winners in the same televised competition. What happens when people who don’t win the fame lottery prove unable to cope with life’s disappointments in a healthy fashion? 

Cross-reference Goth’s twisted heel turn in Infinity Pool, calling for “Jaaames” to exit the bus. Cross-reference trade stories of her allegedly assaulting and bullying a real-life background actor on the set of Maxxine, telling him, “Nobody will believe you because you’re nothing.”

For Pearl, failing her one audition is the death of the American dream, but she’s not alone at the end. And she’ll grin and bear it right through her country’s closing credits.