“X” pays homage to the slasher horror genre

Screams shot across Savannah on Sunday night for A24’s “X,” the first addition to Ti West’s horror trilogy starring SCAD honorees Jenna Ortega and Mia Goth. The film takes place in 1979 rural Texas, during the rise of pornographic films. A group of young filmmakers set out into the country to prove “it’s possible to make a good dirty movie.” Unfortunately, their elderly hosts are not too fond of folks flaunting their sexuality around their farm. Their solution to this problem? Murder, of course.

West has created a true homage to the slasher film genre with clear references to “Texas Chainsaw Massacre,” “The Shining” and even Alfred Hitchcock’s “Psycho.” This thriller prolonged tension through its excellent cinematography, editing and sound design. Whether it was a rusty nail about to be stepped on by bare feet or an alligator swimming next to Goth in the lake. The camera always lingered for just the right amount of time. Enough to make the gentlemen in the row behind me scream, “No, get out of there!” or “Turn around!” As Ortega’s blood-curdling screams were trapped in a basement, a southern preacher’s sermon on sin was edited over the gory slaughter of her friends.

This film is a perfect addition to the horror genre, adding a fresh new take to overused tropes. The best example is the final girl, even folks not too fond of horror can identify this one. Typically the innocent virgin makes it to the end of the film, while anyone sexually active is first to die. However, “X” has the most sexually empowered woman putting an end to the antagonists’ slaughter.

Overall, the audience’s reaction and engagement with the film made me fall in love with horror all over again. I cannot recommend this film enough for Halloween movie nights, now streaming across multiple platforms.