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On a filmmaking and dramatic level, this film is doing so much more than its predecessor. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love X, but aside from some of the third act twists and turns, it’s intentionally a fairly straightforward slasher, and this film is almost the polar opposite. Whereas X felt like a love letter to classic slasher films of the 70s and 80s, this film feels like a love letter to early cinema and golden age technicolor films. It’s a very character focused movie, and as an origin story for the title character, it gave me everything I wanted. It sets up everything we already know about her really nicely, while also adding so much new depth to her character. Overall, it’s filled with so many nods to X, and not just your typical references and fanservice, it actually finds so many ways to make the events and themes of that film more interesting in a way that makes you want to go back and see what you might have missed. Now that I’ve seen both movies twice, it’s made me realize just how well the two of them play off of each other. When I watch X, it makes me want to rewatch Pearl, and when I watch Pearl, it makes me want to rewatch X. As a horror film, this one isn’t really going for as many big, overt scares. Instead, it finds ways to really get under your skin. There are plenty of absolutely shocking moments here, some disgusting images, and for as much sympathy it can make the audience feel for Pearl, it also makes her terrifying at the same time. This was my second time watching this movie, and I liked it the first time around, but rewatching it made me realize just how great of a prequel it is. It’s a fantastic companion to X, not just on a plot level, but thematically, it makes that movie so much more interesting in nearly every way, and it solidified these movies as one of the best horror franchises in recent memory.