Ti West’s “Pearl” is the prequel about how delusions of grandeur poison Mia Goth’s titular star in training. She dreams of immortality by preserving herself on the screen as a chorus girl, but given “X,” we already know that’s not in the cards. “Pearl” is about how the unstable farmhand abuses her family, commits murders, and stops at nothing to achieve the life she thinks she deserves. West investigates what happens to those who don’t have any “it” factor and can’t rise above those who’ve been blessed with “it” — plus, there’s food involved.
Early in “Pearl,” the lead character’s mother-in-law brings over a roast swine that Pearl’s mother refuses as charity. It sits outside on the farm’s front porch, slowly rotting as Pearl loses control. Each time Pearl or someone passes the no longer glistening pig, there’s something new that’s grossly wrong. Maggots chew through the roast, mold grows, and the nastier everything becomes, the more it reflects Pearl’s worsening mental state. Eventually, the disgusting leftovers find their way to Pearl’s family dinner table, a centerpiece in front of Pearl’s slain mother and father. Nothing can survive Pearl, especially the once-delectable pig roast.