MaXXXine appears in an aspect ratio of 2.39:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. Despite a mix of stylistic choices that impacted the visuals, this usually became a solid image.
Given some blown-out shots, sharpness occasionally felt a bit fuzzy. However, those instances occurred due to photographic choices, and the majority of the flick came across as well-defined.
No issues with jagged edges or moiré effects arose, and I saw no edge haloes. Outside of fake “print flaws” that accompanied flashbacks, the movie lacked source defects.
Despite the film’s 1985 setting, the colors usually opted toward modern teal and amber, along with some heavy reds. The disc reproduced the hues as intended.
Blacks seemed deep and dense, while shadows offered good clarity. Again, the nature of the cinematography meant some visual inconsistencies, but the movie usually looked solid.
Downconverted to Dolby TrueHD 7.1, the movie’s Dolby Atmos soundtrack seemed suitable for the story. That said, one shouldn’t expect fireworks from it.
Much of the mix concentrated on general ambience. The track kicked to life a bit more during some of the violent scenes, but the audio largely preferred moody atmosphere and music.
Audio quality worked fine, with speech that came across as natural and concise. Music showed nice vivacity and range.
Effects boasted appealing accuracy, and when necessary, they packed a nice punch. Nothing here dazzled but the mix worked fine for the material.
The disc comes with a few video extras, and we open with The Belly of the Beast. It goes for nine minutes, 39 seconds and delivers info from producer Jacob Jaffke and actors Mia Goth, Kevin Bacon, Elizabeth Debicki, Halsey, Giancarlo Esposito, Lily Collins, Moses Sumney and Michelle Monaghan.
“Belly” discusses the “X Trilogy”, cast and performances, and the work of writer/director Ti West. Expect a lot of happy talk and not much substance.
XXX Marks the Spot lasts 11 minutes, 21 seconds. It comes with notes from Goth, Bacon, Debicki, Monaghan, Jaffke, director of photography Eliot Rockett, and production designer Jason Kisvarday.
With “Spot”, we look at cinematic influences, attempts to reflect the 1980s setting, sets and locations. A few useful notes emerge, but much of “Spot” focuses on self-praise.
Next comes Hollywood Is a Killer. It spans eight minutes, 14 seconds and features Bacon, Monaghan, makeup designer Sarah Rubano, key prosthetics makeup artist Kevin Wagner, and SFX makeup designer Justin Raleigh.
Here we get thoughts about makeup and effects. We get a pretty informative overview from this brief program.
Finally, we locate a Q&A with Writer/Director Ti West. Shot after a screening at Alamo Drafthouse, moderator Jen Yamato chats with West over this 25-minute, 23-second reel.
West looks at the development of the X trilogy, story/characters, music and period details, cast and performances, influences and inspirations, and connected topics. West touches on the film well and makes me wish he'd recorded a commentary.
The disc concludes with both teaser and theatrical trailers for MaXXXine. Also from A24 brings ads for Pearl, X, Civil War and Talk to Me.
Ti West’s “X Trilogy” ends on a sub-mediocre note with MaXXXine. Given I didn’t think much of the first two movies in the series, this doesn’t come as a major disappointment or surprise, but I nonetheless can’t find much in this meandering 1980s callback to endorse. The Blu-ray comes with largely positive picture and audio as well as a moderate mix of supplements. Ti West boasts talent but he doesn’t exhibit those skills with the forgettable MaXXXine.