MaXXXineis a film for movie lovers, filled with cinematic references and nods, but the most obvious ones are related to classic Hollywood iconBette Davis. Before the movie even begins, one of her most famous quotes sets the tone for Maxine Minx’s (Mia Goth) journey: “In this business, until you’re known as a monster, you are not a star.” Then, as the credits start rolling, everything is wrapped up to the tune ofKim Carnes' 80s hit “Bette Davis Eyes.“Both of these tell us a lot about who Maxine is while drawing an interesting parallel between her and Davis, as well as looking into the nature of stardom.
Every movie inTi West’s X trilogyis an analysis on ambition and stardom, dealing especially with how women have to go through a lot more than men to achieve their goals in the entertainment industry. Of all the characters in this franchise, Maxine is the one who obsesses over it the most, constantly repeating to herself that she won’t accept a life she does not deserve. In real Hollywood, though,few people had as complex a relationship with these ideas asclassic icon Bette Davis, and her quote carries a lot of weight in this sense.
How Does Bette Davis’ Quote Relate to Maxine?
Speaking toDeadline, West talked about how “Bette Davis had a reputation,” and how the quote sets up “the kind of story and the kind of world that we were about to go into.“Both Davis and Maxine had to swim against the current on their own in Hollywood’s male-dominated worldin order to succeed. Davis started making a name for herself playing willful and sardonic roles on the big screen in the 1930s and 1940s. She challenged the audience’s image of women with the fiery Julie Marsden inJezebel, the hedonistic Judy Traherne inDark Victory, and the witty Margo Channing inAll About Eve. In the years following her breakout, Davis also had to fight Warner Bros. in court to be able towork on the projects she wantedat a time when actors were exclusive to studios. Now she is seen as one of Hollywood’s greatest-ever actors, but, at the time, all this gave her a reputation for being difficult to work with. English criticE. Arnot Robertsononce saidthat Bette Davis “would probably be burned as a witch if she had lived two or three hundred years ago,” as strong-willed women often would.
‘MaXXXine’ Scares Up Franchise-Best Global Box Office Debut
Directed by Ti West, the ‘X’ trilogy spans six decades, and pays tribute to different sub-genres of horror.
So, the idea behind Davis' quote is that a woman must be willing to play by Hollywood’s rules to have a reputation, but not necessarily success.To truly be a star, she must be willing to break rules and make her own way, which both Davis and Maxine do. Of course, Maxine isa much more literal kind of monster, never letting anyone get in the way of her attempts at success, and even using violence if she has to. She also has no problem with doing whatever is asked of her at auditions and movie sets and casually drives past people protesting the movies she works in as satanic. According to Robertson’s logic, it isn’t hard to imagine Maxine being burned at the stake right next to Bette Davis for how she approaches her career. This idea is emphasized in the movie as we see Molly Bennett (Lily Collins) burn at the stake in her movie “The Puritan,” a fate destined to fall upon Maxine’s character in the sequel.
“Bette Davis Eyes” Is a Reference to Maxine and Her “X Factor”
Although she worked in Hollywood at a time when women were considered first and foremost for their physical attributes, Bette Davis' eyes were her most notorious feature. Having “Bette Davis eyes” became synonymous with being bold, confident, and determined, and, in 1981, Kim Carnes released a song called exactly that. The lyrics talk abouthow ambitious women are usually perceived solely by their looks, but have to be in control and willing to do whatever it takesto achieve their goals on their own terms — like Davis once did and Maxine does in her movie.
Music is a key part ofMaXXXine, especially in setting the atmosphere of a dark and neon-lit Los Angeles in the 1980s, butclosing the movie to the tune of “Bette Davis Eyes” is a stroke of genius, because that’s exactly who Maxine is. Carnes repeatedly sings about a woman who impresses, pleases, manipulates, and has no problem with using her looks to get what she wants.Maxine fits this descriptionlike a glove, making full use of her devious personality and fixation on fame, as well as her obvious talent and looks to achieve her goal of being a star. The combination of these three traits is what amounts to the so-called “X factor,” which Mia Goth ruthlessly translates onscreen.
Both Bette Davis and Maxine Wanted To Be Successful on Her Own Terms
Itmay be strangeto think that a slasher about an aspiring actress working in the adult film industry while trying to get her big break is a worthy homage to Bette Davis and her legacy, butMaXXXineworks perfectly this way. Both Davis and Maxine are strong-willed and determined to be successful in their own right, and that manifests in both their careers.Both of them are defined by the passion they have for their work. Davis challenged the wholestudio system’s status quoof her time just to be able to take on projects that she considered to have better directing and scripts, and pretty much paved the way for actors to be free to do the same nowadays.
For Maxine, things are similar, especially with an adult film background. She’s obsessed with work, declining her friends' invitations to parties where she could potentially meet someone who could make things easier for her. For her,it isn’t about making money to survive or being rich, but about stardom itself, about everyone in the world knowing her name, and achieving it on her own. That’s what her line about not accepting a life she doesn’t deserve really means. After all, she isalwaysputting in the work, even doing things that most actresses avoid — but she does it and aces it like Davis did in her unconventional roles. When she is finally “in the belly of the beast,” as “The Puritan II” director, Elizabeth Bender (Elizabeth Debicki), puts it, Maxine hears from her boss that she needs to obsess over what she has; otherwise, she risks losing it. Maxine does just that, but she has been doing it sinceX, really.
In the context of Bette Davis' quote, Maxine is a very literal monster, killing people to protect her ambitions and turning a mediatic circus around her father’s cult in her favor. Of course, Davis isn’t that kind of monster, but her ambition to be free to work as she pleased made her one in the eyes of the male-dominated, backward industry of that era. Maxine may have approached being a woman in the entertainment industry in a much more extreme (and deadly) way than Bette Davis, butthey both had similar ideas about what it takes to be a starand were willing to put in the work to make it happen on their own terms.
MaXXXineis now playing in theaters in the U.S. Click below for showtimes near you
