Ti West ended up making one of the most unique horror movie franchises of all-time with the X trilogy that kicked off in 2022. While X was a throwback to classic grindhouse exploitation thrillers from the 1970s, the prequel film Pearl was a recreation of “Golden Age” Hollywood fantasies and romantic dramas. The third film MaXXXine takes the series into the 1980s for an inventive slasher story that merges true crime with Hollywood satire, and no shortage of brutal kills.

It’s evident from the references that each film contains that both West and Mia Goth have a deep appreciation for classic cinema. Those who enjoyed seeing familiar genres remixed, reinvented, and modernized in MaXXXine may enjoy checking out some of the older classics that inspired it in the first place. Here are ten great movies to watch if you like MaXXXine.

10 ‘Hardcore’ (1979)

Directed by Paul Schrader

The entire X trilogy has been a brave endeavor in Hollywood filmmaking because the series has delved into the illicit world of adult entertainment, a subject that the industry is often scared to shine a spotlight on. While he’s best known as the screenwriter behind such Martin Scorsese classics as Taxi Driver and Raging Bull,Paul Schrader explored the dangers of the adult film world in his incendiary 1979 thriller Hardcore. The film starred George C. Scott as a small town businessman who begins searching for his missing daughter, who he discovers has been involved in a pornographic film production.

Like MaXXXine, Hardcore is a sleazy crime thriller that nonetheless succeeds as a compelling mystery about the loss of innocence. While not for the faint of heart, Hardcore is a gripping example of 1980s crime cinema at its peak of brutality.

9 ‘Dressed to Kill’ (1980)

Directed by Brian De Palma

One of the many homages that West makes in MaXXXine is to the film of Brian De Palma, a highly influential member of the “Hollywood New Wave” that turned the industry on its head thanks to the incorporation of graphic violent and sexual content. Dressed to Kill is among the most graphic and controversial films that De Palma ever made, as it delved into doppelgangers, psychiatric care, and conspiracy theories.

Like MaXXXine, Dressed to Kill does a great job at keeping the audience on the edge of their seat, as the twists compound on top of each other to create a compelling tapestry of intrigue as the narrative gets wilder. Both West and De Palma know the importance of adding a sense of dark humor in order to remind the viewer to not take anything that they are watching too seriously.

8 ‘Body Double’ (1984)

Directed by Brian De Palma

Dressed to Kill may have kicked off a new level of success in De Palma’s career, but West includes more than a few references in MaXXXine to the classic erotic thriller Body Double. Essentially serving as De Palma’s tribute to the works of Alfred Hitchcock, Body Double was yet another gratuitous mystery thriller that turned the industry on its head with its exploration of prostitution and pornography.

Body Double and MaXXXine both succeed because they don’t offer judgment on their characters, acknowledging that the real world is far less “black and white” than how it is portrayed in most mainstream films. Both films are more interesting than they would have been if they included a more straightforward hero that the audience could use as a moral compass; the ethical ambiguity results in a far more compelling piece of pop entertainment.

7 ‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2’ (1986)

Directed by Tobe Hooper

MaXXXine is a fun addition to the X franchise because while it is certainly the most action-packed installment so far, it’s also quite silly and irreverent at times. Those looking for a more comedic horror sequel to a more straightforward slasher thriller should look no further than The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2. While director Tobe Hooper blurred the line between reality and fiction with his haunting grindhouse horror film The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, the 1986 sequel satirized the slasher genre by including more over-the-top characters and graphic death scenes.

Both Hooper and West showed an awareness of their influence by making sequels that are distinct from their predecessors. It’s far more interesting to see an original director return to the franchise they created in order to do something completely different than it would be to have someone else just reiterate the past success.

6 ‘They Live’ (1988)

Directed by John Carpenter

MaXXXine isn’t just a great continuation of the plot and characters that were established in X, but a great film about the realities of living in Los Angeles. John Carpenter examined the cultural legacy of the “City of Angels” with They Live, a revelatory science fiction thriller that has become a widely celebrated cult classic. The film stars Roddy Piper as a drifter who discovers a strange conspiracy that reveals that humanity has been taken over by aliens, who use advertising to mask their true intentions.

The ending of MaXXXine certainly contains some really amazing kills, but They Live features one of the most electrifying fight scenes in cinematic history. A six-minute brawl between Piper and Keith David features incredibly demanding stunts from both actors, pushing the film into all-time classic status. It’s one of the more unique projects of Carpenter’s career.

5 ‘Wes Craven’s New Nightmare’ (1994)

Directed by Wes Craven

One of the most interesting things about MaXXXine is that West seems to be analyzing his own legacy by showing how the titular character would fit within a lightly fictionalized version of real Hollywood in 1985. Wes Craven’s New Nightmare was an inventive horror sequel that took the characters from the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise and brought them into the real world. The original film’s star, Heather Langnkamp, starred as a fictionalized version of herself who is haunted by the real Freddy Krueger (Robert Englund), who escapes from behind the screen into reality.

Wes Craven’s New Nightmare was a great example of a filmmaker reckoning with their past success and returning to a series to put it back on track. While not that successful within its original release window, Wes Craven’s New Nightmare ended up inspiring Craven to make another self-aware horror franchise when he started the Scream saga.

4 ‘Ready or Not’ (2019)

Directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett

MaXXXine was successful because West recognized that at the end of the day, audiences just want slasher films to be fun; although there have been attempts to make a grittier take on the subgenre of horror, many of its best entries are those that simply allow the audience to laugh at the sheer absurdity of it all. Ready or Not was a very entertaining horror comedy that served as a clever satire of capitalism. The directing duo of Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett managed to create a unique mythology that focused on a wealthy family’s attempts to hunt down their son’s bride to be after their wedding ceremony.

Similar to what West did with the first X film, Ready or Not succeeded by keeping the action limited to an isolated location. The constraints put on the film’s setting resulted in a tightly paced thriller that allowed the audience to feel the same sense of claustrophobia that the characters did.

Directed by Quentin Tarantino

One of the more intriguing aspects of MaXXXine is that West decided to include some elements of true crime within a boradly fictional narrative; although obviously Goth’s character is fictional, the film makes references to the real “Night Stalker” serial killer that haunted Los Angeles in 1985. Quentin Tarantino merged real history with original characters in his 2019 masterpiece Once Upon A Time in Hollywood. Set in 1969, Once Upon A Time in Hollywood includes a storyline involving the actress Sharon Tate (Margot Robbie), who was killed by members of the Charles Manson crime family.

Like MaXXXine, Once Upon A Time in Hollywood is a genuine tribute to Hollywood stardom that celebrates the empowering quality of great films. Tarantino includes clever homages to this era of the “Golden Age of Hollywood” that serves as the most profound, and perhaps most personal film that he has made throughout his very impressive career.

2 ‘Bodies Bodies Bodies’ (2022)

Directed by Halina Reijn

MaXXXine changes up the formula of the X trilogy because while it is still at its heart a slasher film, there is a strong whodunit quality to the way that the murder mystery unfolds. Bodies Bodies Bodies was a similarly satirical murder mystery that created tension because the audience was constantly double checking the characters’ intentions, leading to paranoia about who the real killer could be. The film centers around a group of wealthy teenagers who become trapped in a mansion during a rainstorm, only to watch as their friends are picked off one-by-one.

Bodies Bodies Bodies and MaXXXine clearly have respect for their audiences, as they do not take extravagant leaps in logic that don’t make sense. While some of the deaths appear to be shocking when they are first revealed, Bodies Bodies Bodies managed to flash back to critical events early on to explain how they happened.

1 ‘Barbarian’ (2022)

Directed by Zack Creggar

One of the more compelling aspects of MaXXXine is the way in which West pokes fun at celebrity culture, revealing how self-important and out of touch many actors are. Similarly, Ack Creggar’s underrated horror thriller Barbarian includes a subplot involving a goofy actor who becomes involved in an actual series of killings. Justin Long’s appearance in the film makes for a shocking twist that takes the narrative in a completely different direction.

Barbarian is the exact type of horror gem that has the makings of being a future cult classic. Despite being only barely marketed upon its initial release, the film eventually became successful due to the strong word-of-mouth, which highlighted how subversive and entertaining it really was. Director Zack Creggar has certainly set himself up to have a career similar to West’s, in which he can make unusual projects that are successful in appealing to a niche audience of horror aficionados.