‘The Royal Hotel’ Movie Review: Kitty Green’s Taut, Inconsistent Thriller
Photo from NEON
From Jeff Nelson
Kitty Green’s hard-hitting The Assistant left an unforgettable impact with its quiet, yet striking message on the dark side of the business end of Hollywood. She returns with another examination of gender and power along with lead Julia Garner in The Royal Hotel. Green has a strong grasp on how to generate tension, but it’s a big step down from The Assistant.
American backpackers Hanna (Garner) and her best friend, Liv (Jessica Henwick), decide to spend their vacation together to make new memories. Out of money, they decide to accept a temporary job behind the bar of “The Royal Hotel” in a mining town to continue their backpacking adventures in Australia. The bar owner (Hugo Weaving) leaves them unnerved, but their interactions with the locals leave them in a potentially unsafe environment.
Green taps into the fear of the unknown, placing Hannah and Liv in a foreign country without knowledge of the local culture. Unsure how others will react to their American roots, they lie and tell others that they’re Canadians. The Royal Hotel further racks up the tension, incorporating gender dynamics into the bar. Hanna appears more concerned of her surroundings, while Liv settles into the excitement, putting her trust in strangers.
If this were a horror film, Hanna would have all of the makings of a final girl. Meanwhile, Liv’s character lacks all common sense, pointlessly turning on her best friend in favor of strange men at the drop of a hat. Their dynamic grows increasingly frustrating, making it difficult to remain invested in her plight, especially when the reasoning for her behavior is so obtuse. Even so, Hanna remains a riveting lead, who feels dangerously alienated.
The Royal Hotel is at its most successful in the silently taut moments, where Green allows the camera to linger on moments of extreme discomfort. The quietest scenes prove to make the most boisterous impact, as the power dynamic continues to tip further away from Hanna, regardless of her status of a temporary employee. Similar to The Assistant, there’s seemingly no reprieve from the toxic workplace, but this thriller moves into a much more remote setting.
By the time we reach the climax, The Royal Hotel sputters out of tension. The conclusion is unsatisfying, but the real issue is that it doesn’t strike as hard as it believes itself to. It’s certainly bigger and louder than Green’s aforementioned takedown of toxic Hollywood, but it lacks the searing impact.
Garner is an absolute force as Hanna, effortlessly navigating the character’s fears (both spoken and unspoken), as well as her attempts at allowing herself the space to let go of her greatest fears. Meanwhile, Henwick delivers a solid performance, even despite the frustrating writing behind Liv.
The Royal Hotel gets off to a strong, nail-biting start, leveraging a robust lead performance from Garner. However, the narrative isn’t able to build on its own discomforting tension, lacking convincing characterizations. Nevertheless, Green once again proves herself a skillful filmmaker with a strong understanding of what it takes to get our blood boiling and our hearts pounding.
Rating: 3/5
The Royal Hotel hits theaters on October 6th, 2023.
