Whether in her documentaries or narrative films, Kitty Green has proven herself a talented filmmaker, with an eye for creating tension and tackling difficult subjects. She burst onto the scene with the no-holds-barred documentary Ukraine Is Not a Brothel, tracing the history and contradictions of the activist group FEMEN. Largely a group of women, the collective protested topless to defend women’s rights while at the time following the leadership of a man. In Casting JonBenet, Green turned to the murder of JonBenet Ramsey, upending the traditional true crime documentary format by interviewing the actors hoping to be cast in the recreation of her story, revealing their true feelings about the case and reflecting on its legacy on the collective imagination. Green then switched gears for The Assistant, teaming up with Julia Garner as a helpless cog in the entertainment industry who is forced to look the other way as everyone else in her company assists with or ignores the abuse of her high-level boss. It’s a frustrating examination of how difficult it can be to do the right thing when power is not on your side, and is expertly executed in all of its grim details.
For The Royal Hotel, Green reunites with Garner, casting her alongside Jessica Henwick for a road movie that feels all too disturbingly familiar. Here, Green is tackling genre conventions, using her direction to build copious amounts of tension and positing a girls trip gone wrong as a horror movie. Despite its uniqueness, The Royal Hotel does not come across as sharp or moving as her previous work – it’s much more bombastic and painfully obvious, with an ending that feels unfinished compared to the first half. Although flawed in comparison to Green’s previous work, The Royal Hotel is not without its shining moments.
Hanna (Garner) and Liv (Henwick) take on a work assignment in the Australian Outback for a little fun and adventure. Hanna harbors more reservations than her intrepid friend, but despite her misgivings, goes out far into the remote arid landscape that stretches for miles in all directions to a squat bar and lodging at what looks like the end of the world, the Royal Hotel. They briefly meet their carefree predecessors, who connected with their clientele in ways Hanna and Liv have no intentions on repeating. Working at the bar alongside its owner Billy (Hugo Weaving), the pair are treated to constant rounds of catcalls and leers from their mostly male customers, and Hanna’s fears of something terrible happening grow as one customer in particular doesn’t take “no” for an answer. As tensions and unwanted attention rise, the women are forced to reckon with their environment in a nail-biting struggle to make it through the night.
Green, who co-wrote the story with Oscar Redding, quickly establishes and escalates the tricky situation the two friends found themselves in. Innocuous first glances and exchanges soon feel dicey and dangerous, like being forced to smile at yelled-out compliments for fear of retaliation. It’s anxiety-inducing, as a spectator, to watch how quickly mundane situations become hazardous, whether it’s one man’s inability to understand “no” or how quickly he’s able to convince other men to take part in harming someone else. Every creepy smile or unwanted touch feels like watching brainless zombies out for the hunt, only more menacing because these monsters walk among us and alongside our heroines. Green and cinematographer Michael Latham capture both the natural beauty of the Australian setting as well as its horror potential, especially during the dark night scenes where almost nothing outside the Royal Hotel is visible.
Garner and Henwick add suspense of their own through their dynamic as mismatched travelers, one more cautious than the other— or because of the caution of one, something awful doesn’t happen earlier on. Just as the threats they endure may feel familiar to some viewers, so will their war of the wills and conflicting need to stick together, even if it means that keeps you in potential danger. Their friendship, even at its rockiest point, is the most moving aspect of the film, and keeps the audience rooting for the two to make it to the other side of their ordeal.
However promising the premise’s beginning, by the end it runs out of gas – an abrupt ending to an all-too interesting story. I know Green has much more to say when it comes to this topic or any other ones that catch her attention. It just wasn’t all there at The Royal Hotel.
C+
“The Royal Hotel” is in theaters Friday.
