Movie Review—Bad Times at the El Royale

Theatrical release poster

by Peter J. O'Connell

Bad Times at the El Royale. Released: Oct. 2018. Runtime:141 mins. MPAA Rating: R for strong violence, language, some drug content and brief nudity. 

You have to watch your step when you're at the El Royale motor hotel, setting of writer/director Drew Goddard's Bad Times at the El Royale.  You see, the El Royale straddles the state line between California and Nevada. What is legal in one state may be criminal in the other, or vice versa—with the emphasis on vice. You also have to watch your back when you're at the El Royale, for the state of things there is somewhere between that of Hitchcock's Bates Motel and the Eagles' Hotel California. Checking in is one thing; being able to check out whole is another.

In any case, the “bad times” that we witness at the El Royale bookend the 1960s. The movie begins dynamically in 1959 when a man in a trench coat and fedora pulls up to the swanky joint on a rainy night and soon after takes up the floorboards in his room and conceals a duffel bag beneath them. Then another man arrives and, unaware of what the first man has been doing, kills him. Yes, we have been plunged into the world of film noir, or neo-noir if you prefer. 

Next, we find ourselves in the no longer so swanky El Royale of 1969. (We can tell it's 1969 by the news reports about President Nixon that appear on the TV.) A flashy salesman, Laramie Seymour Sullivan (Jon Hamm), waits in the lobby while no staff members manifest themselves. An elderly priest, Daniel Flynn (Jeff Bridges), with a somewhat spacey attitude, and Darlene Sweet (Cynthia Erivo), an intense African-American singer, arrive, simultaneously but separately. At this point the El Royale's apparent sole employee, Miles Miller (Lewis Pullman), appears. Like the narrator of a Poe story, Miles is “very, very nervous.” The last of the day's guests to arrive is Emily Summerspring (Dakota Johnson), who comes across as part glamourpuss, part hippie, and all sarcastic. 

With all the guests now in their rooms, strange things start happening. Laramie is in communication with a government agency in Washington that instructs him to tear out auditing equipment that has been installed in the El Royale. He is also told to ignore any possible crimes in progress and to disable the guests' vehicles. The reference to crimes is to what may—or may not—be occurring with Emily and a young woman, Rose (Cailee Spaeny), in their room. 

Father Flynn appears to be searching for something and seeks to get into Darlene's room. For her part, Darlene is down in the dumps over an encounter with a nasty music producer, Buddy Sunday (Xavier Dolan), seen in flashback. Miles continues to be nervous, particularly as unusual, shall we say, aspects of the El Royale's architecture become known to the guests in ways accompanied by bloodshed. Miles also has been tasked, he reveals, by the “management” with custody of a particularly incriminating film reel of a recently deceased public figure. And then there are the TV reports of a massacre by a cult in California. 

Things evolve in twisty, creepy, violent ways, particularly when a charismatic fellow, Billy Lee (Chris Hemsworth), and his buddies arrive on the scene. Among other things, fire breaks out, and we learn that one character has killed 123 people.

Goddard's direction shows the influence of, among others, Quentin Tarantino and David Lynch, and his cast's performances reach varying levels of success. Hamm is good as a “hammy” (sorry!), unctuous salesman type. Lewis Pullman, however, overdoes the “nervousness” of Miles. Jeff Bridges' performance perhaps mistakes being laid back for being spacey. Dakota Johnson and Cailee Spaeny are adequate as Emily and the wild Rose, but Chris Hemsworth's narcissistic aura takes away some of the charisma that we are supposed to feel emanating from Billy Lee. Cynthia Erivo as Darlene is, however, a real revelation. She is totally convincing as a woman who might have achieved the diva status of a Diana Ross, if she had not been so emotionally vulnerable. She commands the screen, particularly in a scene where she has to sing in a full-bodied way, though alone in her room. 

Bad Times at the El Royale is not going to provide you with the best experience that you have ever had at the movies, but it is a relatively interesting site for a 141-minute stopover. Check it out.