It’s time to travel back to a magical time called the mid-90s. It was a time when video stores supplied our weekend entertainment, TLC warned us of the dangers of waterfalls and Dunkaroos were plentiful. It was also a time when the indie movie scene exploded, largely thanks to Quentin Tarantino and Kevin Smith. The indie scene of the 90s was largely defined by style and low-budget sensibilities. The films were driven by character and dialogue and marked by nostalgia for prior decades, especially the 60s and 70s. They also had common storytelling tropes, usually relying on non-linear narratives and interlocking sub-plots (see, for example, Pulp Fiction, Four Rooms and Go). Bad Times at the El Royale feels like a lost film from that era. From the narrative structure to the quirky characters to the obsession with the 60s, this feels like a movie that Tarantino made between Pulp Fiction and Jackie Brown. And I mean that as a compliment. I also really miss Dunkaroos.
Much like the best films of the mid-90s scene, the plot of Bad Times at the El Royale is difficult to summarize. A bunch of people show up at the El Royale hotel (literally on the border of Nevada and California) for various reasons. One is looking for stolen money, one is escaping a madman, one works for the government, etc. Slowly but surely, their stories intertwine and the tension gradually builds as more is revealed of their individua stories. Saying much more would be spoilers.
Although the plot is usually secondary in films like this, I honestly didn’t know where the story of this film was going, some reveals and deaths are truly surprising and some characters don’t turn out the way that you would expect. If I had bet a shilling on how some of this shit would turn out at the beginning of the film, I would have one less shilling. In true 90s indie tradition, the star here is the ensemble cast and the oddball characters that they play. Well-known faces (like Jeff Bridges, Jon Hamm and Dakota Johnson) mix with newcomers (like Cynthia Erivo and Lewis Pullman) in a film that’s refreshingly character-driven. Bridges is awesome as usual, and it’s nice to find out that Dakota Johnson is actually talented. I just associate her with 50 Shades of Grey, which I haven’t seen but I’m pretty comfortable assuming is a piece of shit. The newcomers are also excellent and infuse their characters with enough quirkiness to make them memorable. And really, that’s what these movies are all about: Having quirky characters get together and then having shit go south in a hurry.
Much like its 90s ancestors, there is also an emphasis on narrative trickery. Scenes are shown out of order (like Pulp Fiction) and from multiple perspectives (like Go) and the film has a chapter-based format (like Four Rooms). This kind of shit got really old by the end of the 90s, but that was because movies were using these tricks for the fuck of it whether they were actually called for or not. It doesn’t feel forced here, and is actually necessary in some cases. The plot necessitates that certain scenes be viewed from multiple perspectives in order to understand the entirety of what’s happening, so it doesn’t just feel like the director is jerking off to his import Japanese laserdisc of Reservoir Dogs. Sure, some flashback scenes aren’t entirely necessary. But the film never feels like it desperately wants to be smarter than you, which was the downfall of these kinds of movies back in the day.
The film is too damn long, though. At nearly 2 and a half hours, I never lost interest but the film could have been much tighter. Additionally, some of the subplots are just kind of meh. MINOR SPOILERS…… much of the third act revolves around Chris Hemsworth as the leader of a cult (basically Charles Manson if he did a lot of situps). Hemsworth is great and chews the fuck out of the scenery, but the whole thing is kind of a downer. I was much more interested in the other subplots, which all go by the wayside once this psycho shows up. It’s still well done, just not what I was hoping for when the movie started. END SPOLIERS.
If you hated the mid-90s indie scene, then you will also hate this. But if you love movies like Four Rooms and Go, then pop open a can of Surge, suck on some War Heads and watch some Tarantino-like shenanigans. You should also watch Go. Very underrated movie.
Image By: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bad_Times_at_the_El_Royale#/media/File:Bad_Times_at_the_El_Royale.png
