Released just over five years ago, we’re still confused as to why this wasn’t a bigger hit.
Our TV movie pick for tonight (Saturday, 4 May) is Bad Times at El Royale, the sadly underseen 2018 neo-noir crime thriller from writer-director Drew Godard (The Cabin in the Woods, The Martian).
Set in 1969, the film centres around a group of strangers who find themselves staying at the El Royale, a once popular but now basically deserted hotel along the California-Nevada border.
These include what appears to be a Catholic priest (Oscar-winner Jeff Bridges), a soul singer (Oscar-nominee Cynthia Erivo), a travelling salesman (Mad Men’s Jon Hamm), two hippie sisters (Cailee Spaeny and Dakota Johnson) and the hotel’s sole desk clerk (Lewis Pullman).
It soon becomes clear, however, that each of these people has a dark past and that there is more to some than meets the eye.
Over the course of one fateful night at the hotel, secrets are revealed which kickstart a chain of events that causes the characters to intersect with each other in dark and surprising ways.
Also featuring Chris Hemsworth in a major role, Bad Times at the El Royale’s ensemble cast, its twisty time-shuffling screenplay, its beautiful period decor and its highly stylised direction make it a must-watch for fans of Quentin Tarantino’s work.
That said, while it earned solid reviews – it currently holds a 75% Rotten Tomatoes score – it was not a box-office hit, the reasons for which we explored in this article published on the movie’s fifth anniversary.
Released around the same time as the blockbusters A Star is Born, Halloween (2018) and Venom – all based on previous IP – this perhaps made it difficult for the more original El Royale to break through to audiences.
If you’re curious to check out the crime thriller, it is airing tonight on Film4 at 10:50 pm.
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