Goddard plays with the idea that we all lie to each other and to ourselves, as no character is who they seem to be. Just like most Tarantino-inspired films of the ‘90s, Bad Times at the El Royale is divided into chapters, mostly reliving the moments following check-in from the perspective of each guest. As the motel’s lone clerk and only active employee, Miles (Lewis Pullman) guides them safely to their rooms, but a quiet night in the desert will soon turn violent and bloody. Father Daniel Flynn (Jeff Bridges), vacuum cleaner salesman Laramie Seymour Sullivan (Jon Hamm), background singer Darlene Sweet (Cynthia Erivo), and a mysterious girl (Emily) who signs the ledger as “F*** you” (Dakota Johnson) all arrive looking for a room, each with their unique reasoning. Now the giant Vegas-style neon sign isn’t glamorous, but tacky.īy the time our main guests arrive to check-in, there is plenty of room at the El Royale, and the sandwiches in the 1950s World Fair vending machines are expired. But El Royale isn’t what it used to be in its Rat Pack glory days, especially after losing its gambling license. The massive front doors give way to a stylish ‘60s lobby, with a red line painted on the floor that divides the entire establishment into California and Nevada sections, each with appropriate decorations that invite guests to drink in California and then gamble in Nevada. Welcome to the beautiful and lively motel El Royale-or at least it used to be. Now Playing: Bad Times At The El Royale - 'Welcome To The Royale' Official Trailer

But while the entrance to Bad Times at the El Royale may entice you with cool characters and an intriguing mystery, the rooms are messy, uninvited guests come in at late hours, and the layout is confusing enough to make you want to check out early.īy clicking 'enter', you agree to GameSpot's This could be Heaven or this could be Hell, you could be thinking to yourself, as for the most part the film succeeds at standing among the crowd of Pulp Fiction wannabes. Goddard follows up his critically acclaimed Cabin in the Woods with something that feels like a lost mid '90s movie, from the time where everyone and their mother started making ensemble self-aware neo-noir crime movies with cool, period soundtracks, tons of dialogue, stylish violence, and convoluted structures in the wake of Quentin Tarantino’s success. However, the punchline isn't so much a hilarious one-liner. Director Drew Goddard's sophomore feature plays out like a joke: a priest, a vacuum cleaner salesman, and a backup singer walk into a motel lobby.

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