The Royal Hotel (film)

The Royal Hotel is a 2023 Australian psychological thriller film directed by Kitty Green, who co-wrote the screenplay with Oscar Redding. The film stars Julia Garner, Jessica Henwick, Toby Wallace, and Hugo Weaving. It is inspired by the 2016 documentary Hotel Coolgardie by Pete Gleeson.

The Royal Hotel premiered at the 50th Telluride Film Festival on 1 September 2023. It was released in Australia by Transmission Films on 23 November 2023.

Plot
Two young American backpackers, Hanna and Liv, are travelling through Australia. After running out of money while partying in Sydney, they take up an employment agency's offer to work as bartenders at the Royal Hotel, a pub in a remote outback mining town. Upon arrival, they meet the pub's owner Billy and his wife Carol, who also works as the pub's chef. Hanna and Liv's first shift is handling the raucous farewell party for their predecessors, English tourists Jules and Cassie. While working, they meet several of the regulars. Hanna is disturbed by the casual sexism, misogynistic jokes, and inappropriate behaviour displayed by the pub patrons, who are mostly men, although Liv brushes it off as a culture shock.

The next day, Jules and Cassie are driven back to town by a mysterious local named Dolly. Matty, a young regular at the pub who flirted with Hanna and Liv the previous night, pays them a visit and the group goes swimming nearby; Hanna begins to bond with Matty. Returning, they observe Billy and Carol's unstable relationship and learn that Billy has not paid deliveryman Tommy for the last three months, much to Carol's chagrin. That night at the girls' upstairs living quarters, while Liv is asleep, Hanna rebuffs Matty's attempts to have sex, before ordering him to leave. In the morning, Matty apologises to Hanna. Over the next few nights, Hanna continues to endure harassment and microaggressions by the pub patrons, while Liv is embraced by the regulars for her easygoing attitude.

Liv begins to slack off at work and joins the regulars in drinking, striking up a friendship with local miner Teeth. During one quiet night, after an intoxicated Liv retires early and leaves Hanna to work alone, a drunk and aggressive Dolly antagonises Hanna and a few patrons before he is finally forced to leave by Billy. Hanna is rattled by the incident, but Liv believes Dolly to be harmless. Shortly afterwards, when a snake invades the girls' living quarters, Dolly offers to retrieve it. The next morning, Hanna discovers Dolly has left the dead snake in a jar of alcohol with her name on it, further upsetting her, but Liv once again dismisses Hanna's concerns.

After unsuccessfully attempting to get Dolly banned from the pub, Hanna announces that she and Liv are quitting, but Billy refuses to pay them. During an argument with Carol over paying Tommy and the girls, Billy injures himself in a drunken fall, forcing Carol to drive him to the nearest hospital. Before leaving, Carol reveals she has taken most of the money to pay Tommy and has left some for Hanna and Liv. She instructs the pair to make as much money as they can and then leave when the next bus arrives in two days.

On their last night at the pub, Hanna throws a birthday party for Liv. Learning from Teeth that Liv has left with Dolly, Hanna soon finds her drunk in Dolly's car. When Dolly attempts to drive off, Hanna intervenes by slashing one of the tyres of his car with an axe. Hanna and Liv return to the pub where they argue. The next morning, Hanna awakens to let Matty in, only to discover Dolly is with him. The two men break in and chase Hanna to her living quarters. Liv leaves with Dolly while an agitated Hanna attempts to ward off Matty with the axe. A scuffle ensues and Hanna is injured.

As Dolly and Matty take Liv to their car, Hanna steps outside. Alarmed at her friend's injuries, Liv breaks free from Dolly and reunites with Hanna. As Dolly approaches, Teeth smashes into his car with his truck and proceeds to assault Dolly as Matty flees. Retreating to the pub, the girls begin to break several bottles. When Teeth walks in, declaring that he beat up Dolly to claim Liv for himself, Liv angrily turns him away. With the pub covered in liquor, Hanna sets the building on fire. Hanna and Liv walk away in silence as the Royal Hotel burns.

Production
Kitty Green co-wrote the script, inspired by true events, with Oscar Redding. Production comes from See-Saw Films through producers Emile Sherman, Iain Canning and Liz Watts along with Scarlett Pictures' Kath Shelper. HanWay Films and Cross City Films handled international sales, with Neon taking North American distribution rights, in April 2022.

Casting
Hugo Weaving and Jessica Henwick joined the cast in April 2022. Toby Wallace was confirmed to have joined the cast in August 2022.

Filming
Principal photography took place in the town of Yatina and other areas around South Australia in August 2022. A disused bar in Yatina, a town with a population of 29, was used for The Royal Hotel. While the upstairs living area of the building was used for filming, scenes of the bar on the ground floor were shot on a separate stage.

Filming took place over 21 days. Green and cinematographer Michael Latham storyboarded many of the scenes prior to filming.

Release
The Royal Hotel had its world premiere at the 50th Telluride Film Festival on September 1, 2023. It also screened at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival on 7 September 2023. It was released by Neon in the United States on 6 October 2023, and was released by Transmission Films in Australia on 23 November 2023.

Critical response
Sheri Linden of The Hollywood Reporter called the fim, "a well-etched story on dread overload". Writing for RogerEbert.com, Marya E. Gates described the film as "a Gen Z twist on the Australian classic Wake in Fright". She added, The Royal Hotel "remains a chilling and tense examination of the Outback’s toxic alcohol-fueled culture. Green continues to establish herself as an insightful chronicler of the minor yet devastating terrors of violent masculinity that many women endure everywhere they go."

Awards

 * San Sebastián International Film Festival nominee for Best Film, won the RTVE-Otra Mirada Award
 * BFI London Film Festival official selection
 * 2023 Cinéfest Sudbury International Film Festival Outstanding International Feature Film
 * Best Film category at the AACTA Awards, with Julia Garner receiving a Best Lead Actress in Film nomination.