Bad Times at the El Royale [Includes Digital Copy] [Blu-ray/DVD] [2018]

Bad Times at the El Royale is directed by Drew Goddard, the man who wrote and directed the cult classic The Cabin in the Woods, and stars a whole bunch of famous people. Seven stranger, each with a secret, all happen to meet up at the El Royale, a hotel that is half in Nevada and half in California. Over the course of one night, secrets find their way out and everything turns to chaos. I wasn’t pumped for this when I saw the first trailer. It seemed like it was going to be kind of like the recent Murder on the Orient Express, which was ok but not great. I forgot about the trailer and watched it again a while back and I got a little bit excited the closer the release got. I liked this movie. I thought that it had a clever story and caught my attention. The performances were really good in this. The biggest standout for me was Lewis Pullman as Miles Miller and Jeff Bridges as Father Daniel Flynn. The others I really liked were Cynthia Erivo (Darlene Sweet), Dakota Johnson (Emily Springsteen), and Chris Hemsworth (Billy Lee). The story very interesting. From the first moments of the movie it grabbed the audiences attention, and also had some interesting editing that worked. As the story progresses everything starts to tie together and more secrets come out. The suspense in this movie was great. You didn’t know what was going to happen. The actors were fantastic as I mentioned before and added a bit more flare to the story. I really loved the relationship between Darlene and Father Flynn. Those were the most interesting parts. The directing and was good. You could see some of Goddard’s techniques from The Cabin in the Woods and shared some similarities. The cinematography was pretty good. The set decoration was really good, another possible Oscar nominee. Side note: there has been some really good set decoration of recent this year. I don’t know why but I love it. I liked the costumes. The fit the time period well (1969) and they had the personality of the character too. The score was good. I really liked the music in it and Cynthia did sing in it and I will say she has an amazing voice. There was one scene in particular that had some really interesting stuff happening and all we could hear was her singing. I loved it! As for flaws, it was a bit of a long movie. It was 2 hrs 20 min and some stuff could’ve been cut down a little. There’s stuff involving a sister which made sense for the plot but there was a little something that just felt a little bit off. It may just be because I didn’t like her as much. Towards the end a secret from Miles Miller comes out and it’s supposed to be like a big thing but then when you learn about it, it wasn’t that big of a bombshell. I feel like they could’ve changed that. Another thing happened involving a tape which kind of felt a little off just because I would forget about it and then it would got back to it. Also this really isn’t a flaw but some people were advertised a lot but barely in it so I felt a tiny but disappointed but it worked out. This is a clever movie that made barely any money on its first weekend (only 7 million with a 32 million budget). It seemed like a big movie but I guess people wanted to see Venom (not really good) and A Star is Born (very good) more. I would recommend it. Either see it in the theater or wait for it to come out on blu ray. My Grade: B+

A dark and twisted road is the way I would describe the the story arc of this movie. The film adds layer upon layer, much like the transparent sheets in a medical text, where you overlay each sheet on top of the next to get a more complete picture of the subject. Until the final act unfolds, this process lets you make assumptions about what is actually going on, but it doesn't telegraph its punches. I'm happy to say that I was kept guessing until the end, although it wasn't a "Happy Ending" in any traditional sense. It seems that movies made today feel the need to be gory and graphic. Maybe in the way that spectators at the Roman Colosseum developed a taste for gore, we need more each new film to satiate an appetite that is being inadvertently developed in us. I find that a little goes a long way, and graphical gore can be better implied and then left to the imagination, because we tend to worry more about what can't be seen than what is shoved in our faces. The best directors draw in the viewers mind as an accomplice to their intentions. This movie is not at all a gore-fest, but at the end it doesn't leave much to the imagination at all. My wife, who asked for this movie, probably won't watch it again, because she didn't expect it to be this dark.

"Bad Times" boasts a killer cast (Jeff Bridges, Chris Hemsworth, Jon Hamm, Dakota Johnson, et al) and some gorgeous production qualities, but writer-director Drew Goddard offers more sizzle than steak in this twisty, too-clever-for-its-own-good tale of a heist and a fortune in stolen loot that everyone wants to get their hands on. That said, the film is a lot of fun to watch and occasionally to listen to as well, with dialogue that strains to capture that Tarantino magic and occasionally succeeds. "Pulp Fiction" this ain't, but as an engaging diversion it does quite well. And the El Royale itself is such a beautiful piece of set construction it will make you wish there was such a place to check into for a weekend getaway.

One of the most intriguing and captivating aspects of this film has to be the crazy tone that it sets from the very beginning. There’s a light-hearted feel that’s blended with some subtle humor for the most part. Thankfully, the film doesn’t rely too heavily on trying to be overly funny because there are some dramatic moments as well. Director/Writer Drew Goddard found an excellent balance within both the serious and humorous tones.Another thing to appreciate in this film was the grounded setting. Not only was this set in the 60’s, but the setting fed into the plot in a very complimentary way. Many of the situations or even character interactions made so much more sense given the time setting. Check out Bad Time at El Royale on Blu-ray/4K. I am sure you will love it.

Tried to watch it twice and fell asleep both times. It's an interesting concept but it drags. You'll end up watching this movie the way you might watch movies on HBO. You'll catch one part of the movie, then try to catch the other parts when flipping channels. Good performance by Jeff Bridges like always. Always enjoy John Hamm, and a shirtless Chris Hemsworth always a plus! Plus, Hemsworth is not doing another remake or reboot (see Star Trek, Red Dawn, Vacation, Ghostbusters, and the upcoming MIB).

A star studded cast, an inspired script and a cool musical mix made this fun. Not perfect, not Tarantino, but not bad. I can see where other people might think things didn't tie together and was slow in spots but I was mezmerized. The look and feel added to the story/stories being told. I don't want to say anything about it because it's one of those movies that you don't want to know anything ahead of time. The trailers didn't give anything away.

So I went into this film blind.....had no idea what it was about. Just seemed interesting from the brief description on the packaging. What a ride it is. On the violent side for sure (which i normally don't watch). I really did like this. It's almost like it was a stage play recorded on film. If you are in the mode for a "different" sort of film, I would definitely suggest watching this....the 4k transfer and sound are amazing.

Yes the reviews are correct. This is Tarantino doing Identity, without the whole being the same person gimmick. The characters are nicely crafted and each scene is elegantly compacted into its own little snack. Until the third act I was high in suspicion of everyone taking the mystery I was sold for a ride. Not a masterpiece but certainly entertaining as a first, and I suspect a second viewing. I recommend this lush story.