The Royal Hotel (film)

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

Plot in brief
Two American backpackers, Hanna and Liv, travel through Australia and take jobs as bartenders at the Royal Hotel, a pub in a remote mining town. They encounter casual sexism and hostility from the local men. As tensions rise with regulars and the town’s unstable dynamics unfold, Hanna and Liv face threatening behavior and violence. The situation escalates until Hanna, Liv, and a few allies confront their harassers, culminating in Hanna setting the pub on fire as they walk away.

Production and release
The Royal Hotel was filmed in South Australia, mainly in the town of Yatina, over 21 days in August 2022. The script was co-written by Kitty Green and Oscar Redding. Production companies include See-Saw Films, with support from Screen Australia and others. International sales were handled by HanWay Films and Cross City Films. Neon released the film in the United States, and Transmission Films released it in Australia. The world premiere took place at the Telluride Film Festival on September 1, 2023, and it also screened at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 7, 2023. The running time is 91 minutes, and the language is English. The film grossed about $1 million.

Reception
The Royal Hotel received strong reviews, with 88% of 139 critics on Rotten Tomatoes and a Metacritic score of 77/100, indicating generally favorable reviews. Critics praised its tense atmosphere and its unflinching look at misogyny and violence.