The country is in turmoil. Following the instructions of the President, the regime's top men and women try to make it to a vast bunker fortress. As more people trickle in, the interior of the bunker starts to look like a posh bar, with well-dressed guests nibbling on delicacies or gossiping over cocktails. The resemblance is enhanced by scores of obedient android servants anticipating every wish. The President, however, shines through his absence...
"Bunker Palace Hôtel" tells a tale about the collapse of an elite. As the story progresses, the bunker morphs ever more into a prison, and a decrepit and badly run prison at that. It's not entirely clear which kind of political system we're supposed to be dealing with, although clues point to an authoritarian and oppressive regime complete with personality cult.
The movie bears the unmistakable stamp of renowned graphic artist Enki Bilal. One recognizes his "patte" through the science fiction aesthetic, the striking compositions, the refined color palette, the black-versus-white games and so on. Also recognizable is the ominous "Götterdämmerung" atmosphere. So "Hôtel" makes for a visually arresting experience. Dramatically speaking, however, the movie has problems maintaining its rhythm. After a gripping beginning the action starts to sag and drag.
Moreover, there is at least one plot development that defies credibility. So here we've got a bunker fortress filling up with the elite of an authoritarian regime. Suddenly a new guest arrives, to wit an unknown outsider who refuses to give a coherent explanation for her presence. In the movie, the interloper survives long enough to roam all over the building. It's much more likely that such a suspicious newcomer would be hanged immediately, on the first convenient beam.
I dimly remember "Hôtel" getting savage critiques, which seems somewhat unfair. It's not a perfect movie, but at least it tries hard to offer something new and meaningful.
"Bunker Palace Hôtel" tells a tale about the collapse of an elite. As the story progresses, the bunker morphs ever more into a prison, and a decrepit and badly run prison at that. It's not entirely clear which kind of political system we're supposed to be dealing with, although clues point to an authoritarian and oppressive regime complete with personality cult.
The movie bears the unmistakable stamp of renowned graphic artist Enki Bilal. One recognizes his "patte" through the science fiction aesthetic, the striking compositions, the refined color palette, the black-versus-white games and so on. Also recognizable is the ominous "Götterdämmerung" atmosphere. So "Hôtel" makes for a visually arresting experience. Dramatically speaking, however, the movie has problems maintaining its rhythm. After a gripping beginning the action starts to sag and drag.
Moreover, there is at least one plot development that defies credibility. So here we've got a bunker fortress filling up with the elite of an authoritarian regime. Suddenly a new guest arrives, to wit an unknown outsider who refuses to give a coherent explanation for her presence. In the movie, the interloper survives long enough to roam all over the building. It's much more likely that such a suspicious newcomer would be hanged immediately, on the first convenient beam.
I dimly remember "Hôtel" getting savage critiques, which seems somewhat unfair. It's not a perfect movie, but at least it tries hard to offer something new and meaningful.