Her name may not be widely known, but you can be certain that eventually Kitty Green will break through as one of the essential filmmakers of her generation. Her bold debut, The Assistant proved to be quite popular amongst audiences aligned with contemporary independent cinema, and proved to be an exceptional starring vehicle for lead actor Julia Garner, who has steadily risen to become one of the most exciting performers working today. Her subsequent directorial effort is somehow an even more fascinating piece, with The Royal Hotel (which proves to be a reunion with Garner, who delivers another strong performance)covertly being one of the most peculiar and utterly transfixing films of the past year, and despite the relative quietness with which it was released, it is a volcanic film that simmers with an intensity that is profoundly compelling and even more daring than we initially may have expected. Telling the story of two young women of indeterminate origin (they claim to be Canadian, but we never quite know if this is the truth, or just part of a lengthy ruse) who are desperate for work while travelling around Australia, and are sent to a remote mining town deep in the Outback, where they will be working as bartenders at the titular establishment, a dive bar known to be frequented by the most vulgar and bawdy members of society, and run by a maniacal man who only proves to make the protagonists’ lives all the more difficult. It is a bold, undeniably complex film with a strong sense of disdain for conventions, which Green uses to her advantage, particularly in how she assimilates certain concepts into the conversation that point towards the deeper meaning beneath this film, which aren’t obvious at first, but become the cornerstone of the story after a while. Bold and daring, and always willing to do something quite different, The Royal Hotel is a challenging film with quite a unique perspective on reality, manipulating logic to become something deeply disturbing and unquestionably provocative.

There are several elements of The Royal Hotel that seem eerily similar to another tremendous film about a stranger being lost in the Outback, the timeless classic Wake in Fright, we have to wonder whether or not Green intentionally set out to make a version of that story for the millennial and Generation Z demographic, since it seamlessly blends the terror of Ted Kotcheff’s astonishing psychological drama with a more nuanced contemporary perspective that allows the film to flourish as its own unique project while still have parallels to a film that is widely considered one of the most unsettling works in the history of Australian cinema, both for how it frames the country and offers something quite unexpected at a time when the national cinema was undergoing something of a peak, which is often viewed as the Ozploitation New Wave, the traces of which can be found throughout this film. One has to wonder why this specific part of the world was chosen – there is nothing in the story that necessarily demands it be set in Australia, and the only tether it has to the country is the director’s own upbringing, so it is possible that she was drawing on her own experiences in some way in developing this story, which presents quite a stark, uncompromising image of a country known for both its beauty and danger, the two becoming entangled throughout this story. The idea of a country that has some of the most beautiful landscapes in the world hiding a sordid underbelly has often been the foundation for various works that aim to explore the people and places scattered across the continent, and its something that Green works to examine in vivid detail, curating a series of extremely disturbing moments that serve a much deeper purpose than we initially may have imagined, but which still carries an immense weight that is undeniably very poetic in an unorthodox, unsettling way. It’s bare, unfurnished filmmaking that is driven by pure ambition and nothing else, and if Green is celebrated for nothing else, at least her legacy is one in which she aims to do something different with material that could have been overwrought in the hands of many other filmmakers who may not have taken her specific approach.

For a few years, Julia Garner has been circling around being considered one of the most promising actors of her generation – she has had several solid roles, and her performance on Ozark can be considered her breakthrough in many ways. However, she has rarely gotten parts that stretch her as an actor, which is where her prior collaboration with Green starts to seem much more integral, since it proved to be a showcase for her undeniable gifts without the layers of excess she was asked to engage with on a lot of her previous performances. Her work in The Royal Hotel is a lot more subtle, and while it does have moments where it veers towards going over-the-top, it is all part of the emotional inventory of the film, which is a textured, complex exploration of the human condition as seen through the eyes of two women trying to navigate challenging terrain, both geographically and in terms of social order. Garner is paired with Jessica Henwick, who has also been doing terrific work for years but has yet to reach the status of acclaim she deserves. They make a formidable duo and manage to turn these people into complex protagonists without becoming too detailed. The supporting cast is just as strong, and the film is worth our time almost solely for one of the best performances ever given by Hugo Weaving, who is unrecognizable as the bar’s owner, and the catalyst for much of the terror inflicted on these young women, while Ursula Yovich is perhaps the only sympathetic person our protagonists encounter throughout the film, and the person who ultimately helps them facilitate their escape, albeit indirectly. It’s an example of a film that utilises its ensemble perfectly, developing on each of their roles without being too focused on the unnecessary details that ultimately do not serve too much of a purpose outside of setting the tone and creating a general narrative direction in which the story can progress.

Green had quite a challenge ahead of her when she set out to make The Royal Hotel – on one hand, she is a filmmaker with a keen sense of social awareness and has spent a lot of time exploring topics that have profound meaning, going back to her days as a director of non-fiction stories. On the other hand, she is clearly a disciple of filmmakers who have a penchant for making unorthodox films that play into various genres. This was present in The Assistant, but that was mostly enveloped by the fact that it was made right at the peak of the MeToo movement, which meant that the aspects that aligned it with a more traditional psychological thriller were mainly overlooked. This is not the case for this film, which puts in the effort to show that it is willing to wear its genre components with pride. It is a peculiar blend of dark comedy, revenge drama and psychological thriller, with a lot of horror imagery scattered in for good measure, meaning that pinning this film down to a specific genre is impossible, since not only does it blend them seamlessly, it bounces between them with an almost reckless abandon, which demonstrates a skillfulness on the part of the director, who showcases an unusual ability to handle tonal shifts that actually bring about some interesting results. All of this is in service of the deeper message that simmers beneath the surface of the film, which is that it uses common genre tropes as a way to explore the experiences of these two women who find themselves getting into a situation where they become trapped in a sexist environment, and where they seemingly have no way of escaping without resorting to violence. The themes of sexual harassment and the plight of modern women in a patriarchal society sit at the foundation of this film, and while Green does exceptionally well when it comes to developing on these ideas in a distinctly simple way that is not heavy-handed or obvious, there are clear correlations between what is being said and implied, which makes for an even more complex, engaging thriller that has a profound and important social message nestled at its core.

For some inexplicable reason, The Royal Hotel came and went without much fanfare, not being promoted as anything more than a mildly interesting afterthought, which seems inappropriate considering the important message woven into the heart of the narrative. However, there is a benefit to this, since it allows the film to be seen as something of an underdog, a relatively underseen film, and thus cannot be a victim to having its many unique twists and turns spoiled, and which will lead the curious viewer down a narrative labyrinth, each step being unexpected as we make our way to the thrilling climax. It’s a relatively simple film without too much complex meaning, and it makes its intentions clear from the very start – but its in this sense of simplicity that Green can make such intriguing observations, as the film grows into a far more layered exploration of female empowerment and the experiences of women who decide to stand up to the oppressive socio-cultural systems that have been in place for generations, which we know can have brutal consequences that are not deserved, but unfortunately part and parcel of a world that still views gender as something to divide the population. It’s a fascinating film, filled with thrilling moments and a genuine sense of dread, and there are layers of tension that could exhaust viewers who are not prepared for 90 minutes of continuous despair – but for those who can handle the challenges, The Royal Hotel is certainly worth the time, since its message is strong and its execution is profoundly fascinating in a way that is often quite unexpected.