Hotel Artemis Review
R: Violence and language throughout, some sexual references, and brief drug useGlobal Road Entertainment, Marc Platt Productions1 Hr and 34 MinutesWriter/Dir: Drew PierceCast: Jodie Foster, Sterling K. Brown, Sofia Boutella, Jeff Goldblum, Brian Tyree Henry, Jenny Slate, Zachary Quinto, Charlie Day, Dave Bautista
Set in riot-torn, near-future Los Angeles, 'Hotel Artemis' follows the Nurse, who runs a secret, members-only emergency room for criminals.THE GOODOne of the best things about “Hotel Artemis” is the idea of Hotel Artemis. While the concept sounds a bit like the Continental from “John Wick”, it has its own operation. It’s like the hospital version of the Continental. It’s this rusty ass hotel that can work miracles. Then, the production design of the hotel looks very futuristic but also has the authenticity of just your run-of-the-mill hotel. I love how this hotel operates and how it systematically works where Jodie Foster is the nurse with the skills to heal and Dave Bautista has the skills to kill.
Foster is the conductor of the ship and she’s just fun to watch. Foster is having a fun time in this role but doesn’t stray from being the great actress she is. Bautista is pretty much playing Drax where he is comedic and cool.I love Charlie Day but nowadays he’s taking roles where I just to see him get his ass beat, especially this is year. Here, he’s this scumbag area dealer who’s sexist as shit. Charlie Day is pretty much playing Charlie Day but with a John Leguizamo lisp. Whenever he says something threatening it’s funny ‘cause he’s physically smaller than the people he’s talking shit to. The entire cast is fun to watch but then, after a while, it becomes a who’s who where everyone is wearing eccentric clothing and has ridiculous makeup as if they were citizens of the capitol from “The Hunger Games”.THE BADThe initial concept of “Hotel Artemis” is clever and interesting but the main issue is Drew Pierce's execution where he has no idea what genre this film wants to be. This takes place in a dystopian future with advanced technology which makes it Sci-Fi. Then, gangsters appear to bust the hotel up and assassins, along with Dave Bautista, have to fight them which makes this an action thriller. But then we have sequences where Jodie Foster’s character is experiencing flashbacks to her dead son because of an old face she tends to, which makes it a drama.
By playing with way too many genres, you’re playing with the audience’s emotions of the film, leaving them in confusion.
This is not a balls to the wall action movie with A-lists stars that you were expecting but instead a slow, day-in-the-life of a hotel and the criminals in it, and the people who run it, until Drew Pierce says “fuck it” halfway through and makes it an action thriller. Because WHY NOT?! This takes place during the night when everything goes to shit, but you’re interested more on the days when it’s not fully insane.There are so many things going on in this movie when it could’ve been either a straightforward action film or a calm “day in the life of” narrative. Why must this film take place during a time where the entire hotel is going to shit? I was interested on the inner workings of the hotel and the characters that were residing in it. Just the scenes where personalities collide are the biggest strengths of the story.LAST STATEMENTThoroughly entertaining with a charismatic cast and provides intricate production design, the over-abundant mixture of genres makes “Hotel Artemis” a run-of-the-mill action film that leaves you feeling more “eh” than exhilarated.Rating: 3/5 | 61%uper Scene: Axe, you happy to see Dave?
