Hotel Splendide

I love this film. It is stunning, visually and aesthetically beautiful, works perfectly as a whole and is perfectly crafted. What negative things could possibly be said about it? Well, the problem is, we've seen it before. In the films of the french duo Jean-Pierre Jeunet & Marc Caro.

Hotel Splendide is, in its essence, a typical Jeunet/Caro-film; you'll find that virtually all the characters and aesthetics are lifted from "Delicatessen" and "The City of Lost Children". A hint of Greenaway perhaps, and a fairly large portion of Britishness... what we end up with is an extraordinary, beautiful, funny and moving film. In itself, the film is fantastic. What brings it down a bit is the fact that you find 90 % of this film in the two films by the French duo (J&C), which suggests that although transformed, the ideas weren't originally the writer/director's own.

However, if we go beyond the surface of the film we find a nicely crafted story and some subtle philosophical symbolism - the characters' inner struggles and their blind faith (that makes them unhealthy and miserable, although believing the opposite) can be seen as a a statement against fanatic religious or political believes, and the repression of individualism and the free mind. It's not profound in any way, but it's there, conscious or not.

The ending is, I'm afraid, exactly what you expect. I wish it wasn't, but apparently that's how it has to be in a film like this. The music is most of the time very annoying because it's obviously synthesizers trying to sound like an orchestra, and it's not very well done. Utterly bad use of an oboe-sound in the lead melody so stale it is laughable, and some tasteless pizzicato-sounds that scream out "cheapness" (and what's with that crash cymbal?). All in all the synths don't blend very well with the warm and very well played live violin that occasionally appears and brightens the day.

Finally, a word on the acting. It is overall superb. Hugh O'Conor's portrait of Stanley Smith is spot-on, intense but never over-acted. Katrin Cartlidge too gives a moving performance, and last but not least, Toni Collette is amazingly spellbinding as lovely Kath.

Well acted, well directed and well done, although not as original as it might seem. A good film, though. See it.

Tale of a resort and health spa, on a remote island off the coast. Lots of time spent talking about the health treatments, the menu, and the heating system... the miserly old patriarch owner, Mrs. Blanche has passed on, and now the family can spruce it all up. If they can only agree on what's to be done. When Kath (Collette), a former employee returns, the cook (daniel craig) refuses to work with her. Stanley (Hugh O'Conor, the irish one!) is the nightly entertainment, and is watching the wacky goings on. He wants to leave, but is scared of crossing the water. So he stays. This zany film was one of Craig's quirky ones, before he started playing James Bond. Collette has done so many of these fun, indie films, she seems to really excel in this category. It's a ton of fun. Even when bad stuff happens, it's light and fluffy and fun. I'll definitely watch this one again. Directed by Terence Gross. Story by Marie Redonnet, french author.

Just watched the film and certainly haven't seen anything like it in a long time. Sort of a weird cross between an Ealing comedy and a Gothic horror. Loved the texture and atmosphere but didn't get that engaged with the story, which is is at times comic and at other moments disturbing or just plain strange, though the characters are beautifully drawn and very memorable, especially Stanley, the neurotic virgin, and the sister, Cora.

People seem to either love or hate this one - maybe because it's so different from the run of the mill Brit film. It seems to draw on an earlier period in cinema for its style and references, which I thought was refreshing. At the end I had the feeling that it might have begun as an even darker and stranger story that has had some element or other removed, maybe to make it more accessible. It does have some really haunting images and a great sound effects track. Definitely worth watching, for its atmosphere alone.

Toni Collette, after her breakthrough but before she became a very visible and recognizable international star. Daniel Craig, before he became James Bond. Stephen Tompkinson, fresh off of 'Ballykissangel' and his celebrated role as Father Clifford. All that's to say nothing of some other notable names and faces, including Toby Jones and Peter Vaughan, and these alone make 'Hotel Splendide' a bit of a curiosity. Then there's the production design and art direction - and even the sharp, eye-catching, flavorful costume design, hair, makeup, effects, and cinematography - by which one could easily enough mistake this as the work of Jean-Pierre Jeunet ('Delicatessen,' 'The city of lost children'), or depending on your frame of reference, possibly Tim Burton or Wes Anderson. 'Hotel Splendide' is wry and kooky as a dark comedy, but it also boasts a playful, offbeat whimsy in telling of an isolated, decaying health spa (further bearing notes of 'The road to Wellville'), the family that operates it, and the upset that follows the return of a past employee. With the actors all joyfully embracing the peculiar fancy of the production and of their characters, even as I don't entirely know what to make of this film, I'd be lying if I said it weren't marvelously enjoyable.

Even composer Mark Tschanz takes the overarching tenor and just runs with it, providing an original score that's often jaunty and peppy like a traveling carnival sideshow. The outcome is a feature that is outwardly just half a heartbeat away from fantasy, sci-fi, or even horror, while nevertheless ostensibly taking place in "the real world." The sheer amount of brilliant detail that's poured into every element is kind of exhilarating. I'm not exactly familiar with filmmaker Terence Gross, and he doesn't seem to have a lot of credits to his name, but I'm quite taken with this minor gem that he created. The characterizations alone, the quirks and personalities that he bestowed on these figures, are rich and tantalizing; Gross could have put them in any setting and it would be a joy to watch the fireworks fly. Factor in the isolation, and the very nature of "health resorts" (or whatever one may call them) as something more than a little on the fringe of society, and the whole is ripe with potential.

For my part, I think we see that potential deftly realized through individual scenes and ideas that capitalize on the strange, sometimes almost surreal splendor of the concoction. It's maybe not realized entirely as much through the narrative that draws it all together. The return of individualist Kath is a shock to the system that shakes the foundations of a family, and a hotel, that is effectively, ominously ruled over by the family matriarch even in death, and the tumult upends both the stale, persisting routines and beliefs of the people involved, and the treatment regime that is decidedly less beneficial than advertised - all quite by the design of that same late matriarch, and moreover executed through her True Believer son, Dezmond. The plot is there, but it's not completely as solid and sure-footed as everything else that greets us; I think the connective tissue of the story just isn't as fully developed, even as soft but definitively relevant themes emerge of the cruel hypocrisy and decadence of those in power who would demand austerity of their subjects. Thankfully, though this strikes me as the relative weak point of the picture, the rest is certainly strong enough to help shore it up. That absolutely includes the cast, and though I dare not discount anyone else, I wonder if it's not the case that Tompkinson steals the show with the severe yet frayed, nervous energy he carries as Dezmond.

It's very weird, and imperfect, with the often ingenious thoughts not always coming out so clearly and cogently in the end product. Superb and highly entertaining as this movie mostly is, any perceived faults come down to Gross' writing as much as his direction - a reflection not perhaps of abject failure, but simply of how Gross stood to still grow and develop in his skills. No matter how we scrutinize the particulars, though, I don't think there's much arguing how creative and original this is, and it remains far better than not, with lasting value far outshining any lesser aspects. Everything looks and sounds incredible, representing high production standards that frankly outpace some new releases of twenty-five years later. It won't appeal to all comers, but for those who are receptive to all t he wide, wacky possibilities of cinema, 'Hotel Splendide' is an off-kilter gem that is well worth checking out. Enter with an open mind and just enjoy the ride; I'm happy to give this my warm recommendation.

This is one of the strangest, most bizarre films I've watched - but it was splendid and hilarious!!! Great cast and wonderfully fun - but you need a sense of humor to watch it!!!!