BAD TIMES AT THE EL ROYALE (15)
AT LEAST one guest of a themed hotel, which straddles the state line between California and Nevada, checks out of their room in a body bag in Drew Goddard’s stylish 1960s-set thriller.
A decade after a patron of the El Royale hotel is shot dead in his room, the ailing establishment welcomes a sudden influx of guests.
Gifted singer Darlene Sweet (Cynthia Erivo) checks in and encounters a forgetful man in a dog collar, Father Daniel Flynn (Jeff Bridges), who needs a room for the night to rest his weary head.
“This is no place for a priest,” warns concierge Miles Miller (Lewis Pullman), whose jittery demeanour suggests something is awry at the El Royale.
Darlene and Daniel are joined by vacuum cleaner salesman Seymour Sullivan (Jon Hamm) and a taciturn hippy chick, Emily Summer-spring (Dakota Johnson).
These strangers head to their respective rooms and later, Father Flynn shares a drink with Darlene and reveals he is slowly losing himself to dementia.
Elsewhere, Seymour makes a shocking discovery and Emily carries out a mercy mission to extract her younger sister (Cailee Spaeny) from the clutches of menacing cult leader Billy Lee (Chris Hemsworth).
Bad Times At The El Royale drip-feeds us tantalising morsels of information right up to the explosive final chapter.