Director: Drew Pearce
Screenplay: Drew Pearce
Starring: Jodie Foster, Stirling K. Brown, Sofia Boutella, Jeff Goldblum, Brian Tyree Henry, Jenny Slate, Zachary Quinto, Charlie Day, Dave Bautista
Running Time: 94 minutes
Genre: Action, science-fiction, crime
Los Angeles, 2028: A full-scale citywide riot is in progress over the cost of privatised water. Under cover of the riot a small crew try, unsuccessfully, to rob a bank. During the escape, brothers Sherman (Brown) and Lev (Henry) are injured; Lev very seriously. They go to the Hotel Artemis, a combination hotel and hospital that only treats criminals, run for 22 years by the Nurse (Foster) according to a strict set of rules, with assistant / enforcer Everest (Bautista). Also in the hotel are racist, misogynist arms dealer Acapulco (Day) and contract killer Nice (Boutella). The Nurse receives word that crime boss The Wolf King (Goldblum), who owns most of Los Angeles (including the Artemis), is on his way for emergency treatment. Meanwhile the Nurse takes a huge risk, breaking her own rules to help cop Morgan (Slate), who has a connection to her past.
This is a stylish action, crime-thriller with futuristic overtones and a top-drawer cast. Set almost entirely in the confines of the hotel, which looks like a decaying Old-Hollywood palace. Jodie Foster turns in a typically strong performance as the vulnerable but strong nurse, Jeff Goldblum has a lot of fun with a comparatively small role, and Sofia Boutella is memorable as the seductive, acrobatic killer. Stirling K. Brown anchors the film as the essentially decent robber who will do anything to save his brother. With the hotel given to frequent power outages, characters are often shown in shadowy pools of golden light and occasionally bathed in neon neon and bright red emergency lighting. We are given glimpses of the nightmare world outside in the news bulletins the characters watch and the frequent explosions in the distance. There are brief impressions of the world outside Los Angeles (a character talks about taking a chopper "south, over the Wall"). This is not a wall-to wall action film, it is more of a thriller, but when the action comes it is well-staged by debuting director Dave Pearce, and exciting. The story has few surprises and, despite the big-name cast it looks like quite a low-budget film, but it is a lot of fun, and could become quite a cult film in years to come.
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