One of the oddest films I’ve ever seen is Wim Wenders’ The Million Dollar Hotel. Based upon a story idea by U2’s Bono, the movie is about the investigation of the murder of Izzy Goldkiss in the middle of a run-down hotel filled with social misfits.
The story has many angles to it: each of the main characters have their own story to tell, each is a representation of some facet of society which we normally ignore. Prominent to the story is Tom Tom (Jeremy Davies), the so-called village idiot, who is in love with the girlfriend of the deceased, “street angel” Eloise (Milla Jovovich). Even FBI agent Skinner, played greatly by Mel Gibson, has his own story to tell, with some interesting and rather difficult problems which dominates his own life and personality.
The movie at best must be viewed for what it is: an art house movie with a cast of oddities whose lives are more important and interesting than the underlying plot of a murder investigation. Yet, that is not to say the plot is sidelined: it’s the central focal point by which we get to know the characters, their fears, and the way they deal with the death of Izzy Goldkiss.
It’s a very slow movie. At times, one can say it is even boring. But the film has its times of brilliance: there is much of interest in it that even when it slows down, one wants to reach the end to see the grand finale.
The film gets 2 out of 4 fours. If it had a bit more work in the script to help deal with the pacing problems, it probably would have been a 3 star film
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