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Starlight Hotel
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by Republic Pictures
Sales Rank: 534
Price: $14.98
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This Sam Pillsbury film from New Zealand, starring Peter Phelps and Greer Robson, is a heartrending story of friendship and love. The two leads are truly magnificent. We don't realize how much we have come to care for these two souls in this quietly moving story until it is over, and we are left with a feeling in our hearts that stays with us a long time. <br /> <br />Patrick Dawson (Peter Phelps) is a young man running from the New Zealand law for assualt on a reposseser. Dawson worked for the man until one night when he takes all the possesions back to the families they came from. This leads to a scuffle in which his boss is put into a coma. Pillsbury uses flashbacks for the backstory as we also learn of Dawson's bitterness over WWI and the glory he did not find in it, as well as his dissilusionment that the girl he loved married someone else while he was away. <br /> <br />Kate (Greer Robson) is a sweet, lonely young teenage girl who has lost her mother and runs away to find her father, who has gone to Wellington to find work. She meets the older young man Patrick and from the moment they are mistaken for family we know that Patrick and Kate will travel together. Kate slowly grows on Patrick as a special bond is formed between the two dreamers. <br /> <br />That is what this film feels like; a dream. Pillsbury gives these characters time to develop their own personal history and with the beautiful New Zealand landscape as a backdrop their relationship grows ever closer. All the little details about both Patrick and Kate are given slowly over the course of their dangerous journey on the open road. <br /> <br />This movie is dreamlike and compelling. It is also romantic. Kate is only around thirteen, and as Patrick begins to care for her, they fight and argue as an older brother and younger sister would. We know how much she means to him when he loses her in a riot and misses his ship to Australia in a desperate search to find her, taking the risk of being caught. <br /> <br />Director Pillsbury brings about a special relationship between the young and luminous Robson and the young but weary Phelps. Both give terrific performances in this beautifully filmed story, unfolding slowly to reveal a richly rewarding film. Hollywood would have turned this movie into something quite different and it is to Pillsbury's credit that as the friendship of Kate and Patrick becomes something more, he does not go any further, for it is not the proper time. This is a subtle film of nuance and character development. The scene where Patrick takes her to her mother's grave and takes flowers from another headstone to place there is all the more moving for it's quiet restraint. <br /> <br />I will not give away everything about this film, but their paths are obviously leading them in different directions. A touching ending that may just be the beginning of their true story is handled with great care in this tender film that will hold a special place in your heart once you have seen it. <br /> <br />Check into the "Starlight Hotel" as Patrick calls it and enjoy this wonderful film for dreamers..
Viewer Reviews
First off, someone asked what does Starlight Hotel mean? Well the answer is given about 25 mins into the film just after Patrick & Kate jump off the train they've hitched a ride on. Basically it means you've nowhere to stay for whatever reason & therefore you're sleeping rough (i.e. "under the stars" or "at the Starlight Hotel" - best place in town according to Patrick).
I first saw this film in the early 90s and fell in love with it! There is a long-lost beauty and innocence to this film which is very touching - helped by some breathtaking New Zealand scenery and some superb atmospheric music by Andrew Hagen & Philip Morton which really does enhance the 1930s depression era that the film is set in. It's unusual to hear music that is so evocative of the spirit of a film. I'd buy the soundtrack but it doesn't seem to have ever been released on CD! I guess it's because there isn't that much of it, but what there is, is used very effectively for creating mood and ambience.
Basically the film depicts the friendship that develops between Kate a 13-ish year old girl who's run away from home to look for her father and meets Patrick a late twenty-something who's on the run from the law after accidentally causing serious injury to a dodgy bailiff; and the film follows them on their many adventures during the 1930s economic depression and how their friendship develops while they're "on the wag". To me, where this film really scores highly is the way it portrays the spirit of the great Depression. There's an element of "rites of passage" in the film as well but it's kept very subtle and there's no nudity or anything suggestive like that (thankfully) and the film has an all-too-rare gentleness and innocence that is sadly lacking in most areas of life these days. This doesn't sound like there will be much to keep one interested, but this is far from the case!
Both principal actors play their parts very well indeed and a real chemistry seems to blossom between them. Sadly, Greer Robson is an actress whose talent is all-too-rarely seen. A pity in my opinion as I think she showed real talent in this film.
There are some great dialogue moments: for instance when the two are walking along a road and a small lorry (pickup truck) deliberately "buzzes" Patrick & Kate, and a standoff ensues between Patrick the the two ruffians in the lorry. During said standoff Kate comes up to Patrick & says "What's the matter Dad?" To which Patrick replies "these men are lost... and I've just told them where to go!" Brilliant!
To anyone who enjoys the more aesthetic aspects of cinema & human relationships, this film is an absolute must!
Very highly recommended!
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