Four Rooms (R)

Its New Years Eve Quentin Tarantino style in the 1995 darkly humorous and thoroughly bizarre movie “Four Rooms.” While Tarantino is clearly the brainchild of the product, his eccentric style is accompanied by three other directors; Allison Anders, Alexandre Rockwell, and Robert Rodriguez, each taking a turn at various points of the movie. The result is an obscure film with a cultish feel that’s great and funny in a truly ambiguous sort of way.

“Reservoir Dogs” star Tim Roth leads the cast, and does so in a way that can serve as an example in the theater of great performances. In “Four Rooms,” Roth plays Ted, a bellhop at the giant Hotel Mon Signor in LA. Commencing on New Year’s Eve, the movie follows Ted as he makes his rounds throughout the hotel, encountering four distinct rooms of guests, each with their own queer set of circumstances.

Roth has been more of a serious actor, with roles in “Selma” and the aforementioned “Reservoir Dogs.” In “Four Rooms,” Roth demonstrates an incredible range, specifically in physical comedy as the aloof and cartoonish bellboy. Ted is flat out hysterical as the primary character in the story, serving as an unwilling link to a bevy of crazy sorts staying at the hotel.

The supporting cast plays well of of Roth in typical Tarantino style ensemble form. We see Valeria Golino, Madonna, and Alicia Witt as a harem of witches in need of a laundry list of ingredients in order to conduct a ritual. David Proval and Jennifer Beals are a kinky couple with a pension for danger and sadistic tones.

One of the funniest segments comes from room 309 (identified with a tawdry placard in another fingerprint of Tarantino) as Antonio Banderas plays a typical tough guy who pays Ted $500 to look after his rambunctious children. As Banderas leaves for the night he points a finger at his kids with a stern warning “don’t misbehave!”

We also see Tarantino himself as a wealthy celebrity staying in the penthouse, accompanied by an entourage that includes Bruce Willis and Paul Calderon.

Roth employs cartoonish mannerisms and accompanies a score of goofy sounds that let you know the movie shouldn’t be taken too seriously, and right from the start you’ll see why.

Tarantino includes a plethora of his weird styles and the movie itself is a relic of nostalgia for the greatest decade of all time, the 1990s with phones, televisions sets, and video games of that era present throughout. We even get cameos by Kathy Griffin and Marisa Tomei.

“Four Rooms” is an unusual movie. I suggest you give it a shot with an open mind. Its the kind of film you’ll be glad you can say you have seen but after one viewing will never want to watch it again.

by – Matt Christopher