Wheelchair accessible, English subtitles, SDH subtitles (Closed Captions), £6 (concession) / £8 (full price)
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A myriad of things could point to Dead Mountaineer’s Hotel not being a good example of Estonian cinema. The alpine setting and the exterior of the hotel originate in Kazakhstan, the film’s cast features a number of Latvian and Lithuanian actors (including a signatory of Lithuania’s Act of the Re-Establishment of Independence), and science fiction is not a genre frequently explored in Estonian cinema – in fact, the film is based on a novel by Soviet-Russian authors Arkady and Boris Strugatsky (the minds also behind Andrey Tarkevsky’s Stalker). Yet none of this stops the film from being repeatedly listed among the most valuable classics from the country.
Opening with a panorama of stunning mountain views, the film follows police inspector Peter Glebsky as he arrives at the titular hotel in response to a call out – but while the guests he meets do seem to be strange humans, there appears to be nothing to investigate: yet. The accidental all-inclusive holiday is not destined to last – in the modernist maze of the hotel’s hallways, Glebsky encounters phenomena that challenge his understanding of the world. Cut off by an avalanche, he tries to solve what is going on.
Dead Mountaineer’s Hotel starts off as a conventional closed circle mystery, but the otherworldly soundtrack hints that there may be more to it than meets the eye. The atmospheric set design and brilliant camera work create a surreal ambience, acting as a backdrop to camp characters’ escapades that ultimately raise questions about authoritarianism and justice.
Content notes: depictions of violence and death
Access notes: flashing lights and images, a mix of bright and dark images, some loud sounds
Curated by Dylan Beck
Trailer
