It's a busy night: The City is awash with riots and disorder after mains water was discontinued by the Corporation with a monopoly on supply.
Tonight's guests include Arms Dealer Acapulco (Charlie Day), Assassin Nice (Sofia Boutella) and bank robber brothers Waikiki (Sterling K. Brown) and Honolulu (Brian Tyree Henry).
Then news comes a very particular VIP is on their way in.
No good will come of this.
CW: some violence
I had this pegged as an attempt to cash in on the John Wick phenomenon as it smells of "The Continental" but this is a solid standalone near future story that could best be pigeonholed as Cyberpunk.
It's not the neon streets variety that dominates perception nowadays but Drew Pearce gets a bunch of badasses stuck in one place with lots of the elements from that genre. Nice kills important people for money while livestreaming it to her clients through a Cybernetic eye. Honolulu is there to get a 3D printed liver after a robbery goes wrong. There are militarised Police battling rioters in a burning city and corruption everywhere. The hotel has to be self sufficient because basic services don't work. It genuinely earns the label.
Foster shuffles about tending to the guests reciting stock bedside manner phrases she's memorised because she's an alcoholic agoraphobic who hasn't left the building in years. Until somebody from outside turns up that she knows from before.
It does some very predictable stuff. Boutella does slinky assassin. Bautista does man mountain with heart of gold. The dialogue creaks in places but as a whole it really works and it deserves so much better than to sink like it did.
A solid 7/10 attempt at a one off original that flew too close to a huge franchise and got burned. Oh and the VIP cameo is masterfully chosen.