May 9, 2009: Love at the Twilight Motel
Love at the Twilight Motel is a documentary I saw at the Hot Docs film festival in Toronto. It is a look at what goes on in the cheap by-the-hour motels in the Little Havana area of Miami, with a particular motel being profiled (but renamed for the title of the film). Lengthy interviews are conducted with regular patrons, including a working prostitute, a regular john who is also a heroin user, a man who gives “massages” to women and feels he’s God’s gift to them, and a woman who is taking the first tentative steps towards sex outside her marriage.
Shot in digital HD, and with the bright Miami colours, this movie looks good, although of course being on video it looks more like the documentary it is than like a regular feature film, which is fine. The interviews are cut together to cover different themes as we move through the film, as is typical for this approach. Director Alison Rose was available for a Q&A afterwards and clearly knew what she was after, and what would work and what wouldn’t. The balance of interviews was a particularly important point for the director, with some people left out entirely, and the entire production gelling once the interview was secured with the woman experimenting with an open relationship, so that a reasonable balance of gender, race and wealth is achieved.
The subject matter may disturb more sensitive viewers. Sex (including prostitution), drug use, infidelity, dishonesty, and deep regret are laid bare, and even though these things happen all the time, and we all have these types of elements in our lives, it can be heartbreaking to face it head-on. These personal stories, with real substance, aren’t always what I seek in a documentary but it works very well here.
Harrowing look at the dark side.
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