Screenshot

Hotels


Listen Later

With the latest series of the much-discussed drama The White Lotus recently wrapped up, Screenshot asks why cinema and TV make so many return visits to hotels as a setting.

Whether sinister and scary like in The Shining or Psycho, fabulous but faded like The Grand Budapest Hotel, or comically chaotic like in Fawlty Towers, hotels offer a myriad of possible opportunities for drama. Ellen E Jones and Mark Kermode check in to check out their rich history on screen.

Ellen talks to film critic Hannah Strong about the timeless appeal of screen stays from the 1932 classic Grand Hotel to The White Lotus - and about how directors Wes Anderson and Sofia Coppola have made hotels the focus of some of their most famous films.

Ellen also speaks to Sean MacPherson, hotelier, cinephile and co-owner of the storied Hotel Chelsea in New York City, about the glamorous allure of historic hotels - and the impact of the movies on hotel design.

Mark speaks to writer and critic Anne Billson about the seedier - and scarier - side of hotels on screen, from the Coen Brothers' 1991 cult classic Barton Fink, to the 1990 Roald Dahl fantasy The Witches.

And Mark also talks to director Rodney Ascher, whose 2012 documentary Room 237 explored Stanley Kubrick's The Shining from the unusual points of view of a number of theorists - all of whom seem to have checked into the film's Overlook hotel and never been able to leave.

Producer: Jane Long

A Prospect Street production for BBC Radio 4

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

ScreenshotBy BBC Radio 4

  • 4.6
  • 4.6
  • 4.6
  • 4.6
  • 4.6

4.6

28 ratings


More shows like Screenshot

View all
Friday Night Comedy from BBC Radio 4 by BBC Radio 4

Friday Night Comedy from BBC Radio 4

2,119 Listeners

The Empire Film Podcast by Bauer Media

The Empire Film Podcast

551 Listeners

Page 94: The Private Eye Podcast by Page 94: The Private Eye Podcast

Page 94: The Private Eye Podcast

347 Listeners

Kermode and Mayo's Film Review by BBC Radio 5 Live

Kermode and Mayo's Film Review

681 Listeners

THE ADAM BUXTON PODCAST by ADAM BUXTON

THE ADAM BUXTON PODCAST

1,190 Listeners

Front Row by BBC Radio 4

Front Row

126 Listeners

Soundtracking with Edith Bowman by Edith Bowman

Soundtracking with Edith Bowman

155 Listeners

Film Stories with Simon Brew by Simon Brew

Film Stories with Simon Brew

92 Listeners

Simon Mayo's Books of the Year by Bauer Media

Simon Mayo's Books of the Year

70 Listeners

Pilot TV by Empire Magazine

Pilot TV

189 Listeners

Kermode on Film by Mark Kermode

Kermode on Film

110 Listeners

This Cultural Life by BBC Radio 4

This Cultural Life

101 Listeners

Kermode & Mayo’s Take by Sony Music Entertainment

Kermode & Mayo’s Take

344 Listeners

The Rest Is Entertainment by Goalhanger

The Rest Is Entertainment

857 Listeners

Strong Message Here by BBC Radio 4

Strong Message Here

65 Listeners