Hotel Caledonia (The Movie): As the day dawns, the dead will rise

Sunday, 20 May 2007

As the day dawns, the dead will rise

Except of course Hotel Cal has been alive and kicking all along. With the inevitable and yearly arrival of the Cannes Film Festival, members of the production team have headed out onto the circuit in pursuit of further distributors for the beast that is swiftly becoming Hotel Caledonia, or as it is now being referred to in some quarters, "Nick Harper-The Movie".

With some interesting developments already tabled, our Exec and Producer meeting to secure further territory distribution, and the process of finance tie-in now under way, the project draws ever closer to its kick off date. With principle photography earmarked for late July things are finally in full swing. It's going to be a hectic eight weeks or so before we finally get on set.

Casting issues remain fluid, and no final decisions as to the remainder of the targeted talent yet made, though we are in extended talks with a number of well known British individuals. As of yet no final decision has been made on location either, as the prospect of Hungary, Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man, and Scotland continue to occupy the production team, and probably will continue to do so until the 11th hour.

So thanks for keeping the faith with us. I sincerely hope it'll be worth the wait.

Film Synopsis

Hotel Caledonia focuses on the inoffensive, and downtrodden characters of Norman Tickle, and his ‘street-wise’, female-obsessed friend, Arty Harris. Together they take to the road ‘Jack Kerouac’ style and are soon be-friended by a tightly knit group of backpackers, heading north to Scotland for the thrills, and spills, of adventure. Beginning in the Midlands, the story follows Norman and Arty to the lowlands of Glasgow before finally reaching New Braemar, in the desolate, and sometimes-uninviting, landscape of the Scottish Highlands. The movie humorously traces the interwoven relationships that develop between all the travellers as their quest for fresh air, and the isolation of the wild outdoors, finally leads them to a working guesthouse known as ‘HOTEL CALEDONIA’. Here, at their final destination, the black, comedic thread of the movie transcends into the macabre, with scares-a-plenty, and where the ‘surrealness of the bizarre’ takes on a face of abject horror. Far removed from the groups’, and the audience’s expectations, HOTEL CALEDONIA is in a state of dilapidation. To describe it as a hotel, let alone a guesthouse, is somewhat of an over-exaggeration of its potential. HOTEL CALEDONIA reveals its ‘true’identity in the meeting of the travellers and the weirdly frightening, dysfunctional, horrific and unhealthily eating Pertwee family; owners, occupiers, and caterers extraordinaire. From the adventurers’ first encounter with the ‘sinister’ garage owner, Sheena McDonald, to the appearance of ‘old man’ William with his wooden leg, the inhospitality of the environment, and the people who inhabit it, slowly proves itself in the shadows, nooks, crannies, and things that go THUMP in the night. The discovery of strange, and macabre activities, far removed from those of a humane society, and the sudden disappearance of one of their group, leads the adventurers into greater and greater conflict with the Pertwees. Finally, learning the truth about their ‘employer’s’ vile deeds, perversions and culinary habits, the travellers decide to make good their escape. From that moment on, the thrill-seekers embark on a roller-coaster ride to hell and back, as their worst fears are realised and they are left, literally fighting for their lives. But who survives, and how, is where the story unfolds in the most unexpected of ways, as Norman, with his ‘meek and mild’ nature, allows his personality to reveal that of ‘rescuer’ and ‘hero’. The movie reaches its clever, and untelegraphed climax, with a ‘twist ending’ that will leave the misdirected audience to ponder upon the question of “so what happens next?” HOTEL CALEDONIA is comparable in its widespread appeal to any number of recent ‘box-office’ successful films, from within the Horror genre, but it is within the Comedy-Horror genre that it serves to, and succeeds in, setting itself apart.