Niagara Motel Review

Niagara Motel
A group of desperate individuals try to sort out their lives against the thundering backdrop of the Niagara Falls.

by Kat Brown |
Published on
Release Date:

11 Nov 2005

Running Time:

89 minutes

Certificate:

15

Original Title:

Niagara Motel

What secrets lie behind all those closed motel-room doors? Not very interesting ones, if you’re staying at Canadian director Gary Yates’ Niagara Motel. Inside its peeling walls, a crowd of unconnected people try to sort out their lives: ex-addict Anna Friel and her husband desperately try to recover their baby from social services; a cash-strapped married couple (Wendy Crewson, Peter Keleghan) are falling apart in the honeymoon suite; a pregnant waitress (Caroline Dhavernas) dabbles with the idea of making cheap porn; and the motel’s drunk caretaker (Craig Ferguson) plunges into the Falls in search of the wife he lost.

Although sweet and comic in parts, the stories are spread too thin to enable any real enjoyment – although strong performances from Yates’ ensemble boost it more than it deserves.

The stories in this multi-stranded tale are initially intriguing, but with so many to focus on this is just too slight to make you care.
Just so you know, we may receive a commission or other compensation from the links on this website - read why you should trust us