Motel Destino

Twenty year old "Heraldo" (Iago Xavier) is hoping to leave his seaside Brazilian home and head to São Paolo and make a fresh start. Thing is, his elder brother "Jorge" (Renan Capivara) and he owe the local queenpin "Bambina" (Fabiola Liper) one last favour. "Heraldo" goes out and gets laid in the town's knocking-shop-cum-motel and awakens to discover that his brother tried to do the job en seul and, well now the young man has to find somewhere to hide. Fortunately, he made a bit of an impression at the motel with it's owner "Dayana" (Nataly Rocha) and so she agrees to shelter him whilst her brutish and frequently drunk husband "Elias" (Fâbio Assunção) lets him do odd jobs. From here on in, you can probably guess what happens and that's not without it's just deserts and irony. There's some humour to be had, plenty of sex (even the donkey's get some fun) but as the thriller element starts to kick in the writing starts to become more important and doesn't really rise to the occasion as it gallops along to it's conclusion. There is some sexually charged chemistry between Rocha and Xavier but too much of the plot is either implied or just plain missing and in the end, though it's a good looking and effectively seamy looking production, it disappointingly ran out of steam.

Motel Destino is a visually hypnotic and emotionally intense film that dives into the chaos of youth, love, and survival. Set in a sultry, decaying motel, it captures a sense of isolation and longing with dreamlike cinematography. The characters are fragile yet volatile, and while the plot sometimes drifts, the mood never lets go. It's not a film for everyone, but for those drawn to dark, atmospheric storytelling, it offers a raw and lingering experience.

Synopsis: The neon-hued Motel Destino is a roadside sex hotel under the burning blue skies of the coast of Northern Brazil, run by the boorish Elias and his frustrated, beautiful wife Dayana. When 21 year-old Heraldo finds himself at the motel, after messing up a hit and going on the run from both the police and the gang he let down, Dayana finds herself intrigued and lets him stay. As the two navigate a dance of power, desire and liberation, a dangerous plan for freedom emerges. In this tropical noir, loyalties and desires intertwine, revealing that destiny has its own enigmatic design.

"Motel Destino" is a quiet but eventful erotic thriller with traces of a contemporary noir as it tells a story about the need to escape and all the obstacles that come with such escape. In this desperate desire for escaping one can find himself trapped in other situations, or find himself a place to stay and a destiny to be fulfilled.

Our hero, the young Heraldo (Iago Xavier) finds both while using a motel in a desert area of Ceará as a hiding place, running away from a group of criminals due to his failure with a hit that end up badly to a comrade. His initial plan was to do one final crime job and move to São Paulo to find an honest job. The motel of the title is run by a couple, the middle-aged Elias (Fábio Assunção) and his wife Dayana (Nataly Rocha), him as a manager and her as a multi-task receptionist. In return for helping him, Heraldo works at the motel fixing electrical things or whatever needs fixing and cleaning. In that conjuction of loners, Elias finds on Heraldo a hard-working friend and Dayana gets a new lover in a torrid affair, hidden from her husband and also from the custumers who attend the place (barely seen, mostly heard through loud sexual moaning in the background). Love blossoms with the new couple, but Heraldo still worries about his mates on the run to find him.

Karim Aïnouz' latest film is compelling but not fully; sexy and daring but with little thrills and many unexpected humor. It's almost as if taken elements of film noir (loners, problematic and violent characters) but placing inside a motel located around the amazingly beautiful beaches of Ceará - it's such beautiful sight that it's like seeing another world. There's an emotional complexity to the story, which is good but you may feel emptied out or feeling that little was gained or experienced. It's not edgy as it could be but it satisfies a little and excites a lot. Deep down is a film about the human element of hiding and how those characters deal with escaping themselves from dangerous situations, hiding from themselves and from others (as evidenced by Elias small moves on Heraldo) and ultimately each form of escape brings many unexpected results: passion, love, violence or death.

Another main attractive of "Motel Destino" comes from the acting. Iago and Nataly formed an interesting and sexually charged couple with a great chemistry. Though I don't find his acting so strong and his delivery of some lines sound strange, I find him very suitable for the role.

Heraldo becomes a center of attention with good reasons as there's a peculiar common man sexy appeal to him that attracts both women and men (we have a fourth worker at the hotel, played by Yuri Yamamoto, who fancies Heraldo but the script reduced him in the background with whispered lines and later one pivotal moment). For a newcomer, Iago was pretty fine in the most daring sex sequences.

And then there's Fábio Assunção. What a performance, what a role! There's a whole generation who remembers him as the soap opera heartthrob of a few decades ago, and others who just followed his decline of some time ago. He doesn't make many movies, but with this one he's destined to become memorable as a film actor as well. He truly dominates the scene as Elias, a manager his 50's (but a lot fit for his age, like the actor) who is friendly but mysterious, playful and who likes to joke around (showing the sex toys to an embarassed Heraldo) yet you can sense an erratic side of him that can bring danger. Without Fábio, it would be another actor playing the cliched cheated husband role. There are layers with this character which are all fun and intriguing to see, and that makes his best role ever since the TV show "Celebridade" way back in a time when I only considered him a great presence but not a good actor. He is good here!

If we were to put a moral in "Motel Destino" it'd be don't get your meat where you get your bread. But who can resist temptation and who can predict that that special someone can be found when you're not looking, and especially in a place like that? The mysterious ways of fate are always at play, but it's up with destiny as to what one decides to do; those two hardly ever match. 8/10.

Karim Aïnouz's direction, the camerawork, atmosphere, and strong performances create an interesting erotic thriller with blended themes of modern noir, crime, escapism, sex, and horiness.

Filled with colorful production, sound designs and atmosphere, it's interesting Brazilian take on the noir genre is held pretty well with the direction and approach it took. Creating a good observation of a journey of a man who desires escape and encounters the troubles along the process of escaping. The erotic thriller elements work well with it's setting and despite the characters, while could have been a bit more stronger with connection, remain interesting since it is filled with strong performances from all over of the cast members.

Despite not the grandest story, the narrative offers interesting concepts and applied with the good atmosphere, it remains vibrate, colorful, and engaging. Including a really engaging third act.

As a whole, Karim Aïnouz never over welcome his stay and still always offers something unique or interesting.

Karim Aïnouz's latest erotic thriller Motel Destino is a delicious cinematic mix of desire, sex, and crime. Aïnouz is a Cannes favorite, with six of his films having premiered at the Cannes Film Festival till now. This year, Motel Destino competed for both the Palme d'Or and the Queer Palm.

Set somewhere on the coast of Brazil, Motel Destino is a dingy sex motel characterized by neon lights. The hotel is run by Elias and his partner Dayana, who are indifferent to the world of sex and crime within the motel. They are sucked into this world so much that Elias is often found voyeuristically self-pleasuring and covering up criminal acts to keep the police at bay. This is a place where no guests stay for long, and no one asks any questions. One day, the young and attractive Heraldo arrives at the motel, bringing his own criminal baggage. He soon becomes a part of the couple's dynamic, disrupting the established order. The three principal characters then venture into the third and final act of this queer noir film as they reach their destinies.

The film is brilliantly shot, with intense, uncomfortable close-ups of the characters' faces trapped in their situations, and sweaty bodies pumping with desire. Heraldo's close-up shots of his naked body depict him as both strong and fragile at the same time. Dayana has a tenderness and is eagerly waiting for someone to give her a shimmer of hope to escape her abusive relationship with Elias. The film's color palette seamlessly switches between neon red and blue, red signifying the carnal desires of the occupants, and blue representing the dreadful feeling of emptiness that follows the high.

With Motel Destino focusing on raw emotions and carnal desires, masterfully captured through brilliant cinematography, the somewhat lack of world-building in the beginning seems intentional, giving the audience a sense of detachment from society.... Worth Watching... Adios...