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An Education

 Kitty Green made waves with "The Assistant," about a young woman working for a tyrant who resembles Harvey Weinstein.


Green is back with "The Royal Hotel," a new variation on the sinister-workplace theme. A woman is traveling through Sydney with a friend when she runs out of money; she is reckless and naive. She accepts work at a bar in a rural part of the country, an area crawling with rowdy miners. But this is hell; soon, she is fighting for her life, and she has no special equipment (and only half of one ally) for approximately ninety minutes.

Green makes use of ambiguity (whereas many filmmakers like to use clear, bold lines). If someone orders a "Dickens Cider" (dick-inside-her), should I immediately leave the bar? An associate bans an aboriginal employee from stopping for a drink. Is this racism, or is the associate really worried about the employee's "long drive ahead"? If a date becomes aggressive--then blames all the beers he has downed--how do I respond?

Green's great asset is Julia Garner, who is likeable and compelling almost all the time, I think. So many of us hear mildly offensive remarks on a daily basis, and we choose not to respond; we certainly don't "mine" these comments for art. But Green and Garner have their antennae up. Like "The Assistant," "The Royal Hotel" is a provocative and worthwhile story.

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