Welcome back for another installment in our year long Review Stew! This week I returned to the embarrassment of riches that is the short films section on Kanopy where I found…Shuteye Hotel (2007).
Title: Shuteye Hotel
Director: Bill Plympton
Released: April 25, 2007 (United States)
Runtime: 7 minutes
Available to stream on: Kanopy
The Shuteye Hotel has had a rough go of things lately. Unfortunately, there is a killer who has been preying on the guests of the hotel. The killer strikes when the guest’s head hits the pillow at the end of the day. Not long after drifting off to sleep, the guest is left without a head.
To try and find who is behind these killings, a couple of detectives have decided to try and catch the killer in the act. While a few of them take their own rooms, another detective is posted in the hallway.
But as they begin to grow tired, what will happen when they try and sneak in some shuteye?
If you’ve ever longed for a noir-ish type of animated short film, look no further than Shuteye Hotel (2007). This was a lot of fun packed into a super brief runtime.
How can you pull off the noir feel in an animated film? Easy, you use shadows and darkness to your advantage, just as you would in a live-action film. This was something that Bill Plympton does wonderfully as the writer, director, and animator here.
A murder mystery with intrigue and surprises, all in a tight seven minutes. If you have access to Kanopy, or Youtube, you should definitely check out Shuteye Hotel (2007).
So, have you seen Shuteye Hotel (2007)?
If you have, let me hear your thoughts on it! You can leave a comment below or reach out to me on Bluesky!
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