Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		1.0
Overall		2.5

The Motel Life Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman June 6, 2014

A well intentioned but ultimately ineffective small scale drama, The Motel Life details the travails of two down on their luck brothers who only encounter more trauma as the film progresses. This debut directing effort by brothers Alan and Gabriel Polsky, The Motel Life is bolstered by some nicely lived in performances by Emile Hirsch and Stephen Dorff as Frank and Jerry, two young men who were orphaned in early age and who seem to have drifted into their own separate states of dissolution, despite their late mother’s importuning of them to try to stay together. The film starts in media res and then slowly fills in several salient missing pieces as it progresses courtesy of a somewhat over convoluted storytelling structure that ping pongs through several timeframes.

Ironically the chief thing afflicting The Motel Life is the same problem hampering the two brothers: aimlessness. While things seem to be headed into almost melodramatic territory when Jerry insists that Frank and he get out of town immediately due to a horrifying incident which is only later revealed, what actually ends up happening is a rather lax road movie where the two brothers drift back and forth into various vestiges of their memory while trying to come to terms with whom they’ve become as adults. Ultimately Frank’s relationship with a waitress named Annie (Dakota Fanning) hints at some relative salvation, though the meandering story never works up enough momentum to provide an accompanying catharsis. The Motel Life has some really interesting elements—including the use of animations and illustrations accompanying Frank’s anecdotes—but despite some impressive performances, feels like an overly drab room that should have been checked out of a bit earlier.

The Motel Life Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Motel Life is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Cinedigm with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.40:1. The Polsky Brothers manage to capture the wide open spaces of the American west (the film takes place largely in Nevada) with some really unexpectedly spectacular looking results, albeit within a kind of washed out and gray ambience a lot of the time. The image is nicely sharp and well detailed and offers a very natural looking grain field with no hints of digital tweaking. The animated elements are quite effective and add some visual flair to the proceedings. Contrast and black levels are both very strong and consistent.

The Motel Life Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

For such a small scale feature, The Motel Life's lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix is surprisingly forceful, especially with regard to some of the more fanciful (animated) elements, where a whole host of sound effects dot the surround channels. Ambient environmental effects are also utilized very effectively throughout the film, and dialogue is presented cleanly and clearly as well. No issues of any kind are present on this very enjoyable track.

The Motel Life Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• The Motel Life Featurette (720p; 3:23)


• Illustration Gallery (1080p)


• Trailer (1080p; 2:31)

The Motel Life Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

While the performances and even the basic story here have genuine merit and should certainly be enjoyed by the stars' fans, The Motel Life ultimately just doesn't seem to know where it wants to go. That may be an intentionally ironic reflection of the brothers themselves, but it makes for a somewhat problematic and frustrating viewing experience. The technical merits of this Blu-ray are top notch for anyone considering checking out the title.