LOS ANGELES — Two people in a hotel room equals infinite possibilities. Business. Pleasure. Emotional connection. Intense passion. Erotic play. Just about anything could happen. And in the new film "Sanctuary," just about anything does.
Directed by Zachary Wigon from a screenplay by "Homecoming" co-creator Micah Bloomberg, the film opens with Hal (Christopher Abbott) sitting before Rebecca (Margaret Qualley) for a seemingly innocuous HR interview, as he is about to inherit a chain of hotels. That much — the inheritance — is real. As the questions become more intimate, though, we learn that Rebecca is a sex worker, and that this is one of their regularly scheduled sessions. Hal tries to break things off, feeling that in his new position he can't continue their relationship. Rebecca apparently refuses to accept the end of their arrangement, setting in motion a series of power plays between them and throwing into question who's really in charge.
A dazzling showcase for Qualley and Abbott, two performers skilled at concealing and revealing in equal measure, "Sanctuary" will likely spark conversations among audiences about what really happens in that room. With its games within games, fluid dynamics and shifting truths, the movie at times feels like it is daring the audience to keep up. But Wigon didn't intend the film as a provocation.
