In The Room Where He Waits Dir: Timothy Despina Marshall ★ ★ ★ ★
Named by Variety as one of the “5 Films to Watch” at this year’s Mardi Gras Film Festival in Sydney, In The Room Where He Waits is an acting tour de force for Western Australian actor Daniel Monks.
Tobin Wade (Daniel Monks), an Australian theatre actor living in America is rehearsing for his big breakthrough role in The Glass Menagerie. Returning to Australia for his father’s funeral, he has been isolated in a hotel room for seven days during Covid lockdown.
Stuck in the small muted grey and brown room by himself, he tries to continue the play rehearsals via zoom. He has been abandoned by his New York boyfriend who has blocked all attempts to contact him, and his mother (Susie Porter) keeps reminding him to write the eulogy for the father who has also abandoned him by taking his own life.
Alone in the dingy hotel room with a security guard patrolling the hallway, there seems to be only a mini bar, sleeping tablets and disgusting food delivered at regular intervals.
But, as he distracts himself by scanning the Grindr app, he notices that there is also a shirt, cuff links and a pair of underpants belonging to the previous occupant of the room.
The claustrophobic room becomes a place of terror as Tobin confronts the ghost of the previous occupant (Anthony Brandon Wong) who probably didn’t leave the room alive. He is forced to come face to face with all his fears as his disabled body (Daniel became hemiplegic at the age of 11) fights a demon only he can see.
Writer/director Timothy Despina Marshall has said “With the recent success and awards season buzz for the film All of Us Strangers, it shows that audiences both queer and non-queer can connect to and be moved by stories that take a deep emotional look at the queer male experience, particularly focusing on the trauma of this experience for queer people who grew up in the 80s and 90s.”
On Tuesday 11 June at Luna Leederville (at the 6:45pm screening), Daniel Monks will be on zoom together Timothy Despina Marshall and producer Bec Dakin live in-cinema to talk about their phenomenal film.
Lezly Herbert
