Honeybeads Blog

You know the warning signs posted outside of a roller coaster at theme parks? The one warning pregnant women and people with epilepsy to refrain from riding? The same warning should be posted outside of theatres showing the movie Hostel. If you are planning on seeing Eli Roth's second film after the disappointing Cabin Fever, do two things: First, don't read any reviews of the film to avoid knowing much about it and two, do not eat much before you go in. I was really surprised by the movie, after the film's trailer and tv spots passed the movie off as a snuff film with plenty of gore. I went in expecting a horror film with some brutal scenes. However, I got so much more.

The film starts off with 3 tourists (two of which are American) traveling Europe to live out the last days of their youth before they move on to law school. The first half plays out like a teen comedy or the comic scenes from a teenage slasher flick. There is more nudity in this movie than most that come out and the drug use is prevalent. Not until about 30 or 40 minutes into the movie do we start to get what we went into the theatre to see. Once the brutal torturous violence comes, however, it does not let up until the last minute of reel. I won't give too much away, however, if you've read anything about the movie, I'm sure you have an idea of what is actually going on in this film. There is no twist to speak of, however, knowing too much might ruin the impact of this movie. I would not really consider it a straight horror film. It could actually work as an American Giallo film or a film noir (both genres being very similar). There is quite a bit of mystery involved before we get to the gore.

I will say, if you don't like blood or gore of any kind, this movie is not for you. And while not near as bloody as a movie such as Kill Bill or Dead Alive, this film is much more terrifying. It is without a doubt, the most horrifying film I've ever seen, and I've seen some screwed up stuff. The scenes rank right up there with the movie Irreversible as the most disturbing thing I've ever seen (Irreversible being the French film which includes a 10 minute rape scene in a subway where the camera never moves, changes angles or cuts away at any point).

With all that said, I do feel as though Roth was trying to convey a message with this film. Something along the lines of: People in this country and in the world are so desensitized to violence and murder that they can only find satisfaction by committing those acts themselves. It also shows that those who commit horrible acts of violence and sin will get what is coming to them. Not so much in the eye for an eye way, but perhaps showing that certain acts of violence are a horrible evil that is morally wrong. Maybe I'm looking too much into the movie, but I feel as though Roth's intent as a filmmaker was to prove something positive. The only problem with this is that the main characters in the movie (the American tourists) are never really likeable and actually kind of obnoxious. Especially if you are a moral person or have, read: conservative values of any kind.

That is my biggest problem with the film. The main characters never grow on you. He attempts to write a character who is not as immoral and degrading as the others, however, this character never really fleshes out. The characters are fairly thin, and there isn't as much development as there could have been. I enjoyed the film in retrospect (although, it was hard to during certain scenes, and it's hard to say how soon I'd be able to see it again). I consider myself a pretty diehard horror fan (I have such movies as Bad Taste, Miike films, Argento and Fulci films in my dvd collection and have an Audition poster on my bedroom wall), so I've pretty much seen it all, and yet, Hostel still found a way to shock and surprise the hell out of me. I recommend this one for sure, but it's not for the faint of heart, as I was afraid I was going to scream at one point and almost had to cover my eyes a couple of times. Don't misjudge this one before you see it as an evil film that could give someone ideas, otherwise you'd have to write off movies like "Saw". Sure, I suppose someone could copy some of the torturous scenes in the film, but it doesn't really seem likely and there are much more evil things going on in the world than the killing of a fictional movie character.