Hostel

I'm not entirely sure what to make of Eli Roth. He seems to sincerely like his horror films, but as a writer/director of such, I'm just not sure. I definitely think he has promise, and I find myself wondering if a few years down the road will I look at his films and think of Hostel (and Cabin Fever) as noble first attempts and stepping stones to bigger and better things. Or will I see films that are leading down a decidely B movie path.

Now don't get me wrong. I enjoyed the hell out of Cabin Fever, and thought Hostel was a lot of fun as well. But for me they lacked some sort of punch as horror movies, and I believe it comes down to tone.

When Hostel starts out, it could be Eurotrip. For the first half hour or so, the three main characters are primarily concerned with getting women all over Europe. While in Amsterdam they learn of of a Hostel in Slovakia where the women are gorgeous and willing to do anything. So without further ado they hop a train to eastern Europe, this wonderful land of promise.

Indeed things go well initially. The first night they arrive, everything goes as well as they could have hoped, ending up in crowded beds. Things start to go downhill from there, however, as we soon learn that these femmes have a bit of the fatale in their nature. They apparently work for a Russian gang (as evidenced by their business cards with email addresses that end in the @gang.rus domain) who kidnap tourists and allow them to be tortured for a price. (We Americans command the highest price at $25,000 a pop.) Of course this fate befalls our three protagonists, to differing results. Needless to say, not everyone makes it out OK.

The problem here is that the film starts out almost as a comedy/buddy/sex movie, then goes on to horror, then goes off almost into an action film. I have nothing against a film that crosses these lines, or bucks expectations, if done well. The problem with Hostel, however, is that it feels somewhat incinsistent in these changes. I like Roth's sense of humor, (both in this and in Cabin Fever), and his eye for horror visuals seems solid, but in some indefineable way they just didn't meld well for me.

A few smaller notes: This film is being advertised as being not for the faint of heart. Even in early reviews, the word was it was over the top. Don't believe all the hype. There is some gruesome stuff, but I think most horror fans won't find it to be too extreme.

Good nods to some Asian horror as well. The riff on Suicide Club near the end (which I missed initially, but my cousin caught). And of course Takeshi Miike's cameo.

At this point, I'd like to turn this review over to my penis.

Penis: Barbara Nedeljakova and Jana Kaderabkova? Wow! More, please. Damn! I might almost be willing to be tortured to death for one night with either of those two.

Chris: Uhhh....penis? Let's not push it.

Anyway, like I said before, enjoyable enough film. Roth might not be the new auteur of horror yet, but he appears to have the love for the genre, and more than any other genre, I think that is necessary for making great, standout films. And Roth could definitely have some of those in his future.