Horny Backpackers Paint The Town Red, Literally! (Quentin Tarantino Presents: Hostel (DVD))

Name: lisa2062

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Product:	Quentin Tarantino Presents: Hostel (DVD)
Date:	07/05/07 (213 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Realistic gore, note worthy cinematography, and cleverly edited.

Disadvantages: Average performances, not as much gore as I expected and weak characterisation.

Randy College friends Paxton and Josh team up with their Icelandic buddy Oli, while on a wild tour of Europe. One of their stops is Amsterdam where they get high on drugs and get a plenty of action. After missing their hostel’s clocking in time they meet Alex, who tips them off on the best place to stay to meet some hot girls. They are told to go to a hostel in Bratislavia just outside Slovakia, where due to the war there are very few men to entertain the women. These women love foreigners especially Americans, and will do anything their hearts desire. All is not as it seems however and not long after their arrival, Oli disappears after checking out suddenly. While at first they reckon he’s still shacked up with the Hostel’s receptionist, it soon becomes apparent that Oli won’t be getting anymore action.

Due to all the hype surrounding the film and the gruesome looking trailers, movie goers were led to believe that this film would be unlike anything they’ve seen before. While the film did make me wince on one or two occasions, in my opinion it doesn’t warrant the hype that surrounded it.

The film opens promisingly enough as we witness a dark room where someone is washing away blood and sharpening his tools, as the camera suddenly cuts to an electrocution chair. I thought at that moment I’d finally come across a horror film that would leave me, well, horrified. Things however altered very rapidly and what started out as a promising film, ended up being no more than an average one.

After the initial bloody and disturbing scene I wondered whether there had been a mistake with the DVD, as it looked like a copy of some sort of dodgy porn film had been recorded over it. The first 15 minutes of the film looks like it’s been taken out of the American Pie films, as the screen is taken up with breasts, breasts and more breasts, get the picture?
When we do finally get to see the gruesome fates that bestow some of the characters, the majority of the time the camera quickly cuts away so you only ever catch a glimpse of their demise. The eerie sound of the victims screams however is enough to make you realize that their deaths certainly weren’t pretty. That’s not to say there aren’t any graphic scenes, as we get to see an eye hanging out and a very gruesome scene involving a wayward chainsaw. Out of all the horror films I’ve seen, and I’ve seen many, full marks must go to the make up department for creating some very believable gore.

Where the film ultimately falls down is due to the lack of characterization, so you’re left never really caring much about any of their fates. There’s a slight hint that Josh might be gay or bi sexual, Paxton is haunted by a child’s drowning years ago, and Oli has a child.
Don’t panic as I haven’t given anything away, as that’s all we find out about them.
When I watch any horror film I find it’s important to get a feel for the characters and to be able to relate to them in some way. The problem is in this film that due to the characters being almost one dimensional, I felt very little sympathy for them when trouble loomed.

Visually the film really hits the mark especially when you see the war torn look of the place, and what you do see of the torture sequences is very well executed. The rooms are dingy looking and you can almost smell the stench coming out from them.
I particularly liked the shots of the local children, who would do anything for a pack of chewing gum. Who would have thought that a group of small children could appear so menacing, but they certainly looked it.

The acting on the whole was pretty much average throughout, although when it came to the torture sequences I thought the actors were very believable in displaying fear and horror. Jay Hernandez (Paxton) was basically the eye candy for the girls, but to be fair did the best he could playing an undeveloped character. For the boys, the busty and rather flirtatious Barbara Nedeljakova (Natalya) and Jana Kaderabkova (Svetlana) will no doubt put smiles on your faces, but were obviously selected for the parts for their looks rather than their acting skills. When it comes to the villains in horror films you would expect them to be creepy or terrifying wouldn’t you? In this film that’s definitely not the case as Jan Vlasak’s character as the Dutch businessman actually made me laugh instead. Not once does he manage to deliver a spine chilling performance that I expect when watching this genre, although very rarely get to witness.

As it stands at the moment Director/writer of the film Eli Roth has got along way to go if he wants to be in the same league as the likes of Tarantino. While Roth managed after a slow start to keep the proceedings moving at a decent pace, it lacked the overall despair and horror that Wolf Creek before it inflicted on us. The ending is predictable from a mile off, with far too many coincidences that’s it’s laughable.

The film is rated 18 as it contains strong bloody violence, torture and strong sex. I did feel that this is merited, and it’s important to note that the film contains a lot of swearing. While such language doesn’t bother me in a film and it was certainly warranted, the use of the word F*** was a little over the top and some viewers may find it hard to take.

So overall what could have been one of the most horrific (in a good way) films of its genre to date, only manages to be an average one which was a real shame. I would suggest that if you want to see a very believable and upsetting film, then go and check out the previous backpackers in peril film Wolf Creek. Perhaps Eli Roth would be wise to watch this masterpiece and similar films, so that next time his films are worth remembering for the right reasons. Hostel was however a huge hit with many people and in fact this Summer sees the release of Hostel: Part II. Although being disappointed by the first film, I will definitely see this one as I’m interested to see if this one will deliver the goods.

Hostel is available on DVD for £4.99 at choicesuk.com.
Running Time 1hr 30mins
Rated 18

Summary: Unworthy of the hype it received, but still worth a look.