A Lot Better Than Cabin Fever!

There really is no need for me to describe these to you.















The Title of This Post Should Say it All!
A hell of whole lot better than "Cabin Fever". After that movie I've just hated him, or just hated the movie. After that I never thought he Eli Roth could redeem himself and I never looked forward to his future film making career...Then came his second feature, "Hostel", and I gotta tell you it was a lot better than "Cabin Fever" and I would be less cautious and actually look forward to his career and wonder what he might do next. I heard all the hype for this movie for a long time and I wasn't surprised Quentin Tarantino put his name on it, I think if he didn't the movie would sit on the shelf and might get pushed back release date. Either way it is here and with its hype like "Cabin Fever", its overrated. Not overrated in a bad way, but not the expectations it met, but who cares I enjoyed it even though horribly flawed at parts I felt that Roth's direction is getting better and probably has enough to make a stronger movie. The whole hype of the movie was the gore which was to be very realistic, gory and visceral. With its background in Slovakia or Eastern Europe it was noted as an "American Euro-Trash". Also with a cameo G-Unit Takashi Miike, Japan's Most visceral Horror Director and odd one. It really didn't meet the expectations of Takashi Miike, but how can you, I don't think no one can. but to tell you truth Takashi Miike cameo is not a waste and is enough to have you clapping in the theatres. It was something else.
But the movie is much more than, and leaves me with another reason to go to eastern Europe and Denmark. The story is basically simple, following two college kids played By Jay Hernandez and Derek Richardson exploring the wonders of Europe through decadence and drugs. Along with them is an Icelandic kid name Olli who is a random ass character, but is enough comedy to the mix. Not enough comedy as you can set up for bad things to happen. These characters felt like straight out of a Henry Miller book, where they just go around and just have sex and are broke. After a scene at the Amsterdam's Red Light district which is very entertaining, T&A is abound but the sex is somewhat poorly done or basically realistic. During their quick stay at the Red Light District, Derek Richardson's character Josh runaways from a topless girl. I felt that at that point the movie was to showcase that he is the one with the morale. The movie tends to play around with morale as Josh is considered the good character and Paxton(Jay Hernandez) as the adventurer that wants to get into trouble. But of course it doesn't matter if you're good or not you're still gonna get yours...proven excruciatingly from Josh.
The college kids go to a friends house and he tips them off of a hostel in Slovakia that pleases any American that comes by with open legs. He says that their all hot and are don't like European men. They hitch a train to this town and hostel and once they arrive all there fantasies come true. As their sexual beings they turn out to be actually femme fatales. I notice once Paxton realizes that the situation gets worse the ladies' appearance detoriate. They start as sexy starlets but when "it hits the fans" their true demons come out in their beauty and they start to look haggard. Roth has a good eye for shadows, it felt like Nicholas Roeg was directing at some parts.
As for the gore, their really are a few disgusting moments but it has no feeling. He was trying to be as visceral Takashi Miike, but I couldn't feel it. So their is always hope for the unrated NC-17 DVD, to show scenes that were taken out to get a R rating. The movie was reported to be an open homage to sick Japanese horror films Takashi Miike, Kiyoshi Kurosawa or Shinya Tsukamoto. There is no need for me to bring this up but I'm not dissing this movie to push another one. But a lot of people praise Takashi Miike and his format to take gore and visceral violence to new heights. Others just tend to copy it, but take it to another level like Miike does. Stuart(Re-Animator) Gordon praised him and took his love to another level, I think, with the sick and highly visceral gore,"King of the Ants". Not saying its a better movie but that's my example of the "get under the skin violence" Tarantino and Roth has been trying to push. Roth was explaining in an interview that he wanted to go for realism and not over-the-top and others would say that this is not "clap your hands" gore but "shaky violence" gore. I disagree, it feels like it in the middle. It had tone for it but the gore was off for some apparent reason. I've seen a lot sicker and depraved and sleazy, but for anyone that never had the same experience I had, go see this in theatres. Possibly hang out with a bunch of homies or definitely take your girlfriend to it and if she stays keep her. Because in the end the audience was clapping!
As the movie is presented by Quentin Tarantino, Eli Roth did a quick reference to "Pulp Fiction" while in the hostel the college kids watch it in another language. That is charming that a movie(Pulp Fiction) that has the ability to see other movie references in one movie is being referenced in this one. It is definitely a new generation of filmmakers from the influences of the 90's like Tarantino, Paul-Thomas Anderson, Steven Soderbergh, Kevin Smith, Wes Anderson and David Fincher. Even though that wasn't long ago, I feel "Hostel" could be at the fore front of those influences. Good Job and this time I'll look forward to the next film you'll make. This Aliye Nyoka saying "PEACE OUT NIGGA!"