Hostel (2006)

The horror movie Hostel over-delivers in some areas…

But the movie Hostel under-delivers in others. Let me explain...

OK, we're going to get a couple of things straight right from the beginning: I love horror movies. I also like mindless slasher movies. I like zombie movies. I like movies about creepy and scary killers and nubile lovelies that go wandering into the woods in their panties. I like to be shocked, to be scared, be startled...even terrified. When I heard about the new horror movie by Quentin Tarantino I couldn't WAIT to see it. That said, I sat in my chair for a few minutes speechless after watching Hostel with Connor. Then, as I slowly walked back to the car listening to Connor go on and on about how AWESOME this movie was, I could still hardly speak.

The story goes like this: Two college guys decide to spend the summer backpacking across Europe before going on to grad school. They end up, of course, in Amsterdam sampling the "local flavor".

The boys stay out past the curfew imposed by the youth hostel they are staying at and get locked outside one night, only to be rescued from the chilly streets by a benevolent young man who lets them crash at his apartment. This guy tells them about a hostel in "Slovakia" where the women reportedly go nuts for Americans...and he has pictures to prove how beautiful and willing these Slovakian women are.

Well, as you can imagine, our heroes jump at the chance to sample some Slovakian delights, and take a train to a small town there.

Everything begins just fine, but one by one the friends and acquaintances of our American duo begin to disappear. As the story progresses we learn that the "hostel" is really just a trap of sorts to find young people who are far from home, so that they can be abducted and made available as victims in some kind of "murder and torture fantasy land". Yes friends, you can live out your murderous fantasies if you've got the cash - and American victims demand a hefty 25k fee.

Quentin Tarantino is one of the creators of this horror movie, and it is clear that he wanted to make a splash of sorts. Hostel is graphic - perhaps the most believably graphic movie ever produced. It is horrifying to say the least. You will squirm and yell out in spite of yourself as you witness torture and murder committed with zest and gusto by paying customers.

What this movie does not have is any suspense, wonder, intrigue or cleverness. Sure, the violence is amazingly real and very well done, but graphic violence alone does not an awesome new horror movie make.

Because of the hype, I am glad that I went to see Hostel. I don't, however, recommend it if you are the slightest bit sensitive, or if you are hoping for a very scary and intriguing movie.

Wimpy as it sounds, Hostel was a bit too much, even for me.

7/10....strong effort and amazingly done on such a small budget. The acting wasnt bad either.