Through the Hostel series we see a good many references to different sides of people. While one guy is just having a brew with the fellas and scoping which chick to get with, the next guy is doing the same thing only with the added dimension of planning to gut the lady after. We see the three main characters being set up as normal dudes from America planning to sex and drink their way through Europe. Nothing new, that's what we all hope for when going to Europe. So basically these are just some fun loving bros with families and probably girlfriends back home. But, Roth doesn't really let us get too invested in the characters, he sets them up as archetypal sort of guys and only lets us see them from that stand point. I like to think it's because the director has a heart for us. He knows they're going to die in increasingly fucked up ways every time so why get us all invested and hopeful. Roth is too nice to give us a good cry. Plus, he knows we're not here to cry, we're here to vomit on the person next to us.
As the movie progresses we get the idea that you really can't trust anyone and we love it. So the dudes meet some dudettes and we prepare for the sexing we've been waiting for. But, not so fast, my friends. Roth isn't one for super graphic sex, in fact he's kind of polite about it. We see some breasts ( which is nice) and a couple asses and a bit of the 'ol thrusty thrusty but nothing too intense. Can I just say that Roth is great at picking boobs. I swear there isn't a single unsavory tit in any of his films, he must be some kind of connoisseur and I really do appreciate that.
So finally we get to see some carnage and it's intense I must say, but not quite what I was expecting, he's still being polite. He's also, apparently great at picking screamers. I'm tellin' ya man, the guy knows a good screamer when he sees one. It's really the screams that freak me out. But, he doesn't let up, we hear the ripping flesh, the squirting blood and yes we see some pretty intense dismemberment which is what I've really been waiting for, but we are not quite satiated until the infamous EYE SCENE. That's when we really get to the worst of it. The struggle between being horribly disfigured for the rest of your life ( if you live at all) or being even more disfigured is one we must face in this scene. And the slimy shit is just fantastic. I can just see Roth behind the camera giggling like a school boy when he sees it.
So we have some escapees. And we follow the, through the aftermath of the trauma and realize that they have become exactly like those who hurt them. They are willing to do as many, if not more, horrific things to the people who hurt them. So we're presented with a question: What would you do if you stared the man who disfigured you in the face? Would you do just the same to him? Or would you take the higher ground and turn them in to the coppers. We see that normal people, when put in extreme situations can turn into the exact same sort of beasts they were captured by.
But best of all, we get revenge! Though I was more expecting a sort of hopeless case at the end, our hero gets away. He's SAVED!
And then you watch the sequel. Not so saved, really. In fact not at all. Frankly, the second movie was far better than the first. FAR BETTER! Better characters, better directing, better screaming, better kills, better gore and even better boobs!
I've discovered, after having watched all of the maestros films in rapid succession, that the man turns the good guys bad and kills everyone in an incredibly twisted way. I love it!
We even get a little inner conflict and a lovely insight into the human spirit. His films beg the question: What would you do? And that is the very best question any one could ever ask themselves at a movie. The very best.
Bravo, Mr. Roth. Bravo, sir.
