bloody hell

Rating: 5/10 (27 March 2006)

Anyone who goes to see Hostel without first reading a review or at least knowing the content is in for a bloody ride. I am still ambivalent as to it's worth. As a bloodfest video nasty it works - as an metaphor for the torture and cruelty that goes on in the world it falls well short of the mark.
the film builds no sense of suspense -it is just relentless. It is slow paced and choppy. It has no sense of structure beyond the set up and closure. We feel little for the characters beyond a mild sense of empathy and a desire not to be them. The only twist it has is a happy ending - something i was hoping for but not really expecting. The last man standing does indeed stand - and no bogeyman comes out of the wood work to foul up our sense of closure.
What works? Well its a horror film - but unlike say the Evil Dead that was bloody gruesome and nasty when first viewed this is just laughably horrible- but it does draw you in and make you crave revenge almost palpably for the victims even though we neither know for or really care for them. So for all its faults i liked it - I'm a sucker for horror - but why Tarantino put his name to it i don't know. There are a few homages to him peppered throughout - like the ear cutting scene in Reservoir Dogs but it does nothing to enhance his reputation.