Slowakians must love this sadistic thriller.

Rating: Null/10 (2 January 2007)

It's hard for me to give this movie a rating. I am torn between 9 stars and 2 stars. This is possibly the most depraved, nightmarish, most sickening horror film I've ever seen. Except that even I'm not sure whether that makes it an excellent film or a piece of s*** that would've been better left unmade. However, I shouldn't have been too surprised by such unhinged sadism; after "Saw" had such success, I should've known that irresponsible sadism would hit its stride in horror. (Not that there wasn't any before) But while "Saw" is supremely idiotic and utterly logic-free, "Hostel" is not as far-fetched (though that isn't saying much, actually, "Saw" being so INCREDIBLY dumb). There is no question that a criminal (soft word here) operation such as pay-to-torture is not only realistic, but could even already exist in some form. To criticize the movie on the basis of its basic premise I'll leave to the reality-challenged. What IS far-fetched to the point of ludicrousness is that such a crime net would involve such a large number of people, practically an entire town, and perhaps even the whole state of Slovakia  in this case; I'm not sure if that was implied or not. Ah, yes The Slovakians must be thrilled about this movie. Needless to say, it's probably banned there, and Elli Roth, the writer-director, is probably at the top of everyone's s***list. And here's the other point about the premise: it would've been far more realistic if set in some African or especially South American country. While a solid choice if the choices were limited to Europe, Slovakia is hardly an ideal choice in general. As for Europe: Russia, Ukraine, Byelorussia All those would have done. However, Paraguay or Bolivia, or some such semi-developed country would've been more realistic (though I admit a little less effective). Since the movie is out for realism and not fantasy, I think the main character's escape is ludicrous. Sure, the movie would've been even tougher to watch if there hadn't been a good dose of revenge at the end, but the escape was too easy  relatively speaking. The sadism is self-indulgent and clearly stemming from a sick mind. Elli Roth can talk all he wants about wanting to make a truly frightening film (which he succeeded in, no argument there) and that he researched for it, bla-bla-bla, but the bottom line is that Roth is a mental patient, just as those cretins who did "Saw" are. Kids will watch this, and they shouldn't. Hell, even I shouldn't be watching such sickening depravity! There is no real point to the movie, except on the dumbest level i.e. "don't go backpacking to remote places or make friends with strangers or have sex with Russian girls whose breasts are too good to be true". The film is a sheer exercise in the most degenerate kind of enjoyment in physical torture, and should be liked only by psychopaths, sociopaths and other "paths". I am anything but a proponent of the "Golden Age" of film. i.e. the naïve 30s and 40s (with their mostly dull and silly movies), but it is interesting to compare "Dracula" from the 30s with something like this. How far has it all gone? Or: how low has the world sunk? Never mind that the movie is fascinating and unforgettable: so are train-wrecks, but that doesn't mean we should have them and enjoy them. Trust Tarantino, that prototype of a 90s geek, to give this thing his blessing. The fact that someone as retarded as him spearheads modern US cinema is truly sad. Leading directors of the past were hardly intellectuals, but next to Quentin they were gods. This little nerd, who so perversely and gleefully enjoys sadism and torture, would scream like not one but 38 little girls if a psychopath so much as said "hello" to him. People like him need a reality check. To treat torture as a form of mindless entertainment is a sign of high retardation and having the moral sense of a lizard. That is why I've always called him an "idiot savant", a moron genius. Talented, but utterly hollow, no substance there. Visually, the movie is highly effective. Roth is clearly very talented. The chamber scenes are unbelievably somber, and compliments for not directing them in the MTV style which would have made it all less effective because less realistic. The atmosphere Roth creates in the dungeons is uniquely brilliant. A drawback, which I nearly forgot considering the other aspects, is that the movie takes a half-hour to get started, which I hate in horror films. (I believe in the "Evil Dead" school of horror-film-making where no minute is wasted.)