Film *1/2
Gore **
Cinematography and Photography ***

I guess my tolerance for gore is a good deal higher then a lot of other people, including Quentin Tarentino. Three backpackers are in Europe for a hiking trip made up mostly of drugs and getting laid when they hear about a small, Eastern block city where the women are little more then sex-starved, American loving wild women who will do anything to get some physical attention.
The trio is made up of two Americans, Jay Hernandez and Derek Richardson and a guy from Iceland named Oli, played by Eythor Gudjonsson. Oli seems to be the comic relief for the group, at least until comedy is no longer a part of the movie.
See, what no one told our intrepid band of doped out sex kings is that while there are a bunch of really good looking women in the city, the luxury hostel where they are staying is the gathering ground for victims of a group of psycho's who pick out their target, have them drugged and kidnapped and then butcher them with guns, hot pokers, drills and other implements of destruction, all for exorbitant amounts of money, anywhere from $5 to $50,000. And the girls are nothing more then bait.
Apparently, Roth got the idea for this film from an online site offering a "Vacation/Murder" getaway somewhere in Asia. You pays your money and you kills your victim. No muss, no fuss.
It makes no difference if the site is real, according to Roth. It is just the idea that someone would put something like that online. Or that someone would go looking for something like that.
Let's see…. Google.com… Search… Murder vacation… You have to admit; this is one you would not want the Feds to know you are looking into. Especially just before that big trip to D.C.
The entire first half of the film is little more then Euro-Trip with more drugs, lots more nudity and almost as funny. Seeing our American friends and their new pal getting drunk, stoned and trying to get laid in an Amsterdam cathouse is actually better then I expected. Especially when Josh runs away from the hooker.
But when the night of fun is over, the three find that they have been locked out of the hostel since it is past curfew. But, how lucky for them, a young stoner comes to their rescue. It is he who tells them about the beautiful women in Slovakia and heads them off on their way to rampant sex and wild times.
Upon arrival, they discover that the hostel is almost a resort villa with hot and cold running girls, a sauna and a very lax attitude toward clothing.
You know how some hotels have cookies or chocolates in the room for you? Well when our heroes walk into their room, they find Natalya and Svetlana (Nedeljakova and Kaderabkova) partially nude and inviting them to the spa.
As I said, the first half of the movie is almost a bad teen sex farce. It proves difficult to like any of the three main characters, as the two Americans are perfect examples of the "Ugly American" and Oli is little more then a penis looking for a place to rest. And because of this, when the time come for us to care about what happens to them, it is tough to develop any real feeling for what is happening to them.
Of the three of them, none of them ever develop into someone you can care about.
At some points you almost understand why someone would want to kill them.
I will say this; Roth's new film is filled with some beautiful images and photography. The movie is loaded with the sort of stuff you would expect from a big-budget film about spies or something traveling the same countries.
Back to the reason most people will want to watch this movie. According to rumor there were EMT's standing by in some areas. I don't know why. While things do get violent the gore level is mostly hype.
I was bored through almost the entire film, and the more vivid scenes just aren't that bad. To be honest, most of them I have seen about a dozen times in other films, some even more graphic.
What it comes down to is that Roth has given us a film that is much more impressive when it is kept in ones mind. All the hype and the talk about how violent the film is, is little more then just that.
The rush is missing, the thrill of suspense is not there and Roth needs to work a bit harder to create a feeling of personal horror that is needed for a good horror movie to really work.
Instead he has given us a great travelogue that shows some great countryside and pretty people, nice building and that is about it.
If you want to be scared, try John Carpenters Halloween or The Fog, the original, not the remake. Take a look at the first Friday the 13th or some of Dario Argento's massive collection of work.
If all you are after if gore, try some Asian horror. I would suggest my favorite, Bio-Zombie.
For suspense and some gore, try Battle Royale 1 or 2. There is some first class horror out there, but Hostel is not it.