Hostel Part II PSP
Hostel Part II [UMD for PSP]
With repulsion levels at least comparable to Cannibal Holocaust, Herschell Gordon Lewis’ Blood Feast, and other gory slasher landmarks, Eli Roth’s Hostel 2 reconfigures ideas of violence to test how down and dirty a horror film can get. The film raises the stakes, leaving those who wish to make a sicker film out in the lurch for the time being. This sequel, like the first Hostel, is set in and around a Slovakian factory where European students are kidnapped, tortured, and killed by rich businessmen who pay enormous sums to experience death firsthand. An international elite, all tattooed with a bulldog insignia, bid on young people to slaughter in a mob-organized, high-end, sex-slave trade catering to those with a death fetish. In Hostel 2, three girls from Rome, Beth (Laura German), Whitney (Bijou Phillips), and Lorna (Heather Matarazzo), are lured to Slovakia by a sultry, vampiric hottie (Vera Jordonova) who modeled for them in figure drawing class. Sidetracked and disoriented by some Pagan Slovakian festivals and luxurious hot springs, the girls slip away one by one, until the film moves inside the torture chambers. One client sits in a bathtub beneath her victim, who she slices with a scythe to bathe in blood, Elizabeth Bathory-style. Body parts fly as clients entering the facilities select their weapons of choice in a room full of knives, power tools, and rubber clothing. As ridiculous as it sounds, haunting soundtrack and cinematography set a disturbing mood. Morbid humor, for example when a chainsaw unplugs centimeters from a victim’s face, pays homage to Hostel 2’s schlocky predecessors. Fortunately, one survivor remains, providing an ounce of vengeful, and sexy, satisfaction. As in the best exploitation films, gratuitous sex and violence are the norm here. What will be a warning to some to avoid this gruesome movie will be to others a cue to head straight to the theater. –Trinie Dalton
Customer Review: This time, there is actually a bit of depth to the story
Many will say that Hostel 2 is no different than the first Hostel. I will have to disagree. Hostel 2 has a similar scenario, with 3 college age girls (instead of 2 boys) spending some time in Europe, partying and such, getting a bit too close to the wrong people, and ending up in the torture scene. However, that is only part of the story this time. There is a whole another tale that is told, and that is the background about the people and organization that do the torturing. The three girls are not the only main characters in Hostel 2, but we also follow 2 guys who get themselves involved with the dirty side of things. Overall, Hostel II loses the creepy horror appeal the first Hostel had. Since we get to know a little more about the organization, that feeling of suspense and the unknown is now gone. The only thing left to see are new and inventive scenes of torture, which don’t get much more inventive than the few shown here. Although the scenes of torture were even pushed further this time, I felt like it was more for show than for horror. It felt like less time was spent in the factory this time too, again loosing some of that dark, suspense feeling that the first Hostel built up on. One surprise was the beginning of the film, which actually follows up directly after the ending of the first Hostel, with Jay Hernandez reprising his role for the first 5 minutes. After that, the new story gets rolling, though mostly focusing on the three girls and their journey around Europe. It takes some time for the real horror to begin, and in the meantime the story gets a bit slow. The real interest was following the two men. Though it takes away form the horror, we get to see that these are just ordinary men who live out natural lives with families. Both are friends, and one always semed far more anxious than the other to go through with the torturing to come. When they finally get to the scenes of torture, its very interesting how each guy handles there situation. I found it to be an interesting viewpoint on how different and erratic human behavior can turn in extremely hightened situations. Overall, this is a satisfying sequal. Though not nearly as creepy as the first Hostel, the pleasure here is actually some light shed on the mystery and a viewpoint from a variety of angles. I wouldn’t expect to watch this for pure entertainment, so with that said, there is a little more to get out of it. Acting - 3 Characters - 4 Gore - 4.5 Story - 4 Overall - 4
Customer Review: Terrible Sequel to a 5-Star Film
This film repulsed me with the Heather Meterazzo scene. It ruined the whole movie for me and I loved, loved Hostel, the original.
