Cast: Lauren German, Bijou Phillips, Heather Matarazzo, Roger Bart, Jay Hernandez, Jordan Ladd, Richard Burgi, Vera Jordanova
Written & Directed By Eli Roth
Cinematography By: Milan Chadima
Editor: Gorge Folsey Jr.This was one of those movies that had a chance to really be something different something special make this franchise count go past all the accusations that had been thrown not only at the film but the filmmaker but as they say in easy rider Not we but “he blew it”
This film takes place on the same train after the last one ended but after tieing up loose ends fro the first film we are thrust into the company’s next sale of three girls visiting Prague who are American and there to study art who have almost no personalities just character types the shy one the good girl the party girl as they are seduced into being captured how they are sold to the highest bidder and the death set-up it also focuses on two friends one alpha male who gets his buddy involved the alpha-male feels this is the ultimate hunting trip and will give him the killer edge in business he feels it will toughen his friend up and let him get out the aggression he can’t at home with his wife and kids. We see what they have to go through to get certified and prepared
This is almost the same story as the first movie except he has replaced the males with girls who don’t have as much fun or hook-up instead before they are kidnapped they just have fun and think of all the art they will get to see and experience. Kind of a stereotypical way to make these characters. But also if the whole big idea here is to make the women get tortured then this is just another typical horror film where women are mutilated and tortured in states of undress almost like a punishment for being femanine that was what made the first film so different was it was the males who were hunted and mutilated
There are only a few things in general which make this film interesting finding out how the business works was interesting but could have been explored more like it would have been a departure from what was expected if the while story was told from the business part of view with having to deal with the escape of the girls from the planning of the abduction or in something totally different remake the first film totally seeing how the business deals with the set-up the sale and trying to find Paxton when he escapes and dealing with the deaths of there workers and clients. The other interesting thing is the next to final scene where there are double crosses and revelations galore before the ridiculous revenge filled final scene. The reason this movie will probably be remembered is the castration of a character in full close-up which he deserved for his all of a sudden change in demeanor that makes no sense and also as punishment for making the audience sit through this whole movie and this is the only really edgy scene in the whole film
Despite his intention to shock Mr. Roth also tries to beautify certain scenes of the carnage with what he deems as artistic flourishes that he has seen in European films this movie strives to be like and seems to be at least a little modeled on but it comes off more as pretentious and unnecessary and with little sense like the killing of one character by a woman who seems to be a countess she hands the girl upside down naked and slashes her with a blade that makes blood drop onto her while she seems to get turned on by bathing in the blood the way I described it is more exciting then the finished product of the scene
There are some scenes where he tries some dreamlike surreal imagery but it’s out of place in a film like this so it just makes you wonder what is going on it isn’t subtly put in there it’s more just comes out of nowhere and is too abrupt. He seems to be trying to make a art film where as this is and was like it’s predecessor a popcorn horror movie with extreme violence almost a exploitation movie or a grindhouse film with gloss
The first movie had a cameo by filmmaker Takashi Miike and just like his body of work the first film was over the top lunacy at certain points but entertaining this film with a cameo by filmmaker Ruggero Deodato is like his body of work lots of beautiful camera work but really all that does is decorate the gore his films are more exploitationish in a sick depraved way where as mike’s films are sick but fun.
I guess this film was Eli Roth’s fate he already had made 2 pretty good films Cabin Fever and the original hostel maybe he had too much confidence being the wunderkind of horror and this hopefully brought him back down to focus on good work instead of anything I do will fly.
GRADE: F
