(no subject)

[quidditchgrrl]

My first day of official free time, and I end up wasting it by seeing Hostel.



I knew this wasn't written or directed by Tarantino, but I expected it to be decent if he had attached his name to it. Instead, we got a completely formulaic and painfully boring movie. Literally, it was "Horror Movies for Dummies" - group of friends tooling around Europe, run into mysterious stranger(s), change travel plans on advice of said stranger, things happen, bad things happen, one guy uses his German-speaking powers to save himself.

Unclever, I think sums it up quite nicely. The gory parts were completely gratuitous. It would have made sense - or at least been interesting - if the abduction/torture/killing had a point. Completely no fucking reason for it. Had it been an organ-harvesting operation, or a theater for torture/snuff films, it would have been okay. Action-oriented entertainment? I highly doubt it - most people want their fun while inert. I caught the whole "Americans as a symbol of consumerism/hedonism/everything has its price" but it just didn't tie up at all.

Good things: Jay Hernandez is a pretty good actor. The street kids were a nice touch of realism.

Quentin Tarantino, you have failed me (but you're not quite Dead To Me, yet).

Comments

[chickadilly.livejournal.com]

- if the abduction/torture/killing had a point.

And yet the theatre in SLC that backed out on it's contract to show BBM had no problem with pointless violence.

*shakes head*

I shouldn't say anything since I've not seen Hostel (I'll probably see it on DVD) but it kind of boggles me, ya know?

[chickadilly.livejournal.com]

I should clarify that the theatre in SLC had no problem with the pointless violence of Hostel. I don't know if I was clear there.

[quidditchgrrl.livejournal.com]

Obviously, extreme violence is much less scary than OMG GAY COWBOYS.

I love Tarantino films, which by definition means I like extreme violence, blood and gore. But in his movies, they're part of a story and they have a point. This movie - no. Not real, no point.

Maybe that was way the theater in SLC wanted it - not real, no point. Mindless.

[chickadilly.livejournal.com]

Hmm ... maybe that's why it threatens them so? BBM, I mean. That its NOT pointless.

[quidditchgrrl.livejournal.com]

Yes, and that it's insightful and thought-provoking and it's about love and doing what's right instead of what's easy and being human.

That can be totally scary - I mean, when you look at banned books, nearly every single one of them cover some very human aspect of life in a very relatable way - and it takes power away from those who don't want you to feel or relate to other people.

Get what I mean?

[rebeccasama.livejournal.com]

Tarantino seems to have Wes Craven Syndrome. Wes has attached his name to some real piles of crap, too.

I just don't go in for pointless torture/killing sprees. I like my horror movies scary, not some mindless venture into sadism.

There's a Hostel 2 in the works. :P