The bright and chipper whistling heard at the opening of “Hostel” contrasts sharply with the imagery on screen as the mysterious whistler rinses off various instruments of death and washes the blood of an unseen victim down the drain.

From this, “Hostel” throws movie-goers right smack in the midst of the escapades of super sex-hound Paxton (Jay Hernandez, “Carlito’s Way: Rise to Power”), and consummate wet blanket Josh (Derek Richardson, “Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd”) as the pair hit up the high spots in Amsterdam and seek out hot European babes.

The duo and the Icelandic friend they met along the way hop from the local smokery, to a rave, to a brothel with remarkable zeal and stamina. When the Icelander disappears the morning after a party-filled night, Paxton and Josh find that the perfect women they have met are more than meet the ever-naked eyes.

Now if what is seen on TV is to be believed at all times then director Eli Roth’s “Hostel” is one of the grisliest movies ever, a movie that people better not see on a full stomach. In reality it’s just not that gory. There are a handful of scenes involving knives and chain saws that will make people squirm a bit, but not much more than that.

Roth who brought audiences “Cabin Fever” a few years ago, gives movie-goers plenty of dark, damp settings, plenty of screaming and blood splatters. But in the age of CSI-dominated television, audiences tend to be desensitized to the horrors taking place on screen.

The movie bounces between a showcase for topless European women, to a torture fest, to a desperate escape for freedom. Pacing is great once the gore starts, but the film could have used less naked bodies in the first act. Odds are the wealth of exposed flesh is to lock in the male demographic, but the film could have been just as interesting without it.

The sound effects are just loud enough and timed appropriately enough to get the audience members jumping in their seats, the soundtrack itself is a rather generic suspense fare with no instruments or background themes really standing out.

Richardson and Hernandez are great in their roles as Josh and Paxton though most of their talent is wasted spewing four letter words and lewd references about women.

Hernandez’s natural charisma shines in the final act of the film as movie-goers can really get behind him and his attempt to escape certain death and take his friends with him.

“Hostel” is not great, but it’s good. It serves up some cringing moments for horror flick veterans. Those same moments might scare those with weaker stomachs, but by all means people need to go see it. The ending is a little grisly but a satisfying cap on a pretty good, not great, scary movie.

 

— By Bj Lewis, Staff Writer