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'Hostel' set visit
Interviews and a set report from Eli Roth's sick, twisted and depraved new film, 'Hostel'.
Jun 9 2005
Eli Roth Q&A.
Jay Hernandez Q&A.
Derek Richardson Q&A.
'I want to make a movie that's too scary for people to see. That's terrifying like 'The Exorcist' was. That's the goal. I don't know if I will achieve it but you should at least go for it.'
So says Eli Roth of 'Hostel', his forthcoming follow-up to the 2003 global horror hit 'Cabin Fever'.
Holed up in a huge studio on the outskirts of Prague, the writer-director spent most of April and May making the movie, and we spent some quality time on set to find out first-hand what depravity he has planned.
Perched in front of the director's monitor as he organises the first set-up of the day, Roth tells Time Out that the inspiration for 'Hostel' came, in part, from Quentin Tarantino and 'Ain't It Cool News' Harry Knowles.
Knowles chipped in first, when the pair were discussing horror some years back, and the subject of 'sick shit' on the internet cropped up; in particular certain sites that offered the opportunity to indulge in some extremely violent, serious and illegal acts in exchange for large sums of money.
Roth was intrigued by the notion, investigated further and before long the idea for 'Hostel' was born.
He showed what he had to Tarantino, and the man who killed Bill was immediately enthused by the concept, apparently saying: 'That's the fucking scariest, fucking sickest idea I've ever heard – you've got to do it!'
The pair threw about several ideas late last year, and in no time at all the project was in motion and Eli was plunging head-first into the world of hardcore horror.
'I just sat down and wrote the sickest, most violent thing I could,' he explains between set-ups. 'Within weeks it was ready to go – I wrote it to be set in Eastern Europe with Eastern European actors, two Americans [Jay Hernandez and Derek Richardson] and one from Iceland [newcomer Eythor Gudjonsson]. I then flew to Prague, interviewed production people, met with a really good team of co-producers and here we are!'
Time Out visits the set on day 21 of a 38 day shoot, and although Roth assures me that the film does have some light moments (particularly in the first half), what TO witnesses has a seriously dark and sombre tone.
The bulk of today's action takes place in a small, sinister room that resembles a primitive, medieval dungeon. Perverse instruments of torture adorn the walls and in the middle sits a lone chair, which as the day goes on becomes a throne of terror on which one of the film's characters experiences insufferable and indescribable pain.
It's shocking stuff, a million miles away from the enjoyably light-hearted tone of 'Cabin Fever', and it's immediately clear that the graphic violence will cause quite a stir when the film is released later in the year. I ask Roth why he didn't play it safe and make 'Cabin Fever 2' instead of taking a chance with such relentlessly grim material.
'I made this movie because I want people to think about what the fuck we're doing – where society is going in terms of exploitation and pornography,' he explains.
But judging from the ultra-violence being shot today, won't he be the one accused of such exploitation?
'Everything in the movie is set up very carefully,' he quickly shoots back 'Anyone who criticises this movie for exploitation – I'll find a hundred reasons to shut down their argument as to why its there. It's no accident that these guys are American, that they are very sexist in their attitude towards women, and that the things that they feel about the girls in Eastern Europe is very much based in American fantasies and stereotypes. Everything comes back to bite them in the ass though; they definitely pay for it.'
And in the scenes being shot on this particular day, pay for it they do, and in kind.
Intense, horrific violence bursts forth upon the monitor at regular intervals, and although I can't go into exact details for fear of giving the plot away, it's fair to say that Roth inflicts human suffering of the most devestating kind on his characters.
Feeling a little queasy at the site of it all, I take a break and head to the KNB special effects trailer, where Howard Berger and Kevin Wasner are busy creating blood-drenched splatter and mess for the movie.
One look at their work confirms my suspicions – the parade of prosthetic arms, legs and torsos, punctured and maimed with increasingly horrific injuries, reinforces the fact that when the violence does kicks in, 'Hostel' will contain some of the most explicit and extreme scenes of carnage ever to appear in a mainstream film.
After the gruesome twosome have shown me around, Berger is kind enough to pass me a ball-gag puking device, the likes of which I thought never to see during my short time on this earth. 'We've done piss, blood and vomit so far' he explains, 'In fact, shit is the only bodily fluid we haven't done on 'Hostel' yet.’
Impressed with this fact, but deciding I no longer feel like joining the cast for dinner, I instead corner Eli to ask him just how he expects such material to get an R-rating.
'I just don't know', he confides, 'I think this movie can be made very well for an R, and I’ll have my 18 for England and my director's cut for DVD. But after seeing some of the stuff I've shot, it's pretty horrifying and I'm pretty nervous. Whatever – I'll go out and make the best film I can and fight that battle when it comes.'
We then discuss the movies that inspired 'Hostel', namely 'The Vanishing', 'Sympathy for Mr Vengeance', 'Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer', 'The Wicker Man' and 'Audition'; all films that shocked and stunned audiences worldwide on their initial release. Is this what Roth is aiming for?
'The way I think about it is you want to be the one that sets the bar that everyone imitates. I'm not saying I will, but that's what you go for. You want to be the one that re-writes the book; that makes all other horror directors go "I wish I'd made that!"
'And in the current horror landscape, I can tell you that there will not be another film that's as intense and sick as this one!'
With that, Roth is called back to the set to shoot the final, devastating, scene of the day, and I follow him to get my last glimpse at horror, 'Hostel'-style.
But even though this final shot is brief, it's one that will live long in the memory, involving a helpless victim, a flash of chainsaw, a rush of blood and… well, you’ll just have to buy a ticket and see for yourself when the film hits cinemas at the end of the year!
UPDATE: To read about Eli's proposed Stephen King adaptation, click here.
User comments on this story
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- alena said...
- u really think you know what you are talking about mr. Author??? Hello???? do you know what you are talking about??? this shit movie...is rediculus....and no art is in it!!!!have you ever heard about slovakia (except from this movie)? im sure you havent because the movie is shooting in tiny village in czech republic even the story talks about Bratisla (capital of slovakia)!!! and the point is, the first check the real information about the countries in which the movie was shooting because slovakia is beutiful contry with nice people and not poor dirty place were some small kids need to begg for dollars...oh my god, how stupid some people are, i cant believe... Posted on May 25 2008 10:19
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- bex said...
- Proud to say I am a Slovak-American who will be visiting Prague and Bratislav this year BECAUSE of the Hostel movies. I love the movies. I will be spending plenty of money there when I go. I will be using travel and tourism resources while there. I only wish the respective tourism agencies would put together a 'Hostel' tour...I bet they would't be complaining once those bucks start ed rolling in! Posted on Dec 26 2007 20:39
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- Minty said...
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*for the weak hearts*
PLZ NEVER WATCH THE MOVIE!! it gory nd itz disturbing.. nd if the director is talking bout reality then there r better ways the message can be put forth..
nd bout it being a true story.. NO SHIT! he's def made it up to create hype for the movie.. itz sick beyond words.. ppl who can watch it r those who r sadistic.. ok atleast SAW II was ok.. it had some kinda message.. this one was pure rubbish. i can still hear those ppl girls screaming when they're bout to be killed. (i suppose the director has been successful atleast in leaving a horrible impact.. hats off to him!) Posted on Dec 22 2007 05:58 - Report as inappropriate
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- DIANA said...
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I HAVE NOW WATCHED HOSTEL 3 TIMES AND CONVINCED MY SISTER TO WATCH IT, BUT SHE HASN'T AS YET. I THOUGHT THIS FILM WAS BASED ON A TRUE STORY BUT FROM PREVIOUS COMMENTS NOW I DON'T KNOW.
THE FILM I ENJOYED I WOULDN'T SAY I WAS SCARED AS MOST OF THE TORTURE YOU WOULD SEE THE ACTORS FACES AND THEN ONLY IMAGINE WHAT WAS BEING DONE TO THEM AS YOU WOULDN'T SEE ALL THE GRUESOME BITS. BUT GOOD FILM TO ELI ROTH AND AM NOW WAITING TO SEE NO 2. Posted on Aug 26 2007 17:08 - Report as inappropriate
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- Steve said...
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Wow, people Europeans on this site are assholes. Judge an entire country and culture based on a single Horror movie, of all things. Sounds like European elitism not American stupidity.
Fuck you. Posted on Jun 24 2007 22:45 - Report as inappropriate
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- billy talent said...
- the movie is really scary .if i see the movie im excitred like the first time i have seen it its really really cool (my english is not good im from germany =) ) ^^ Posted on Apr 02 2007 15:12
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- Jen said...
- the movie isnt based on what slovakia is like.its a damn horror flick.its meant to b disgusting and scary and i thought it was.i disagree with u fuckers saying shit about americans and the other half bitching about solvakians. the director doesnt represent the rest of us.so shut up about it. Posted on Jan 09 2007 16:17
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- world said...
- it was a great movie,mind boggling about the police Posted on Nov 01 2006 21:49
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- mich said...
- i thought the movie was based on a real story... which i love to go exploring europe someday, since ive found out it wasnt real, then im happy to go there next yr.. anyway whether its true or not, ill be touring europe anyway... its up to the viewers lyk me whether to believe it in ryt?...and usually, before others go believing in something, they'll have to see it or better yet research about this countyr slovakia, and this movie, just to know if it is true... in my opinion ,its also a good thing that the director had choosen slovakia, for the scene, at list we had a few idea what the country would look like, although a viewer like me had grown to believe that it can be true, where the police can be involve, not about the massacre, but where the police could be involve in the crime ...... well anyway, anywhere u go, or any parts of the country, their will always be good and bad.....and its just a film..ryt..... i also dont understand u american, not everything is invent by u guys, u steal or buy our inventions too--- im just adding it up..go figure it out like the lamp... Posted on Nov 01 2006 21:31
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- intruder said...
- this film was utter BS...boring.... Posted on Oct 31 2006 00:38
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- Paul said...
- I've watched 'Hostel' twice now and I can't make up my mind. Roth reckons it shows just how gung-ho and obnoxious Americans can be (which is true), but I can't help thinking that what he says is bulls**t and it really is an exploitative movie. For instance, the main charactor gets his revenge in the end and gets away scott-free. This fact that Roth may be being cynical is actually more disturbing than the violence portrayed in the film. Viewed in this way, it goes to show just how sick and twisted America is right now. Posted on Oct 16 2006 10:49
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- Martin said...
- Of course it's a horror movie and not a portrayal of Slovakia which I'm sure is a lovely place to visit - haven't been there myself 'though yet Posted on Sep 04 2006 11:57
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- Anna said...
- What a film! Really nasty scary stuff! It terrified me as I tried to imagine the fear that must be within these people as they are faced with the sickest torturers going! I am now shit scared of ever going to that part of the country! Posted on Aug 21 2006 15:12
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- hannah said...
- i think hostel is a fantastically clever comment on a certain mentality that is scarily pervading our society. I dont think its supposed to be a classic but it delivers exactly what its set out to. It not only expresses a mentality but it actually shows it in action, it demonstrates it in an extreme situation. Whether the violence is 'gratuitous' is entirely dependent on the political subverted message isnt it? The question is redundant. So although i found it particularly unsettling i think it was one of the most subtly clever films that is quite a test on the viewer in terms of understanding the point. A salute to Eli Roth. (and quentin- whats going on- this film has a dual autership..like a double imprint of tarantino and roth- hard to achieve) Posted on Aug 12 2006 19:33
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- Jason Harper said...
- I am an American living in slovakia for more than a year. This movie was very offensive to me so I feel how the good people of slovakia must be feeling. Absolutely this film is a horrible portral of slovakia and the people. Slovakia is a beautiful place with very great people. I am ashame to be an America at times. This don't help our image much does it? Posted on Aug 09 2006 22:08
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