HOSTEL: PART II 0

Last January, writer/director Eli Roth was responsible for the first HOSTEL which cost 4½ million dollars to make and grossed over 80 million dollars worldwide. Guess who's back, and why. Once again he's got a cast of relative unknowns including: Lauren German, Bijou Phillips, Roger Bart, Richard Bugl, Vera Jordanova, Heather Mattarazzo (The Princess Diaries), Stanislav Ianevski, and Milan Knazko.

The plot is virtually the same as the first, only it's girls getting slaughtered this time instead of guys. We're treated to several minutes of screaming and moaning plus lots of blood, and we learn the penalty is severe if you don't kill the girl you've contracted for. We also learn you should never trust anyone in the Czech Republic. Then, and I'm sure this will come as a surprise, a plot twist occurs which must have taken, oh, ten seconds to think up, but doesn't do a thing to make what you're experiencing less excrutiating.

There is simply no reason to waste time or money on this film. There's no one in it you'll find sympathetic so it's impossible to get worked up over their eventual fate. There's no suspense either. So, this is a film where you sit and watch people you don't care about scream and bleed to death and wish you hadn't paid good money for the privilege. It won't be any better on DVD either. I really hate to tell you this but it looks like Mr. Roth is prepared to do another one based on the ending. Do your part and avoid this pic so I don't have to sit through HOSTEL III.