June 25: Hostel: Part III

"While attending a bachelor party in Las Vegas, four friends are enticed by two sexy escorts to join them at a private party way off the Strip"

Hostel: Part III is a bloody mess that leaves you disappointed. Sure, the first two entries weren't masterpieces and one would think they would not be the hardest acts to follow, but HP3 really doesn't even come close. The appeal, if you will, of the first two films is that they are genuine "torture-porn" movies that show a hell of a lot of skin and even more blood and gore. Yes, it's f**ked up saying that is the appeal, but it's true. People like seeing other people murdered in an over-the-top fashion. It's disturbing, it's nothing you'd see in every day life, and it's creepy. It's entertainment at its worst (and best), and I don't mind saying I appreciate when a film can push, nay, rape the limits of what is acceptable. But, when you have a film like HP3 that follows two movies that have their way with the limits pushed, there is a lot to expect. Hostel: Part III absolutely fails in the gore department, and each torture scene uses little zip-lock pouches of blood instead of buckets and buckets. 

Good for Dexter, bad for Hostel. 

HP3's plot is actually pretty decent, given the fact it's an extremely low budget horror movie. I was very weary that the movie might follow a similar approach to The Human Centipede, where everything is just too f**ked up to even give a damn about, but HP3 actually has a handful of twists that keep everything interesting. I can honestly say I was surprised by a couple of them, and whenever a movie can trick me into thinking something else, I have to give it props, even if it's an overall terrible movie. The story follows a bunch of twenty something guys who head to Vegas for a bachelor party for one of the fellas. The group soon find themselves wrapped up in a very dark "game" and are all either kidnapped or drugged, then brought to a warehouse club where rich people pay to watch others murdered. They bet on the weapon the murderer will use, how long the victim will last, and even what they'll say before their throats are slit, their faces cut off, or even shot a dozen times with a crossbow. What ensues is a struggle to survive, as the captured fight for their lives while trying to figure out any way to get out of the torture dungeon.

Actually, it's less dungeon, more f**ked up hospital on a reality TV show. 

I really wouldn't recommend Hostel: Part III. The franchise, on its own, is nothing special, and Part III certainly doesn't help that case. It lacks the graphic ew factor the first two movies had, while clearly being made on a much lower budget. Plus, Eli Roth is no longer at the helm, having previously directed Part I and II. His style and finishing touches would maybe have brought HP3 into a more watchable state but, alas, he is nowhere present this time around. The movie also starts off pretty strong, building a somewhat original story, but it gets disgustingly bad as it progresses. The ending is one of the worst, far-fetched, ridiculous things I have seen in a long time and while it tries to be "fresh" it comes off as just too absurd. However, it's certainly not bad enough to the point I could call it unwatchable, but it still really isn't worth your time. Go watch the f**ked up, creepy as hell French movies Martyrs and Inside, if you really want a blood and gore fix. They hold nothing back on either of those. 

The Bad:

a movie advertised for it's shock factor that is completely lacking of said "shock"

The Worse:

a story that starts off decently strong, but follows with a terrible second and third act

The Worst:

wondering why American horror movies can't push it further like foreign horror, and wondering if that's a good or bad thing

Overall: 3.5/10

Trailer: