I can tell you exactly where I was when I first watched Hostel. I had just gotten married when the movie came out and I went for two reasons. It looked good as hell and Jay Hernandez. We all love us some Jay Hernandez. Honestly, given Hernandez’s track of films, I didn’t feel as if this flick was going to be that morbid.

I watched it with a group of eager horror friends and to this day, it still is a cult classic to me that scares the shit out of me.

Hostel blends all the familiar trends of horror film. Alcohol, sex, drugs, torture etc. You know, the normal stuff.

However, it also encompasses all that is horror. Being in a strange place, not being able to move, having absolutely excruciating things done to your limbs and body parts. Films like these scare the crap out of me for one reason. IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOU. And it does happen to hopeless individuals.

There are many forms of horror chambers across the world. From the usual creepers in the basement to Justin Bieber’s hotel room. There are areas across the world that make us panic with sweat, hoping to never see the inside of them.

Because we are absolutely horrified at the sick mind of a human being.

A Hostel carries a pretty bad rep. I could NEVER stay with a group of strangers in a foreign country. But for a pair of travelers, the promise of some hot sex is all they need to convince them that they need to visit a hostel that is full of beautiful women. Once they arrive, however, terror ensues and only one of them makes it out alive. But it is after severe torture, and plain luck that he actually does get out alive.

The individuals that come to these “torture chambers” are referred to as clients. They like watching this type of stuff. They get off on it. Bastards.

Immediately after watching this movie I went online to see what types of these so called torture dungeons exist and I was baffled to see, across the world, how many people and countries revel in these types of sadistic behaviors. The devises that are used are even more gruesome, causing unimaginable pain to those that are inflicted.

Have you ever heard of a Strappado? Jeez, I couldn’t even stomach reading about it. This form of torture is where an individual is hung by their ARMS which is secured behind their head. Slowly and over time, the arms retract from the shoulder sockets from the weight of the body.

In Hostel, individuals were inflicted with physical pain. Tendons being ripped. Throats being slit. Eyeballs electrocuted.

Perhaps the worst type of torture is not the one that is inflicted on the body- but on the mind. White Torture comes in the form of isolation. No sound. No human being. No windows. No light.

Hostel also trails the tantalizing tale of torture with Part 2 and Part 3….

Part 2 explores the mind of seemingly normal people who actually partake in the activity.

My thoughts on this coming soon….

Revisiting The HOSTEL Empire – A Retrospective