Hostel Special Edition DVD Special Features

Here's a little about the video-based features on the Hostel special edition DVD - or at least the ones I know about so far.

The main attraction is probably the 30 minute retrospective called Hostel Dismembered, but another menu holds five further options: five minutes on set design; 11 minutes of KNB's FX; 3 minutes on a meal in Iceland (no, really); an almost 10 minute interview with Takashi Miike; and over 12 minutes on the film's music and sound effects. So that's around 70 minutes of new stuff so far.

Sounds good.

Nikki Had A Little Lamb

Remember the scene in Heathers where Winona Ryder's character places her fingers in her ears and sings Mary Had a Little Lamb so loud that she can't hear what is being said to her? So she won't have to face the reality she's being confronted with?

This story will probably remind you of that.

It started when Nikki Finke called Hostel 2 disgusting without ever having seeing it. This blatant display of prejudice stoked my ire, so I posted the following:

Why not be outraged and e-mail her a challenge? Such a venomous spitball of reactionary hate deserves some kind of rebuttal.

She then e-mailed me, and I replied - both parts of which can be read in a previous post.

And of course, the conversation went on from there. She e-mailed me saying:

[EDIT: I have deleted the content of her e-mail as it was offending some readers that I had included it (they'd rather her replies be deleted and replaced only by my comments on them. Weird). Suffice to say, she accused me of failing any mature dialogue between the two of us and remarked that she was amazed by my inability to believe people are offended by torture porn. Of course - her mistake there is twofold: one, I can most definitely believe it; two: she has categorised Hostel 2 as torture porn. Which is a daft label for any mainstream horror film at best, innacurate at worst and - definitely - applied without her even having seen the film. You can infer the rest of what she said from my reply e-mail which follows in a few lines]

And as far as I'm aware, I can reproduce the above as I please because, frankly, relevent excerpts are valid reportage. [EDIT: So I did reproduce her e-mail until people wanted it gone, so I removed it rather than offend readers]

I replied to her e-mail with the following:

As far as I can see it, Nikki, you are most definitely free to do the following:

a) be offended by torture porn
b) urge people to not reward that kind of disgusting moviemaking

What you have done, and have (here at least) damaged your reputation by doing, is

a) declared a film 'disgusting' and insinuated it is without merit, without even seeing it first

b) attempted to prejudice other people similarly

Go see Hostel 2, then review it however you wish. That simply won't be the same thing as slurring a film you haven't even bothered to watch before slamming it with a very serious label.

And some (many? most?) would say, slamming it with this label most innacurately.

The end to this I would recommend is your actual review of Hostel 2 based upon a viewing of the film and an admission that all of your previous comments were not based upon the film at all, but rather your prejudiced assumptions.

Meanwhile, one reader of this site sent her the following:

Dear Nikki Finke

I'd like to submit my future review of the last ever Harry Potter film. It's not yet finished, but it is disgustingly magical. Almost magic porn. I've not seen it, but it is amazing. It puts me in mind of Hostel 2 save the violence is swapped with fluffy owls, the blood with magic dust and the boobies with pulsating long wands. I hope Warner don't mind my advance review, but it seems that you don't mind reviewing films before they've been seen. You've lost all credibility in our eyes.

The final e-mail - so far at least - has come from Ms. Finke. Here's the important bit:

[EDIT: Of course - I deleted this also. She said it was shameful that I reproduced her e-mail - seems that she too would simply like me to report her opinions without actually allowing her a quote. Then she said that her reputation was 'fine' - well, not (as I said) with me. I don't presume to speak for anybody else. And then she announced that she'd filtered my e-mail address so that anything I sent her would go staright to her trash folder. And... er... as far as any of you know she could have called me a motherf*cker, threatened death to Muslims/Christians/Hindus everywhere (delete as appropriate) or implied that anybody with homosexual urges should be gutted, turned inside out and worn as a hat - but you'll never know exactly what she said, only my version of it, because the world has voted and that was their preference. Anyway... the key bit was her trashing any correspondance from me, ensuring my e-mail went straight to her trash]

But, readers, your e-mails will not. You can drown out Mary Had a Little Lamb. But please, please don't spam her or send her anything thoughtless. This is only worth doing if you argue your case logically and sensibly.

The point has been made now and Nikki Finke has had her prejudice exposed. She is a woman with a platform from which her opinions of films and filmmakers are broadcast far and wide and, as far as she's concerned, it's okay for those opinions to be nothing more than unsubstantiated attacks. Her perjurious rants can spread and discolour public opinion of a film and, sure, most people won't see anything wrong with that but I'm afraid I do.

If Ms. Finke requests, I think I will remove all of the content of this post that comes from her e-mails. Instead, I'll just paraphrase her comments and print my recounting of her points instead. Maybe she'll go that way and sacrifice her own voice in this debate, let me substitute a second-hand version of her reactionism. Perhaps she thinks that will in some way undermine my argument.

Back to the real issue: readers, why not go see Hostel 2 when it opens next weekend and form your own opinion after you've actually seen it? According to those that have seen it, it's really very good. I've seen the first one and, as I'm sure you know, I found it to be one of the best films of 2006.

Rat Finke A Boo Boo

I asked you to e-mail Nikki Finke about her comments regarding Hostel 2. I don't know if anybody did, but I do know she e-mailed me. Here's the full text of her mail:

[EDIT: Except, actually, it is apparently preferable for me to paraphrase her comments rather than repeat them verbatim - that's what people leaving comments and sending e-mails have told me. So I have delted the text Nikki Finke sent, as requested by the baying hordes, and will tell you instead just what it was she was going on about.

Her evidence for Hostel 2 being 'disgusting' (applied as a clear perjorative) consisted of two easily dismissible points - one, that the first film was thoroughly 'miscreant' (which is debatable, anyway, but at least appears to be based upon her viewing of the first film - unless anybody knows better and can tell me she hasn't even seen that one); and two, that Eli Roth has commented on how the second film is more violent. Well, Ms. Finke - Hamlet and Macbeth are more violent than a touring stage production of Scooby Doo and his Amazing Van-Lovin' Gang but that doesn't render either of them disgusting.

She commented on Roth being proud that Hostel 2 is disgusting. I dare say he is: he wouldn't want to make a film about such suffering, pain and cruelty without these things disgusting the audience. That's very different, of course, than the film being disgusting in a negative way. And if Roth says 'disgusting' there's his Barnum-and-Bailey hyping of the film to take into account too... he's certainly not taking an uninformed pot-shot at the film from some morally questionable viewpoint.

She calls the film unreasonably violent and misogynist. I question how misogynist the first film was, and certainly the second, as I have yet to see it - but I'm sure that Hostel, part one, is not unreasonably violent at all. In fact, I think it was rather reasonably violent. What's unreasonable about torture and murder being painful, visceral and stomach churning? Would she rather it was dressed up like mass murder in less searching and responsible films - The Matrix, Die Hard 2, Lake Placid?

Finally, Ms. Finke says she will support the induglence of a creative vision but not necessarily like it - which, of course is fine. The problem is her blind condemnation of this vision and it's fruits without any evidence or genuine knowledge]

So, of course, I had to reply. Here's my reply:

If you haven't seen it, you simply cannot say it is disgusting.

You can say that you expect it to be disgusting, even that you'd bet your life on it being disgusting, but you cannot say that it IS disgusting.

How a film about torture can be described as 'unreasonably violent' I'll never know; and, of course, violence and torture are as valid a subject matter for a film as anything else.

'Torture porn' - please.

I'd love to see your comments after you've seen Hostel 2. I've no doubt they'd be the same but at least then you'd have something substantial to base your case upon. And should your case still not be based upon the film, you'll have given us another good flash of your true colours.

I suspect the film itself will never play much of a part in forming your opinion.

And, so far, that's that. Please do add any further comments you have by e-mailing them to Ms. Finke (nikkifinke at deadlinehollywood.com) and why not add me to the cc field? (brendonconnelly at yahoo.co.uk)

The I Say 'Bank Holi-', You Say 'Memorial' Edition

- Want to preview the soundtrack to Ocean's 13, see some stills and read an interview with David Holmes? Sure you do.

- There's a rumour that Batman might be down at the London Eye today. On a bank holiday? Don't think so. Bet you a quid this was dreamt up by Red Ken's tourism elves.

- Yet another computer-generated Star Wars trailer... this time for an upcoming combo-edition of the Lego Star Wars games (fun but really very slight - no depth to them at all, really).

- Pirate copies of Hostel 2 have turned up, with the name S. Mooridian watermarked into the print. At least we know who is going to be fired/blacklisted/executed for their part in this. There's little point me telling you not to go near pirate DVDs and so on, but I will anyway. Don't.

- Cannes has closed up for a year, awards were given, reputations made.

- The murder of cricket coach Bob Woolmer looks set to inspire a new film from Mahesh Bhatt. Bizarrely, he plans to dramatise the real murder investigation in the context of a fictional love story.

- You can directly download the trailer for Larry Fessenden's The Last Winter. It looks truly great and apparently it is.

Movie Minesweeper - The From The Room Across The Hall Edition

- Nicolas Cage won't be in Capone Rising after all. Perhaps there won't even be a Capone Rising. If there is, then Gerard Butler is still going to be the young Sean Connery.

- The Australian Daily Telegraph seem to think there's the possibilty of one more Star Wars film for cinemas. Nonsense. I think it will be at least ten years until Lucas announces more Star Wars feature films.

- Ubisoft have developed the videogame tie-in for Robert Zemeckis' Beowulf.

- CelebritySmack have a shot of Madonna, movie director. Apparently, Filth and Wisdom is only a short. That's merciful.

- Surprise surprise: Hope Davis will be in Charlie Kaufmann's Synecdoche, New York and once that's wrapped, she'll shoot Genova with Michael Winterbottom.

- Trent Reznor is trying to turn his album Year Zero into something more audiovisual, perhaps a film. Apparently, he's talking to 'A-list people' in order to do so. Sadly, this likely means David Fincher and not, say, Mark Romanek.

- Fox are planning a movie based on The Sims. Sim City I can see - the hurricanes and Godzilla-alikes might make for fun - but The Sims? Isn't this just every sitcom ever? Maybe they can do a cross-license and bring back Friends at the same time, as the same project.

- Tell me why. I don't like Monday Monday.

- Lodge Kerrigan is to write and direct a remake of Les Voleurs. This is a very good thing. We'll never get to see In God's Hands - stupid god and his clumsy hands - but at least we have something to look forward to again on the Kerrigan front.

- Rintaro, director of the animated Metropolis, is the latest to get going on a CG Penguin film. Apparently, the film is going to be kind of Franco-Japanese, somehow. Great name, though: Yona Yona Penguin.

- The BBC have comissioned Outcasts, a rather serious sounding new sci-fi series. Expect the American remake to follow.

- HorrorMovies have a rather exciting new clip from Hostel 2.

- And... Eli Roth is making strides with his Trailer Trash project, smaller steps with his Grind House 'sequel'. He's also pretty clear that he's done with Hostel, and won't cook up a third installment.

- There's going to be an Ocean's 14 but not a fourth Jason Bourne film? Suits me just fine. I won't lose any sleep over that outcome.

- A Lone Ranger film from the Pirates of the Caribbean team. Not for me, thankyou.

- US readers can see two clips from Sicko. [EDIT: Or download directly instead]

Even More Hostel 2 Snaps

These Hostel 2 pictures are a fair bit less spoilery than the last bunch. Perhaps.

Movie Minesweeper - The I've Missed You Too Edition

Not much activity on film ick over the last 24 hours or so, but I want to put that straight... over the next 24 minutes or so. Martin's currently prepping his review of the Burn After Reading script, by Ethan and Joel Coen. To keep you going until then, here's a heap of links you might want to bother with.

- Lindsay Lohan will apparently play a stripper in I Know Who Killed Me. I suppose this news has set the web alight as people are assuming she'll go naked on screen. I don't assume this, personally - for one thing, I saw Closer. Besides, there's not much of Lohan left to see, there's not really any air of mystery.

- There are to be up to three more Terminator films, apparently built out of seemingly incidental details hidden in Terminator 3. We'll see.

- Eli Roth is planning an entire film of fake trailers, to be called Trailer Trash - to be shot before and after Cell. Not all of them will be directed by Roth. He discusses this in a video interview with Collider.

- Orlando Bloom and Scarlett Johansson are rumoured to be in talks for Roman Polanski's Pompeii.

- Michael Bay has responded to Bruce Willis' disses - and either Bay is lying again, as per the Transformers lips, or he's just rumbled Bruno something rotten. According to Bay he was originally approached to direct Die Hard 4.0.

- Michel Gondry is directing Bjork's Declare Independence video, due for a July release.

- John De Mol is to revive the Hammer brand name.

- Peter Cattaneo is to direct The Rocker, with Rainn Wilson lined up to star as "a failed drummer given a second shot at fame".

- Gena Holden is the new Dale Arden.

Direct Download Link For Massive Hostel 2 Spoiler Scene

No sooner do I post my suppositions on a Hostel 2 spoiler and... well, here's a direct download link to a video clip that gives away a massive spoiler for the film. View at your peril - and don't watch it at work, it's gory and features nudity.

Nab it now before it's too late.

Spoilertastic Hostel 2 Images

Look at these Hostel 2 images carefully and tell me they aren't stuffed with spoilers... or, possibly, they're cleverly constructed to mislead. The bottom one is giving me a real Countess Bathory vibe. In a few weeks, we'll see how right I am.


Thanks to Gray Digger for sending them over.

Hostel 2 Site Now Live

The Hostel 2 official site is now live. Hard to navigate - on my browser, at least - but live.

Direct Download Link For New International Hostel 2 Trailer

You can download the new Hostel 2 trailer right now. Remember to right-click and rename the filename to anything.wmv to get it to play.

Good trailer, isn't it?

Eli Roth Hopeful For Second Grind House Double Bill

Speaking to Rotten Tomatoes, Eli Roth has suggested that a second Grind House double bill would feature Thanksgiving and Don't as full length films. Thanksgiving would be easy enough, I'm sure, but the supposed continental European heritage of Don't might cause Edgar Wright some headaches in the adaptation to full length.

Besides, there's really not much chance of a Grind House sequel being commissioned, is there? I doubt we'll ever see Machete completed and there's over a third of that in the can already.

A Rush Of Blood To The Head

The IESB have added two new Hostel 2 images to their gallery. Do they spoil anything? Judge for yourself...

Hostel Special Edition DVD Announced

The first Hostel Special Edition DVD has been unveiled, and sadly, it is just the same as the first release with a second disc of bolt-on material. No new transfer? No new commentaries? No alternative cut?

The second disc will include: a Takashi Miike interview; featurettes on the music and sound, set design and special effects; two more featurettes called Hostel Dismembered and An Icelandic Meal.

Where are the deleted scenes Roth mentioned recently? Surely not exclusive to the as-yet-unannounced R1 release?

Direct Download Link To Hostel 2 Full Trailer In Quicktime

Looking better than the flv version of a few days back, the Quicktime version of the full Hostel 2 trailer can now be downloaded directly.

Here are some lovely stills. The scene with the TV set (up top here) should ring bells to anybody who listened to the commentary tracks on the first DVD.

Rolling Stone Interview Thing With Grind House Trailer Directors

While flicking through the magazines on my virtual coffee table I stumbled across an excellent article in Rolling Stone. Quentin, Rodriguez, Eli, Zombie [EDIT: What's his name Zombie Rob? Hey! You have a point! That's a much better name] and Edgar chin wag about the inspirations behind their fake trailers, as bookended by Planet Terror and Death Proof. It's a six page beast and an entertaining read. Knock yourself out.

Give Thanks

Adios Lobo's Kevin Cacy alerted me to this. Eli Roth's Thanksgiving trailer from Grind House in all of its 'glory' is now online at IGN. You can stream it or you can download it (which I'd recommend; it probably won't be around for long). Afterwards, there's a few more glimpses from the A&B; pictures, as well as brief flashes of Edgar Wright and Rob Zombie's fake trailers.

[EDIT: We know have a direct download link for the trailer. Right click and Save As]

[EDIT: As the images below show, the trailer has been censored in this download. Has it also been censored to get an R from the MPAA for the theatrical release? I'm betting on Yes, bit hope somebody will confirm for sure on Friday]

Hostel 2 Trailer That Plays Worldwide

Here's a Hostel 2 trailer you can download and watch anywhere in the world, bypassing the 'lock' on MTV's site that prevents it from playing outside of the USA.

It's hosted on a Russian site, which evokes golden memories of the cold war.

Nice to see some Jedi action, however briefly, and I'm pleased to see the German angle is being kept up too.

[EDIT: If that link is bust - as it sometimes is - try Slashfilm, who have the flv file on loan from me]

Happy Birthday, Thanksgiving Man

HorrorMovies have an interview with Eli Roth from last weekend's Grind House junket in which they discuss Eli's plans to collaborate with Edgar Wright:

We're going to have a birthday party together. That’s about it right now. That’s in April. We have the same birthday which is kind of cool.

Plenty more, including some sensible talk about remakes, over in the full piece.

Grind House 2

So, what are going to be the films to make up the second Grind House double feature?

Talking to VH1, Eli Roth discusses Thanksgiving:

The trailer was so much fun. It's all gore and nudity. It's all money shots, bodies being chopped up and people being stabbed and cheerleaders stripping on trampolines. It's three minutes of pure happiness. The feature will never live up to the trailer unless we just do 90 minutes of that. For Grind House 2 I think there's a very strong chance of shooting it. Quentin and Robert and the Weinstein Company love the trailer so much they're already asking me, "Where's the script for Thanksgiving?"

(He also suggests he turned down Die Hard 4, The Hulk and Halo to make Hostel 2)

And, in another chat, Tarantino spells out his plans for the future:

There's all these subgenres in exploitation movies and cinema in general that we like, and this gives us a license to explore them all ... I do have an idea in my mind for an old-school kung-fu movie that would be shot in Mandarin ... there would be a long version of it, with subtitles and all serious. Then I would cut another version way down, like they did in America, and dub it! Not to make it look silly, but you can't help but benefit from its humorous quality.

If the audience screams for Thanksgiving and Don't! or Werewolf Women of the S.S., and Rob, Edgar and Eli want to do it, we're all down.

And the then confirms, once more, that his next film will be Inglorious Bastards.