Imagine The Hangover as a gory horror movie. Seriously. Hostel: Part III has nearly as many similarities to The Hangover as it does to the first two installments of its own franchise. A guy is getting married and decides to party-it-up with three buddies for his last weekend as a free man. So they lie about where they’re going and head to Vegas instead. They get hammered their first night there and, naturally, they awaken to find one of the men missing from the night before.
The Hangover did it better. So did the original Hostel, obviously, and possibly the first sequel, though I would have to rewatch that one to make sure.
Having it set in Las Vegas is actually a great idea, infusing gambling into the already extremely profitable business of murder and torture for pleasure. In fact, it seems plausible that if this business really existed, then they would want a location in “sin city” to capitalize on all the money flowing through that area. Which is why I think the plot should have centered more around the gambling and voyeuristic aspects of the Vegas clientele, rather than the dumb Hangover rip-off.
While there is obviously plenty of gore in this one, it almost seems like an afterthought. None of the scenes have the gut-punch that we all remember from the original. Plus, there are scenes where the camera pans away in moments of torture. Why? Is this not a Hostel movie? Show us the goods!
Really, the only thing about Hostel: Part III that makes it stand out is the cast of women. They’re all extremely attractive, and the film exploits their curves every chance it gets. I’m not complaining–far from it–but when a film repeatedly shows naked or near naked women strutting seductively in scenes where the audience should be on the edge of their seats, it probably means suspense hasn’t been properly cultivated.
And the ending…just no. Director Scott Spiegel went one twist too far with that.
You can watch Hostel: Part III on Tubi or Amazon.