ELI ROTH WANTS TO BLOW SHIT UP GOOD
- By Devin Faraci
- Published 04/25/2008
- News
To me, this is good news: Eli Roth told journalists at the LA NME Awards that his next film will be a PG-13 disaster movie, which he described as in the vein of Cloverfield and Transformers. "This will be my first big-budget, PG-13, mass-destruction
movie," he said. "I went total chaos and pandemonium."I felt that Eli shouldn't have made Hostel Part II right after the first film; it was going to lock him into a specific image - that of the 'torture porn' guy. And it has. But Eli's a talented filmmaker and a smart guy, and while he's a gorehound at heart, he's got a lot more to offer in his movies. Making a PG-13 movie can prove that, and it will readjust his public persona in a way that he won't be getting asked about torture porn all the fucking time, sort of like how people don't just hound John Carpenter about slasher movies.
It's important to note that he hasn't sold the film yet, although he says he's taking it around to the majors. If he's able to get it off the ground it would knock Trailer Trash back on his slate, which I also think is a good idea - that's a movie Eli should be making after a hit, since I imagine its commercial prospects are limited.
When Eli does get this PG-13 movie made he won't be completely leaving behind his past as a goremeister; he plans on shooting extreme stuff for an unrated DVD release. I love this - almost every unrated DVD has extra content that barely pushes the bounds of PG.
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Comments
Comment #1 (Posted by TVs David)
'But Eli's a talented filmmaker' Since when?
Comment #2 (Posted by KurtQuake)
2 strikes and 1 bunt. Talented my ass.
Comment #3 (Posted by Zak)
Eli doesn't come anywhere near being a good filmmaker. Hostel was a bad movie, not the worse movie ever, but pretty bad all the same.
Comment #4 (Posted by Joe)
The only good work Eli's done is the fake Thanksgiving trailer - which is pretty sad, considering it was a joke.
Comment #5 (Posted by The Fake Life RIP)
Your disturbing obsession with seeing women tortured on film should be noted by the police. Fat creep.
Comment #6 (Posted by Sam)
Such adoring fans!
Comment #7 (Posted by Chance)
Anyone who doesn't think Roth is a talented director doesn't know much about filmmaking. I don't necessarily like all his movies, but I can't deny the guy understands where to put the camera and what to point it at.
Comment #8 (Posted by SleestakVaginaFace)
Are you sure about that Chance? Watch H2 again and pay attention to the editing. There are some painful cuts/transitions on display that can be blamed on no one else but Roth. To state that he understands where to put the camera is debatable and, in my opinion, false.
Comment #9 (Posted by I am not Spock)
Devin wants to be the fat greasy meat in an Eli Roth/Diablo Cody sandwich because they talked to him once.
Comment #10 (Posted by mr_adam)
Eli Roth? Oh, the torture porn guy.
Comment #11 (Posted by carter)
These talkbacks continue to impress.
Comment #12 (Posted by Eli Cash)
Only on CHUD.COM - yesterday's /film news! Also, is it just me, or does that picture make roth look like a cut-up Ted Danson?
Comment #13 (Posted by mepoop)
it's just you
Comment #14 (Posted by I Find The News Hostel!)
I thought the official CHUD stance was this guy was a WTF?? Oh well, he's obviously got the right influences & his talent peaks thru on occasion. Lesser talents have come out (Michael) winners. We'll see.
Comment #15 (Posted by Vegan Dracula)
Don't forget Peter Jackson started with low budget horror also. I never predicted a LOTR/King Kong out of him, so who know's what Eli is capable of?
Comment #16 (Posted by Jeremy G. Butler)
Eli Roth is indeed a talented filmmaker. Just because not everything he's made has spoke to you (the general you) in some way doesn't mean he's not adept at helming a picture.
I do agree with Devin about his image of the "Torture Porn" guy and being seen as a one-trick pony can use up goodwill pretty quick, so I'm pretty excited to see what he does with this.
Comment #17 (Posted by Drain Bamage)
Blasphemy! Eli Roth is talented!? People love to toss this notion around but they can never site specific evidence. Cabin Fever failed at every thing it attempted to do. Hostel was just as sloppy and idiotic. Talk about letting fanboyism interfere with better judgement. This article is obviously Devin's attempt at giving Roth a plug, but I'm not buying it.
Comment #18 (Posted by Brian)
The talkbacks are currently at a grade point level of 5.
Learn about film before you talk about a filmmaker.
Comment #19 (Posted by rudewordsmith)
Chance: That makes him a talented DP. A director, especially a good one, understands more than "where to point a camera". They have to understand what makes their story engaging, what the subtext is all about as well as how to make it work on screen. So, to be honest, any one who thinks a director is only known for pointing a camera and filming something, obviously doesn't know anything about filmmaking. That said: I don't dig what he's done so far, but I have to admit that Hostel had a premise that should have been engaging. But the execution was awful. If he took more time to dedicate to understanding the themes of his films (apart from the obvious face value), then yeah, he'd be a good filmmaker. But he doesn't, so he isn't.
Comment #20 (Posted by Chance)
SleestakVaginaFace: In fairness, I haven't seen H2 -- I'm going by H1 and CABIN FEVER. At the end of the day, a director is responsible for his film, good or bad. In that sense, you're right that any problems with H2 can only be blamed on Roth. But many factors can lead to missing footage which could lead to painful cuts/transitions. Maybe the focus puller missed his mark by a mile, making a shot unusable. Maybe Roth wanted to get the shot but ran out of time on the day and the production couldn't afford to go into overtime. I'm not saying the guy is the next Hitchcock, or even the most talented torture porn director of his generation. But he does know a thing or two about directing.
Comment #21 (Posted by Chance)
rudewordsmith: As I see it, on the most basic level, a director must tell a story visually through a series of edited shots. Which means he must decide where to put the camera and what to point it at for each shot. Telling a compelling story with some subtext is great, but those things are harder to quantify and more subject to the opinion of the viewer. I guess I'm trying to say Roth has a good understanding of the mechanics of directing. Whether or not he moves you (or me) is another story.
As for the DP thing... While a DP and director often collaborate on shot choices, the final decision lies with the director. The DP is generally more responsible for lighting the shot, which, in my opinon, is even harder than choosing the shot. I don't know if Roth can light a shot or not. I did think Tarantino did a great job doing his own DP work on DEATH PROOF. But that's neither here nor there.
Comment #22 (Posted by Bryan Drackman)
Eli Roth is talented in the same universe where Uwe Boll is promising.
Comment #23 (Posted by redbeans)
You can't deny that he is a talented filmmaker. I thought he should have done this after hostel instead of doing hostel 2. If you watch the last section of hostel i always felt it played out like a 70's action film. Aomething about the direction and editing choices. I would put Roth in the club of Shyamalan and Anderson. They may not give you 100% orginal (who really can)but they work againt the pack. Even though you can see their influences you also see their hand.
Comment #24 (Posted by mk)
i heard a while back that roth was attached to stephen king's cell. is that happening?
i think roth would be perfect for it, and if he stays close to the book, he would get to do his gore schtick AND blow shit up
Comment #25 (Posted by Jane)
Eli Roth is as talented as Devin is slim, handsome and well-groomed. That is, NOT AT ALL.
Comment #26 (Posted by ariel)
Awww SO EXCITED!
Comment #27 (Posted by mark)
Eli Roth does (and is willing to) have a stigma of being a torture porn guy. cabin fever was entertaining but not scary. and the hostel films were not scary as well, they were just exploitation films. the editing and stories WERE bad Chance and you can't accept that mistakes happen on set beyond the control of the director and still say he's good. a good director wouldn't let that stuff happen. i'm glad to see him step out of his shell, but i don't think he's impressive at all yet and cannot be compared to Peter Jackson yet. and peter jackson isn't even one of my favorite directors, in fact i'm not even really a fan of him at all yet
....and his Kakihara costume sucks in that picture
Comment #28 (Posted by Bennus)
I still don't understand how he can come up with a genuinely disturbing premise like 'hostel' and yet make a finished film that's completely lacking in suspense, tension and anything you wouldn't see in a DTV horror film. That level of directorial ineptitude has to be a talent in itself - albeit one that doesn't deserve anything resembling acclaim. That's why he has to resort to lackeys like harry knowles and devin to try and hype his projects up, everyone else is sick to death of him and his horror-lite bullshit.

