10 Horror Movies Ruined By Fan Overhype

Hostel centres around a group of backpackers who get kidnapped and tortured by a nefarious organisation.

Because of the film's innovative gore and disturbing premise, Hostel would've been received positively by the masses if it was released without fan-fare.

Instead, Eli Roth's work was plugged as "The Goriest Movie Ever" and "More Terrifying Than The Exorcist", stirring horror fans into a frenzy. When Quentin Tarantino's endorsement for the movie was slapped on the poster, Hostel's rep was heightened even more.

In hindsight, it seems like Hostel was set up to fail, since it was built up way too much. I know it's important for a studio to sell a movie, but it's also imperative not to oversell it.

Hostel isn't a terrible film by any stretch of the imagination, but it wasn't deserving of the hype it drew. Martyrs, which deals with a very similar plot, received a lot of praise, due to its nuanced performances, visceral gore, and haunting tone. Another aspect that made Martyrs stand out was how it didn't toot its horn for months, declaring itself as "The Scariest Movie Ever". If Hostel hadn't put itself on a pedestal, it wouldn't have been so disappointing.