Hostel: Part II writer-director Eli Roth and cast mates Bijou Phillips and Vera Jordanova took questions at the Los Angeles Fangoria Convention at the Burbank Hilton a couple weeks back, and the answers, insights and good-naturedly gory reminiscences came fast and furious.

While the brief clip from the Hostel sequel showing an abortive escape attempt by Phillips wasn’t necessarily anything to write home about, Phillips did dispute gossip that she didn't enjoy the Czechoslovakian shoot, or was hell on wheels on set, as apparently reported elsewhere in some gossip rag. Also, Roth talked at length about his actors’ performances (making up for the fact that so few questions were lobbed their way, perhaps), and said — however dubious a claim — that the Motion Picture Association of America did literally say/admit that "good acting" was responsible for an NC-17 rating on the first-pass cut of the movie. Roth says he believes that the torturous scenes of women in peril — and Phillips’ anguished reactions in particular — were the ratings board’s chief cause of concern, because they played as so disturbingly real. That was kind of the point, he argued, and that, "People who come to see Hostel: Part II know exactly what kind of movie they're getting into. They're looking for some fucked-up shit."

After the 35-minute-ish session, the aforementioned trio signed autographs, but the most unnerving sight had to be folks posing for pictures (some with their children!) with two fake-blood-covered slaughterhouse torturers standing on either side of a bound, gagged and scantily clad model. Still trying to figure out a way to pour some Purell on my brain after that one…

Meanwhile, for Roth’s thoughts about his infamous Thanksgiving trailer for Grindhouse and more information on his future projects, click here.