I want a movie that 30 years from now, people can look back and see it as a reflection of where the culture was at - as a barometer of the culture.

I generally follow my own compass and make films about what's scaring me.

Pulp Fiction won the Palme d'Or and people said: "Wait a minute, he's actually smart and he knows what he's doing!" I feel that with Hostel, any time you make a film like that it's going to illicit a strong reaction and you can't worry about that.

It's very flattering to feel like you actually helped create a sub-genre.

You'd be lucky to get tortured to death in one of my films. It's the best thing that could happen to your career. But I'm very aware that as soon as you put women in this situation, all of a sudden people are like: "Wow, well wait a second!" Immediately, people become very sensitive to it.

As a kid, I was the neighbourhood baby-sitter - very responsible, always in charge.

One of the great joys of life, now that you can afford a nice suit, is getting one for free. That's why I like to do press tours - I always say making movies is just an excuse to get free clothing.