Customer Reviews

The Host (Widescreen)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This movie is WAY better than you would expect. The special effects are very well done. The story starts out a bit B-Movieish, but man, it comes around to a great creature film quite quickly.

The acting isn't exactly top notch, but the story and the sfx are very great. The creature looks like an angry tadpole, and is quite unique. Much more "believable" than the creature from Cloverfield.

Once the story gets going, it keeps going. Not much down time in this one. A very original story that keeps you on your toes. It's funny and scary at the same time.

If you like monster / old B-Movies then this is for you. If you are looking for something a bit different, then give this a try.

The Host is a South Korean film that contains a surprisingly strong sense of character development and even some emphasis on humor. Ultimately though, The Host will be quickly recognized as one of the most effective monster movies in decades. I'm not exaggerating; it is a shining example of a film that makes me wonder over and over again while watching it, why doesn't anyone make movies like this anymore? Evidently, South Korean filmmaker Bong Joon-ho (Memories of Murder) does, and The Host quickly became the highest grossing South Korean film ever made.

The Host opens with an American ordering the removal of many gallons of formaldehyde. He orders his assistant to pour the toxic chemical into the drain, which will ultimately place it into the Han River. We are then introduced to the protagonists of the film, a South Korean family, two of which run a snack bar in front of the Han River. A giant creature comes out of the river and snatches up a little girl who is part of this family. The family grieves her loss while the government converges onto the scene and begins to indicate that the monster may be the cause of a new virus and that anyone who had contact with it should be quarantined. The family receives some indication that the little girl is alive and so they opt to make an effort to save her. Many scenes with the monster follow and it doesn't disappoint.

Monster movies of old invoke feelings of fear, excitement, action, and suspense; but have traditionally required more imagination than other genres. If there is mystery about the monster or we don't see it as much we quickly creep into the horror genre, but The Host does not do this. If there is no mystery we run the risk of seeing something we don't believe and that is when our imaginations must take over. The Host doesn't need its audience to do that either. It is shear madness and we are compelled to believe this is real. The drama assists tremendously and the comedic aspects serve to make the characters even more enjoyable while placing the film into a fairly convincing frame. The first time we see the monster is in broad daylight and it attacks crowds of people along the shore, only to submerge again. There is a moment in Jurassic Park where I felt an amazing sense of hope in great filmmaking combined with great technology. It is the first time we see the dinosaurs. Since that time I've grown a bit cynical toward technology's role in film, but The Host reinvigorates that hope. It is great action, great drama, great comedy, and great horror all mixed together.

The front of the box on the DVD indicates that The Host is on par with Jaws. As someone who believes Jaws to be among the greatest films ever made it would take time to concur with such a statement, but The Host is definitely worth viewing.

To be able to make both at the same time is something only a few directors can do. To do that, and still be able to make an emotionally sad movie is not something I have seen before. After watching this I thought it was a good genre-blending movie. Director Joon-ho Bong Memories of Murder-(great film by the way) goes for a very character centric feel, using the Park family as the nucleus of the movie and not as you would expect the creature itself. In many ways the Host is more a natural disaster movie than a creature feature at times. Though like Godzilla, the creature is the result of man's disregard for the environment, that is really where a lot of the comparisons end. With this film being quite different from Toho's legendary suitmation icon's outings, which where all about the big G himself and humans merely incidental. Though you might be able to compare this a little more to the American Godzilla remake, if only to see how a CGI monster movie should be done and to remind yourself just how lame Roland Emmerich's movie really was. How ever when the creature does turn up in Bongs movie it does have a really good impact with several instances making me jump a bit, after being lulled into a false sense of security by the stretches of monster free screen time.

The initial appearance of the creature under the bridge and the chaos that ensues is some of the best creature action put on film in a long, long time. The creature is well designed and for the most part the CGI is very good. The way it moves is great and very original. I think they might have gone a bit overboard on the mouth design as this is a mutant of some kind and not an alien, but really that's being picky about a great design. Personally I would have liked just a bit more creature action in the rest of the film, I appreciate the director's idea to give it a sense of the dramatic and the real, but I didn't care that much about some of the character interplay and subplots. That said all the cast where pretty good in their roles with Kang-ho Song holding his own well in the starring role and Hie-bong Byeon excellent as his father. Newcomer Ah-sung Ko as the young Hyun-seo does an amazing job in her scenes around the creature considering its all CGI. She has some really convincing facial expressions and manages to give a really natural performance a million miles removed from that horrible precious trained acting kid stuff we put up with from many western movies.

"The Host" for the most part manages to be pretty successful at avoiding being as one dimensional as it so easily could have been (though that's not such a bad thing with creature features). Bong manages to balance comedy, terror, sadness and action well and create a believable human tale in amongst the unbelievable nature of the films theme. The film has a slightly, I won't say anti American, because that's not true, its more a slightly condemning look at the America's environmental polices or lack of them. One thing the story does present well is the way authorities so concerned with the big picture, will often ignore the individual. In this case leaving Kang du with only his family to turn to and the way the seemingly dysfunctional family without question band together to save Hyun-seo is great. The films finish is not anywhere near as strong as its start and though still good is a bit weak in my opinion, although it does manage to surprise in some ways. I'm sure this flick will be remade by Hollywood soon, though they may slightly alter the premise. "The Host" is the best creature feature in some time and its feeling of reality should appeal to a much wider audience than just fans of horror and sci-fi.

Inventive movie, putting a sea creature in a completely urban setting (the hahn river of Seoul, Korea) and unveiling the creature from the first frame, rather than mysteriously hiding its identity, as so many monster movies have done. The sea monster scenes look eye-poppingly real but the real focus of this film is the family that lays under siege and the dynamics of that family unit. Entertaining and emotionally moving, The Host is highly recommended, whether you like Asian films or not.

The obvious frame of reference is to say that "Gwoemul" ("The Host") is in the grand tradition of Japanese monster movies such as the original "Gojira" from 1954. But while the monster is indeed a mutant it is not in a rubber suit, this 2006 film comes from South Korea rather than Japan, and the climax does not involve a showdown between the monster and the army. That being said, director Bong Joon-ho ("Memories of Murder") has put together the best good old fashioned monster movie that I have seen in a long time, and one that is certainly going to erase the bad memories we have of the lamentable remake of "Godzilla." The result is not perfect, but this one certainly has its moments.

Supposedly because his bottles are dusty, the pathologist at a U.S. military base makes his assistant toss cases of formaldehyde down the drain and into the Han River. A short while latter a monstrous creature emerges in broad daylight and starts scattering spectators right and left. Our unlikely hero is Park Gang-du (Song Kang-ho), a Seoul snack vendor with a tendency towards narcolepsy, who likes with his daughter Hyun-seo (Ko Ah-sung), and his father, Hie-bong (Byeon Hie-bong). When the monster starts attacking Gang-du and an off-duty American serviceman (David Joseph Anselmo) try to do something about it, without much success. Then Hyun-seo walks out of the shop and into the madness and in a harrowing scene her father is unable to save her. Mourning the loss of Hyun-seo are not only her father and grandfather, but Gang-du's brother Nam-il (Park Hae-il), an alcoholic, and his sister Nam-joo (Bae Du-na), an archery medallist. But then two things happen: the family is quarantined by the government, who are worried that the monster has contaminated people who come into contact with it, and Gang-du gets a cell phone call from Hyun-seo, who says she is somewhere in the Seoul sewar system, apparently being kept as a snack for the beastie.

It seems strange to say that "The Host" will remind you as much of "Little Miss Sunshine" as it will "Godzilla," but when you have a dysfunctional family in a van trying to band together for the sake of a young girl the comparison strikes me as inevitable. The obvious thing to complain about here is the length because you have to think that less would be more with this film running 1:59, but it seems that in South Korea audiences expect their movies to run two hours long and that is what this one does (it is the biggest blockbuster in South Korean movie history). But on the plus side the computer generated monster is pretty impressive, and that is half the battle in a monster movie like this one. Still, regardless of length there is something of disconnect between the set up and the pay off in this film, which, despite the predictability what with an archer running around an all, will surprise you. This is a film that wants to work comedy in the mix, and while it often works in the end I am not sure if it was appropriate. However, all things considered "The Host" is definitely worth seeing for fans of monster movies and may well become a personal favorite in that particular genre.

man this movie puts dozens of others to shame. it is the perfect example of overusing cgi and not sucking. There have been so many times where a movie overuses cgi and just takes the viewer right out of the movie, in other words bad cgi can usually destroy a movie. Then there is the host. The monster in the host is completly cgi but is still sooooo awesome! The movie moves at a brisk pace and did not lose my attention for a second. To top it off the characters were also great and i felt bad whenever they did and felt frustrated when they did and also laughed when...they did something dumb. Everything the director did great all worked together to make a very refreshing and great experience that proves that cg can work if you use it right!

I think this movie works on so many levels, and is never the same movie twice. Yes, an intriguing 'monster movie', or could be construded as a 'black comedy'. I took from it more as a 'artful character study'. And the 'monster' as a binding representation that clarifies and unifies personal and national convictions. Political, social, personal, and bottom line - true love and devotion.
Be it for country or fellow man. Everyone in this movie has their 'quirks' - but are realistically sublime. Strange freaks that survive on a daily basis, simple or complex. And mostly misunderstood, but tolerated to a degree. Enter 'the monster'. One of the most beautifully grotesque creatures on film. It eminates from 'a clash and carelessness' and literally surfaces on society unnannounced. Yet, it's really no more freakish than the family, or the characters they encounter during the melee. It simply cohabitates clandestine amongst it's environment, and it's the environment that get's sidetracked to the unknown (contaminating diseases, impure sources, political friction) Yet, the main characters endure through much of this; simply for the belief of the young daughter still alive in the presence of this 'monster' somewhere. So through it all, I became so attached to the characters, as well as the 'monster'. What were it's motives? Did it feel something for the young girl as well? Was it being scientific by giving her the young boy? One scene to explain is so revolting, as the monster vomits human remains in front of the girl.
But then again, it was almost symbolic in nature. As if to show the 'day to day grind' it has to endure on the streets just to survive. So through all the panic, desperation, hope and commitment - it still doesn't end the way one would think it would. Yet, it's one of the best most satisfying endings that left me with a smile to this day. Be vigilant, but more so - be comfortable.
Remarkable movie! Right up there with 2001: A Space Odyssey IMHO. But certainly more 'down to earth'.

After reading so much hype about this film, it was a disappointing viewing experience. It lacks the basics of either psychological suspense and/or the raw energy of most horror genre movies. Even making an allowance for cultural nuances of Korean/Asian films, the occasional slapstick comedy scene looked out of place giving the film a disjointed feel. Overall a mediocre script.

This film was both scary (the effects were on par with Hollywood films) and heartfelt. Characters were well-written and developed. It's not perfect but one of the best monster movies I've seen.

i really wanted to like this film.but it just wasn't meant to work
out.not only was it all over the place in terms of
tone.comedy/action/drama/adventure.some of which i'm not sure were
intentional.the comedy for instance.there are also couple of scenes
that don't seem to belong and are not explained,which really annoyed
me.but the biggest obstacle to engaging this movie was that it just
went on and on and on.i almost couldn't take it.i watched it to the
end.but it was a chore.that was what killed the whole experience for
me,was just how slow it was.it it hadn't been for that,i might have
enjoyed the movie.the actual creature itself was not that bad looking.i
have seen worse,and better.i did like the look of the film.it had a
certain style to it.and the ending was touching.i started to watch the
film in dubbed English but found the dubbing quality not so good,so
quickly switched to Korean with English Subtitles,which i would
recommend.i can't really recommend this film based on how long it
seemed to take to get through,but if you do choose to watch,just know
that you may need a great deal of patience 2/5