In 2000 a military civilian was ordered to dispose of large quantities of the dangerous chemical Formaldehyde in to the public sewerage system. It then found it's way in to the Han River. The beginning of The Host dramatises this incident with a creepy American scientist making a scared South Korean assistant pour hundreds of litres down the sink. Years later, a man jumps from a bridge in to the Han River, to his death. "I'll see you in Hell" he says as he goes.Gang-du runs a snack bar by the river with his father and they both look after Gang-du's 13 year old daughter, Hyun-seo. The creature finally shows itself and begins to run up and down the river bank, eating up all the onlookers. Gang-du runs and grabs his daughter's arm, only to realise minutes later that it was not his daughter, but another schoolgirl. He turns to see the monster scoop her up and take her in to the sewer. The family are taken in to custody then hospital after fears their contact with the creature may have infected them with a virus. Gang-du receives a phone call from his daughter that night who has survived the attack and is stuck down the drain.
Despite the obvious political themes and referring at times to the American military presence in Korea, the humour brings a bright reality you wouldn't expect from this type of film. The not so sociable family, all with their foibles, work together to defeat the creature and in the vain hope of saving Hyun-seo.
The scariest part was the authority's tunnel vision and their method of killing the problem regardless of the amount of fatalities. When Agent Yellow is released, a yellow box suspended by a crane omitting a dirty yellow gas, to destroy the possible virus, (like Agent Orange used in Vietnam) you feel like you are caught in the middle of a biological attack. Never before have I been so amazed by a monster movie, it was made with such elegance and charm. Yes, I'm sure there are others around with far superior SFX but that's not what I'm interested in. I don't need a monster to look realistic. I mean, what does a real monster look like anyway?
I was pleasantly surprised when I saw this one a while back. And you are right, it was the less-than-perfect human qualities of the family that helped make it so enjoyable.
ReplyDeleteAs far as creature features go, this was one of the better ones to be released in recent years.
ReplyDeleteSaw The Host first time a long time ago and bought the DVD later from a local (now defunct) store that sold foreign flicks. Great monster movie!
ReplyDelete"I mean, what does a real monster look like anyway?" - Excellent point.
ReplyDeleteSuch a great movie.
It puts Cloverfield to shame! It's funny, its dramatic and its awesome on so many levels.
ReplyDeleteAsians are just awesome at making monster movies.
"I mean, what does a real monster look like anyway?" my sentiments, exactly! i've been saying that for years to as many crapheads as possible, within context of course...
ReplyDeleteword verification- Pitzan! what Tarzan changed his name to after he finally fell in the tarpit! sorry, i know we just met...
yeah and hells yeah! i really liked this movie too and seeing the monster grow as it goes on was nice too. your point about "what does a real monster look like?" is a sound one i'd say. in this movie it works where in others like i dunno the US version of godzilla it didn't.
ReplyDeletethis movie also had a good balance of humor and tense moments. the parts in the tunnel felt claustrophobic and the whole 'family that sticks together' stuff was well done too. nice review of a great movie.
Toxic river monsters may be coming our way!
ReplyDeleteLove the dark humor.
The Host is one of my favorite films of the last decade. Just a top notch sci-fi/horror/comedy/adventure movie.
ReplyDeleteEndure the subtitles, folks. It's well worth it.
I dunno I just didn't get this film. Sure it has it's great moments such as the first attack scene, in which the camera stays with our so called hero as chaos erupts around him, rather than focusing solely on following the monster.
ReplyDeleteStill I watched this on Saturday, when it was shown on film4 and like the first time I watched it, I just can't see why, it's considered such an essential film.
That opening attack scene really is fantastic. It's chaotic and disorienting, yet you still get to enjoy the carnage that the beast is unleashing.
ReplyDeleteI think it's so loved because of how character driven it is. We have tons of movies where the Monster is the star and your victims are the typical run of the mill bimbo/airhead/jocks. So to inject a film with characters that actually have a noticeable growth is very refreshing. Plus, I think up until that point, we really hadn't had a good monster movie in a long while.
I was actually put off by the humor a bit, I expected a much more straightforward monster flick, though I still enjoyed it greatly. Need to sit down with it again soon!
ReplyDeleteI agree that what scares the most is the jokey, destructive attitude of those scientists and authorities.
ReplyDeleteWhat also disturbs me is the clumsiness of the monster. I don't know why but things that are broken or odd but still relentless in their pursuit of their prey do make a big impact on me.