'The Host' review

Rating: *** out of ****

‘The Host’ has gone on to become the highest grossing film in South Korea’s history and I can understand why. Joon-Ho Bong’s throwback to the classic monster movies of yesteryear (‘Godzilla’, ‘Them’) is part monster flick, part social/political commentary and part dysfunctional family comedy. That could have been a recipe for disaster in the wrong hands, but Bong balances the three so well it creates a modern monster movie that all together impresses on a modern scale and acts well as homage.

The film centers on Park Hee-bong, an elderly man who runs a small snack bar on the banks of the Han River. His oldest son Gang-du is an immature and incompetent man in his 40’s, whose wife left home long ago. Nam-il is his youngest son, is unemployed and generally seems to complain about everything that is going on. Park Hee-bong’s daughter, Nam-joo is an archery medalist and member of the national team. It’s funny how we are never exposed to Nam-joo’s archery skills until the end of the film. I assumed she would have been shooting left and right, becoming an action heroine of sorts.

One day, an unidentified monster suddenly appears from the depths of the Han River and wreaks havoc. Gang-du's daughter Hyun-seo is taken by the monster. It is assumed that the monster has killed her. However, when they find out she is still alive, they launch a mission to find her.

‘The Host’ opens impressively enough. We’re first given a minimalist explanation as to how the monster came to be. Given that it is not essential to the story, the details given are just enough so we don’t have to ask. It’s simple in that traditional way, like Godzilla being created by the atom bomb. After that, we’re treated to the most impressive scene, when the monster makes a daring daylight attack on the Han River. The creature resembles a demonic tadpole with legs, insect eyes, and a mouth harking back to John McTiernan’s ‘Predator’. It is not a creature that feels alien, but rather like something that could come from the deeps of our oceans. Though the visual effects seemed mediocre at times, I was impressed at how Bong had the courage to put his monster in the daylight, not relying on darkness to hide or create shortcuts. Since horror movies have always revolved around night, darkness and shadow, there has always been something scarier about the daylight (the original ‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ for example). This opening sequence starts the movie perfectly; hooking us right from the get-go and in some ways is reminiscent of the immortal opening scene from ‘Jaws’.

Though the movie, at times, seems to be a random series of events, the whole is greater than the sum. We’re treated to plenty of political commentary and satire. Bong does not hide his Anti-American sentiment and the film makes concurrent statements about the American medical establishment and the events in New Orleans. Though this aspect of the film is involving, it is vague and confusing when we find out the ‘bad guys’ true intentions. Their motives are never really made clear; we just know they’re doing something wrong and that they’re bad for doing it. Again, maybe that’s all we need to know.

‘The Host’ would have been right at home in the 1950’s, but impressively enough, makes its mark quite well in 2007. These days we don’t see many monster movies that have a political agenda. It’s nice to see. It also features a twist ending that plays against the usual formula. Also nice to see. With ‘The Host’, Joon-Ho Bong packs multiple genres into a monster flick that is simultaneously gross, funny and poignant. It has been rumored that this will be one of the next Asian horror films to have an American adaptation. I’m curious to see if it can carry over or if it becomes just another monster movie.