The Host

Synopsis: On the banks of the Han river, Park Hee-Bong runs a snack stand with his son, Gang-Du. Gang-Du is lazy, but when his daughter Hyun-Seo is taken by a monstrous beast that emerges from the river, he and his family mobilise to rescue her.

It’s a monster movie, it’s a horror film, it’s a family drama, it’s a comedy, it’s a coming-of-age tale, it’s a political satire, it’s a commentary on the US presence in South Korea. It’s not easy to pin down. It’s a lot of things, but first and foremost it’s the most inventive monster movie to be seen in years. Since Jaws (1974) really. Actually, Jaws 2 would be a closer bet. Like that film, family is important in this story, and it’s in defense of the family unit that action is taken against the monster.

The monster is so well done, the special effects are stunning for almost the entirety of the film. Only once or twice, toward the end, do the effects fail to live up to a standard of near seamless reality. And the design is equally stunning; you’ve never seen anything like this before. Go see the film just to see what an unfettered imagination can do. This thing is creepy as all hell.

Some may be frustrated by the lack of any real explanation for the beast, or what it’s actually doing. How did it remain unseen for so long, what did it feed on before it began its killing spree? Logic doesn’t really enter into this aspect of the film. But who cares? And besides, the human drama is compelling. There are moments of shocking violence that leave you stunned, not for the simple fact that they’re graphic, but also because they’re happening to people you’ve come to love. There is a deep humanity to this film that is consistent with Bong Joon-Ho’s previous film, the excellent and disturbing Memories of Murder. Gang-Du and his family are funny, decent and amazingly lovable. They’d be worth watching even if there wasn’t a monster for them to chase down and then run away from.

A monster movie like no other I’ve seen, it’s easily among the best of the genre. And if the audience I saw it with is anything to go by, it’s a real crowd pleaser too.

 

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