Plot: What’s it about?
There’s a saying that some of the best things that happen, happen on accident. That was my feeling as I somehow instinctively requested, received and then proceeded to watch “The Host”. Granted, my process doesn’t seem to accidental, but there are plenty of movies in which I receive that never see the light of day. “Gwoemul” is the name of the film in its native Korea and sure enough, the word is directly translated to mean “monster”. I’ve seen tons of monster movies in my time and none really quite as interesting and unique as this one. Granted, I’m not too big of a fan of world cinema, but I’ve enjoyed films such as “Run, Lola, Run”, “Amelie” and “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” in the past. Now here’s where the interesting part comes in. Once I started watching “The Host” it was really hard to stop. I will say that you should ignore the text on the box likening it to “Jaws”. I’m sure that was just some ploy by the marketers to get people to pick up the movie. “Jaws” and “The Host” are literally as different as night and day.
To fully understand this film, a few things are necessary. First, suspend all disbelief. Realize that pouring formaldehyde into a river will not produce a mutant, acrobatic monster that feeds on people. Second, this is a movie from Korea. Their movies aren’t like those in the United States, which seem more intent on scaring the hell out of the viewer as opposed to telling any sort of linear story. Lastly, accept that you’re part of a different viewing experience and go with it. “The Host” is shot in a different way (even the inflated production budget is atypical of a Korean film) giving a literal new perspective on the way it’s viewed. With all that said, you’d think that I’m calling this the modern-day “Citizen Kane”, wouldn’t you? I’m not. “The Host” has its faults. I’m just trying to get the viewer ready for a different kind of viewing experience.
The movie begins with a bit of a back story as to how the “host” came to be. Evidently, dumping formaldehyde into the river produces one very large, acrobatic creature. We then move forward a few years as we meet the main players in the film. There’s the precocious teenager Hyun-Seo (Ah-sung Ko) with her loving, but somewhat slacker father, Gang-Du (Kang-ho Song) and the two form the main familial bond of the movie. Hyun-Seo is kidnapped by the beast (the “host” if you will) and is fortunate to have not been one of the extras that was killed en masse by the host. The attention then shifts to her father and the rest of her family. Believing her to be dead, we see the family react, even as they become quarantined. We meet the loving grandfather, Hie-bong (Hie-bong Byeon), ambitious Uncle Nam-il (Hae-il Park) and professional archer Nam-Joo (Du-na Bae). The audience knows something that the family doesn’t, though. We see that Huan-Seo is indeed alive, even as the host feasts on the rest of the captured souls. Hyan-Seo tries unsuccessfully to escape and it’s up to her family to save her from being devoured.
And in a nutshell, that’s it. As I mentioned before, it’s a different kind of movie and certainly not something that can be directly relatable to some United States counterparts. I’ve read of some comparisons between this and “Little Miss Sunshine” (if you threw in a monster and relocated the film to Korea, that is) and while I’m not so sure I’d draw an exact parallel, it might be a fairly accurate analogy. There are certain instances, scenes if you will, that just tend to stay with you. For me, “The Host” is a movie that really stuck with me long after the credits rolled. Maybe because it’s so avant garde or perhaps it’s just a good movie all together. “The Host” isn’t a “monster” movie per se and isn’t constrained by the limitations of the genre. It’s a unique viewing experience for sure and one I’d certainly recommend.
Video: How does it look?
“The Host” is also quit the visual experience and the included 1.85:1 AVC HD transfer is, for the most part, good. There are some scenes in the film that are clear as day, truly representative of a next-generation format in regards to the clarity. Taking that, I will say that this was one of the few movies in which I’ve seen edge enhancement. It wasn’t that prevalent, but near the ending of the movie I saw some definite (almost extreme) enhancement on some posters on the side of a wall. Flesh tones are very natural and aside from a few instances here and there, “The Host” was overall a fairly good transfer. There are far better out there, but considering the film’s budget, I’ll give it the benefit of the doubt.
Audio: How does it sound?
On the audio front, “The Host” comes with a bevy of options that are sure to please. First and foremost, I will say that I’d recommend watching the film in the native Korean audio (and there are two options: a DTS-HD track and a 5.1 PCM mix) it’s the way the movie was meant to be seen, though if you’re not fluent in Korean you will have to read the subtitles. Both the DTS-HD mix and 5.1 PCM tracks deliver, but I’m giving the edge to the PCM track here as it sounded a bit more robust in some key sequences. “The Host” has a very unconventional soundtrack – part of the film’s allure in my opinion. It sounds great in either audio format you choose. While not a movie that will rock the house, audio-wise, it certainly does deliver and there are far worse out there.
Supplements: What are the extras?
“The Host” has a slew of featurettes that are sure to entertain the casual viewer and die-hard (pardon the pun) fans of the film are sure to be in heaven. The supplements are divided into a few easy-to-navigate sections: The Cast, The Crew, Gag Reel, Deleted Scenes and the trailer (and coming to Blu-ray). Each of these segments contains a few sub featurettes and they’re all presented in Korean. I found several of these to be repetitive, but a few were actually fairly interesting. Of note, one such featurette had a crew member telling us how many people he thought the creature killed during its initial attack. I felt like I was sitting in a math class as opposed to watching a DVD, but it’s a different culture I suppose. The supplements are mainly technical in nature, ranging from how the puppet was created, to the special effects used to “power” it. The gag reel seems very out of place here, but it was interesting to say the least. Several deleted scenes are also included. The box incorrectly labels the disc as having a commentary track with the director, but I could find no such track (and if I did, it’s not like I speak or understand Korean). I’m not sure if Magnolia got it wrong or if they count a featurette with the director as a commentary. The original Korean trailer for the film is also included. Bottom line, “The Host” is a surreal movie and one that I enjoyed thoroughly and one I have no problem recommending.
