User reviews

"The Host" is as deceptive and intriguing as its title (there's currently a 6-page thread in the discussion board and we still haven't figured it out). The movie can be taken as a straightforward monster flick, a dark comedy, a sentimental drama, or a rich socio-political allegory.

For the sake of this review, let's approach it as more than an action/comedy/horror flick, and let's assume it's a deeper allegory. There's definitely a lot of symbolism, lots of cultural references and outright satire for you to munch on. I think that's what makes this seemingly-ordinary monster flick into a powerful film.

Right in the first scene, the director sets the tone with a caricature of Western (U.S.) muddling. Like the excellent Korean film "Welcome to Dongmakgol" released a year earlier, this film is not exactly complimentary toward America, so if that irritates you, you might want to skip this. But when you consider all the 80s Hollywood flicks that painted Russia as a villain, I guess it's fair enough that the USA should take its lumps.

(I did want to add that the director takes a diplomatic approach, mocking the American "establishment" while indirectly praising the American individual. He does this by including an American tourist who's really cool. So in other words, his criticisms are not one-sided.)

The plot is two-dimensional but the symbolic implications are profound. The story is about a monster that terrorizes the banks of the Han River and grabs a young girl, prompting her bumbling family to lead a rescue effort, with no help from the Korean authorities. Some say that the monster represents Western imperialism. It could represent a figurative "attack" on Korean culture, autonomy and sovereignty. Or it could even be taken literally to represent environmental terrors caused by American apathy.

Don't worry, the USA isn't the only target here. There are some pretty good jabs at the Korean authorities too, insinuating (in a way that's both entertaining and irritating) that the Korean government is apathetic & hopeless. "So much for Korea's new democracy," says one character at one point in the film. Some critics point out interesting parallels & allusions to the 1980 Gwangju Uprising (where the Korean Government botched the whole situation, killing & wounding hundreds at a student protest). Everyone is fair game in a dark satire like this. In that respect it reminded me of the excellent Veerhoven scifi satires "Starship Troopers" and "Robocop".

Like all good satires, there's a nice amount of comedy to remind us not to take everything at face value. The bumbling family provides some great laughs in the first half, and certain scenes in the hospital are reminiscent of the sarcastic masterpiece "Brazil" with its merciless mockery of all institutional powers. The scene where they're looking for a virus in a guy's head is both riotously hilarious and profoundly disturbing.

I did want to mention one thing in case you're wondering. No, the audience isn't supposed to feel sympathy for the monster, not like in "King Kong". I was actually surprised at that (in a good way), because the director didn't stray from his message with any gratuitous sentimentality. Normally I'm not a fan of killer animal flicks (Jaws, etc) because I usually find myself siding with the animals more readily than the humans. But this film managed to avoid all sympathies, since the monster itself is a product of human idiocy (which is explained in the first scene).

Well I've just thrown a bunch of ideas at you, and I don't claim any of them to be absolute. But the point is that this seemingly-ordinary horror flick is so much more. It's entirely up to you how you want to see it. Like I said up front, you can just see it as a straightforward monster flick, but I think if you read deeper into the parallels with current Korean society, you'll get a whole lot more out of this.

I just saw this film at the 2006 Melbourne International Film Festival. So invigorating to see a fantasy type film in a great setting on a big beautiful screen. Full house (aprox 400-500 people)Classic old theatre style of The Regent Theatre in the heart of Melbourne city.

What a great surprise to see a quality entertaining monster flick. You might begin to think as I tend to that the rest of your cinema going days will be spent avoiding such appalling Hollywood "Crap-busters" such as Godzilla or (enter current relevant movie here ;-) This film proves that adults can still be taken back...taken back to staring at the silver screen in wonder. It further proves, that a fantasy/adventure monster film can be a serious and funny film at the same time. Formula defying, original, intelligent... comical and sad. Comedy with pathos (just like real life refusing to fit neatly into categories)...very clever film making. Even with the alleged fear of subtitles, I would think there was a massive audience for this film amongst English speaking audiences...if only they would be given the chance to see it. Where's the mainstream distribution in Australia for a film like this? Best special effects and monster effects I've seen in years!

It's a picturesque afternoon in the park near the river. Kids run gleefully as parents set up picnic lunches and enjoy the sunshine. Young couples lay together on blankets, friends toss a Frisbee - it's just about perfect... except for the giant creature hanging from the bridge.

Parkgoers quickly gather to gape at the mysterious something. They ooh and aah when the great beast slides into to water and eases its way over to the shallows, idling just beneath the surface. No one senses any cause for alarm. They lean closer and toss snacks into the river, as if it's a cute family of ducks.

But ducks don't have teeth like this thing.

The crowd erupts into panic as the monster reveals its lethal force and ravenous appetite. Among the crowd scurrying for their lives are an old food shack owner, his young granddaughter, and her dad. The dad displays his bravery by facing the monster, but he also displays also his imperfections by... well, I won't spoil that part.

Director and writer Bong Joon Ho cleverly details the family's dysfunction through subtle dialogue before the monster chase and in the aftermath. This family is a ragtag group without much clue about what to do, but they are nevertheless relatable and easy to root for.

Though the horror aspect is feature most prominently, the film contains layers beneath the surface for those interested in further examination. Bong Joon Ho manages to weave together elements of a family comedy, social satire, environmental conservation, and of course, a monster horror movie.

This is unequivocally Bong's movie. He expertly directs chase scenes with thrilling camera movements and engrossing framing choices that make you lean forward in your seat with excitement while you also partially cover your eyes in fear. It's a fascinating paradox.

In quieter moments, Bong unveils a novel's worth of background information through a few purposeful conversations between characters. Listen closely or you'll miss important details and have to watch the movie again. You'll probably want to anyway.

I have mixed feelings about this film. On one hand the first attack is one of the best creature feature sequences in film history in my opinion. The curiosity of the public to this big octopus looking creature in the water leading into the sheer panic and dread as the camera pans onto it charging towards the group from a distance without changing camera angles is purely brilliant and horrifying, and the ensuing madness (in particular a scene inside a large container) is truly terrifying to witness. However, after this initial attack, the film slowly devolves into a second rate family drama with less intense and spread out attacks from the continually less intimidating beast. The conclusion nearly wraps up the film but the expectations built up by the first 20 minutes lead to an ultimately disappointing viewing experience. That said, the film is far superior to the majority of Hollywood monster movies and is worth watching just for the harrowing opening scenes, so give it a watch if you're looking for an inconsistent but watchable creature feature.

What else is there to say? The Host elicits every feeling, every sense of urgency, dread, sadness and happiness with ease. And somehow it manages to cram all of that into the first fifthteen minutes. After that it speeds along and doesn't let up. I was with it till the end, laughing when I was supposed to, crying, and even cheering. It is one of those rare films that blends all the respective genres into one with an almost scary simplicity. I shouldn't be surprised, it is from writer and director Joon Ho Bong whose last films the equally brilliant Memories of Murder and the excellent black comedy Barking Dogs Never Bite featured a similar feeling.

How does the man do it? Like with his other films particularly Memories of Murder he manages to break the conventions of the genre by frequently poking fun at the rather stale "monster" genre and by taking a fresh, appealing perspective. It's funny at all the right moments and even in moments when you feel you shouldn't be laughing you cant help but laugh. It's full of vibrantly realized characters, who each have their "moment" that make you laugh at the ridiculousness or gasp at the coolness. It is written with care and love, the pace never stagnates and the dialogue is never forced. The CG monster effects are nice and appropriately unrealistic in appearance. Perhaps too unconventional for American audiences but it really works in the context of the films rather serious yet quirky atmosphere. The acting is excellent, Kang Ho-Song continues to impress, star in the making Ah-sung Ko gives a very good first performance, and the rest of the cast give great performances. All managing the frequent dips into serious and comical and even both at the same time.

The Host is a brilliant, brilliant film. I'm so pleased I had the pleasure of seeing it at the cinemas, the way it deserves to be seen. Despite fitting into a rather common genre, The Host is an original. It is a unique and refreshing film, full of charming characters, awesome action sequences and even an emotional poignancy that weaves itself into the film at the most appropriate of times.

The Host is undoubtedly my favourite film of the year and one of the most entertaining films I have seen in recent years. If you like your films to be highly enjoyable, but also smart and even emotional, you will love what The Host has to offer.

I happened to watch this tonight at the cinema although I don't speak or understand Korean... let alone Japanese...however it wasn't difficult to grasp the story or get caught up with the characters and the situation.

This film is comical in parts and borders on science fiction, drama and even horror, but it is really fantastic to watch and displays a lot of emotion and realistic reactions. The special effects are excellent, the characters are believable and it is one movie well worth watching even if it is in a different language. There is nothing like a creature from hell to add a bit of excitement to your day....

For the first time ever I knocked over my coke and jumped 6 feet out of my seat when I was suddenly and unexpectedly given the fright of my life....for those of you that like this kind of excitement....be on the watch out for this little gem. (Subtitles would be an idea).

I highly recommend this film and cant wait to buy it and own it on DVD!!!!

This movie took me by storm, it is by far one of the more interesting, fast paced, seat-gripping movies to come out of Korea.

When I initially picked up this movie, I was sort of sceptical, a monster movie from Korea? Going to be mediocre at best. But this is where I thought wrong...

Right from the beginning, this movie was interesting, and it never lets you go once it got you. Fast pace from start till end. And it really helps that the effects are awesome.

The movie mixes humour well with the "horror" part of it, as it is a monster movie. And it works well. Even if you are not a particular fan of Asian movies, you might want to check this out for the effects alone.

I have seen this movie a couple of times already, and it doesn't get boring. It is somewhat of a gem in Asian film history - at least I think so.

The Host is by far one of the best monster movies in years. The movie follows a bumbling young father, Gang-Do Park, and his family. The story starts like every monster movie; everything is calm and uneventful, "business as usual" you might say. When a mutated fish creature comes along the river bank and begins killing anyone in its path. Amidst all of the confusion, Gang-Do's daughter, Hyun-seo, is picked up by the monster and dragged back to the sewer. The story then turns into a search for Hyun-seo. Gang-Do and his family evade the authorities and use all the money they have to desperately continue their quest.

The reason I picked up this movie in the first place is because the box said that it was "on par with Jaws." I found this hard to believe but the monster in The Host is the one of the most cinematically pleasing CG creations in recent years and is probably the most original looking monster since Alien. It was legitimately scary looking and had a very unique style of moving that set it apart from previous monsters. Another strength of this monster is how well the CG is done. It does not just look like some computer generated figure spliced into live action footage. It looks like it belongs in the shot. The monster also has enough on screen time to make the movie suspenseful. The movie keeps the viewer wanting to see more of the monster while, at the same time, keeping them satisfied with the number of appearances.

The Park family does a pretty good job of keeping the audience entertained while the monster is off screen. The relationship that Gang-Do shares with his father, "college man" brother, and professional archer sister maintains a balance of drama and humor that the audience can appreciate. This dynamic seems strange but the movie makes it work. You start to really feel like these people are family. The best thing about these characters is that you are not disappointed when they are on the screen. Some monster movies seem to get kind of boring when the monster is off screen (Godzilla 1998).

The weakest thing about this movie, as it is with most foreign films, is the English translation and dubbing. After a while it becomes bearable but in the beginning it sounds absolutely awful. I don't say this very often because, like many Americans, I hate reading subtitles. But I think this one time I would have made the exception because the voice acting was just terrible. They just didn't seem to fit the characters very well. The dialogue in some scenes is very awkward as well. Some of the English translation just sounds out of place. This happens a lot with language barriers, however, and sometimes it just cannot be helped. If you want to watch something that is not meant to be in your language, you've just got to go with what you get.

I started off saying that this is one of the best monster movies in years, and it is. It's not perfect, but what monster movie is? It has some flaws but the originality of the monster and the simplicity of the plot makes this movie very easy to follow and worth watching at the very least. It is pretty good for what it is. The whole "monster terrorizing an Asian town" seems like it has been done a million times (because it has), but this movie has some new things to offer. Would I call this movie "on par with Jaws"? I wouldn't personally, but it is definitely better than some of the cheesy messes that monster movies have made in the past.

Improperly disposed of toxic-wastes generate an immense amphibious predator in Seoul's Han River. This early outing from Oscar-winning director Bong Joon Ho has his characteristic off-beat style and unsubtle, comedic social-commentary. The film swerves from claustrophobic horror (young Se-Joo (Dong-ho Lee) trapped in the sewers by the revolting monster) to near slapstick (the kinetic out-pouring of grief at the communal memorial to those devoured by the creature), but the main target of the satire is the bureaucracy and self-serving duplicity of the 'establishment'. Although its biological origins are vague, the monster is great (although its acrobatic swinging under the bridge is very odd) and the cast, although bordering on caricatures, is very good (I flipped back and forth between a dubbed and a subtitled version). Fast moving, witty, and full of food and water imagery, the film is good fun and a huge improvement on 1967's 'Yongary, Monster from the Deep', Korea's first stab at kaiju adventure.

After reading the glowing reviews and seeing the high ratings on IMDb / rotten tomatoes one might expect a great monster movie.. no. The cgi looked poor to me? The creature moved in a strange way, not natural to the eye at all. The characters were not funny in the slightest. I was so terribly excited to watch the film and so terribly disappointed 30 minutes in. Watch it with minimal expectations and it may be a 5/10 that's it. The plot was boring.. what more can I say.

Disappointment end of.

We start with pouring gallons of used formaldehyde into the Han River. This isn't going to end well. Yes I'm watching Korean cinema again and this one has a big water inhabiting monster. By now you'll have made the connection, it really doesn't take long. Polluted water = giant mutant creature. It is utterly bonkers, genuinely devastating in places and oddly amusing. Gang-du is not the sharpest tool in the box, eeking out a living with his father selling squid to tourists by the river and he gets a front row seat to the monster's first appearance. No teasing here, a glimpse of a tail, the suggestion of an eye. No, bang! 15 minutes in, MONSTER. Broad daylight, cards firmly on the table. Okay it's slightly hyper real CGI, but it looks good. Moves fast on four legs, big whippy tail, a mouth like predator and it eats people. People including Gand-du's daughter! Being eaten by this thing though doesn't always spell the end, mostly it does, but it does some rather disgusting looking regurgitating and Hyan-seo survives. Considering the genre we're in, there's very little grandstanding and what little there is, is easily diffused by the quirky comedy. It's more farce than anything else. So when Gang-du gets a call from his presumed dead daughter, it's seems perfectly acceptable and off we go on a rescue mission. Once Gang-du, his father, his bronze medal winning sister and unemployed college graduate brother have escaped the authorities in quarantine in slap-stick style, they head for the sewers on the hunt for Hyun-seo. She's captive in the monsters makeshift pantry of bodies, the only one alive until a new recruit drops in. A young boy, younger than her and the two school kids try to find a way out, whilst her family attempt to find her, via getting attacked by the monster, lobotomised and killed! Not all at once. In the midst of all this, the authorities are warning of a virus, one they can't actually find any evidence of, but are planning to eradicate with the release of a biowarfare nerve agent... see, bonkers. To be honest, as fun as it is, it really could've done with being half an hour shorter and just a little bit more focused. The ending is, well it's the stuff of Hollywood blockbusters, but without the budget. All in all it's pretty nonsensical and bloated, definitely a case of the chase being better than the catch. I did expect a little more, namely because it's directed by Bong Joon Ho, of Parasite fame and the lead here, is the same guy who played the father in the Oscar winner too. All I can say is, he's improved a lot in the last 14 years.

This is a movie which will go straight into "best monster movies" lists; it is ground-breaking in the way humorous and horror content has been intertwined by a master film director. It was the closing film, shown last night (July 30) in the Auckland International Film Festival. There was a packed house of which about 60% were Korean people living in New Zealand. The audience was very attentive and the reception given to the movie was justly big applause. The animatronic effects have been done scrupulously well and viewers can look forward to being enthralled by the skills of those who "made the monster". We got the print which had come straight from Cannes and apparently the film opened just two days before we saw it in Auckland. There is no doubt that this movie will go on to do very big business wherever people appreciate great horror films. My inclination to rate it 10/10 was tempered only by a little doubt about the pacing of some sequences, but it is certainly worth 9/10. Look out for when it comes to a theater near you.

I saw this movie having seen all the hype and I'm not sure where it drew all its great reviews from.

Don't get me wrong, it's not a bad movie, but it's not terribly great. I had that vague sense of relief at the end you get when a movie has outstayed its welcome.

To be fair, I saw a version that was over-dubbed rather than subtitled and I think that affected the mood quite a bit. A number of the overdubbed voices were sort of gross, cartoonish, caricatured voices that really seemed calculated for farce value. Along with some of the more ridiculous comedy scenes, this left it with a strange sense of not really knowing whether I should be laughing or crying when various characters got killed. The dumb father character, for instance, was so stupid as to be unsympathetic - which is tough because it was his daughter who was missing.

I think though, the mood is exactly what the makers were aiming for - it felt early Godzilla-esquire in its mix of solid if garish creature-feature fare and slightly off balance humour. I don't think I really *got* it, but I expect I might get more out of it after a few beers.

One thing I really did like were the visuals. Although the monster manages most of the time to look like a guy in a rubber suit, even thought its CGI, it works pretty well against the urban landscape, which often looked stunning. The director showed a lot of style and certainly wasn't afraid to try some interesting angles. I bet this would be great on a big screen.

Overall, kind of dumb, but certainly worth watching on an off night.

South Korean movies are usually enjoyable, offering a humour to counter the plot and disturbing theme(s), and this movie was no exception. I usually hate horror movies, but I enjoyed this action/horror/drama end to end and I left the cinema with a strong feeling of contentness.

The horror was actually quite interesting, as were each of the main actors and the relationships between them were surprising and amusing, with some really witty sub themes thrown in along the way and some good suspense as well.

The movie had great undertones and conversation topics to keep you talking to your friends for hours.

Overall: It was a really enjoyable experience, witty and well constructed.

When Joon-ho Bong's "Gwoemul" (called "The Host" in English) came out in the United States, the reviews called it terrifying and hilarious at the same time. Now that I've seen it, I'm not sure that I would call it either of those. I find its strength in its possible allusion to the state of affairs in Korea.

For starters, there's the American dumping formaldehyde down the drain into the Han river. We should all know that US troops have remained stationed in South Korea ever since the Korean War ended - so to speak - in 1953. I don't know what most people there think of the US presence, although I get the feeling that they somewhat resent the US army maintaining a presence there (and to my knowledge, most South Koreans opposed the US invasion of Iraq). Therefore, I wouldn't be surprised if they portrayed the American causing the problem as an indictment of the US keeping troops in the country, especially since the scene was based on a real incident (see IMDb's trivia for this movie).

And then, the monster. Is it a representation of North Korea? Of the United States? Or just a plain old monster? I suspect that in a small nation like South Korea, many people feel like pawns in the massive (monstrous?) world of geopolitics, what with the US and North Korea always on the verge of facing off. If these nuclear-armed countries set about finishing the never-truly-ended Korean War, then South Korea just might bear the brunt of everything.

Of course, I might be reading too far into the movie. I gotta applaud the director for creating such an interesting monster movie, especially given how they play with the audience. The actors know just how to get the characters right in the various situations that they experience. A really fine one.

I've seen this movie today cause I stumbled upon a website containing the most grossing movies in Korea this year. This one was number 1 on that list. So I became excited wanting to see a mutant beast causing chaos in a town in Korea. Positive points: 1.The special effects are shown in broad daylight, so nothing is hidden. The victims are not who you expect them to be. Negative points: 1. The special effects are sometimes dodgy/bad. 2. The dramatization is too much for its own good. 3. Sometimes scenes are dragged too long. 4. Dialogue is not very good. 5. Characters are mediocre.

Nothing new to see here. I hope Korean cinema doesn't carry on like this following cheap Hollywood mutant movies. Long live Oldboy!

A really decent monster flick with a really good monster. I loved the way it seemed made up of multiple creatures and flopped about awkwardly at times. Pretty ferocious and direct at others I must say. Very well shot and with most exciting moments as people are scooped up and saved for later. It is, however, just a little too long. It's a fairly simple story and it is, for me, padded out with unwanted family background. I understand family matters are particularly important to the Koreans and obviously they have had a pretty wretched recent history. Nevertheless some of this back and forth and doubts as to maternity slow things down. Full marks for the actress who plays the young girl, in captivity for most of the film. Not a wasted frame there, she looks good and is most expressive. If only the rest of the family had been played more this way we could all have enjoyed this monster movie more.

Why does everyone like this movie so much? I thought it was going to be funny. It wasn't. I thought it was going to be scary. It wasn't. There were some impressive special effects, but, for the most part, I found it to be boring and annoying.