The Host: The miracle of life.
The Host
Cloverfield meets Little Miss Sunshine. Really, there's no other way to describe it. It's a monster movie about an oddball Korean family who stumbles their way to death and doom via the slimy mutated sewer-monster that starts rampaging through their city. It's part horror, part comedy, part satire. I'm not sure I've seen any other Asian movie quite like it.
Our action hero.
Meet the folks! A nice little three-generation family running a food stand. We're dropped in the movie on a beautiful sunny day, lots of picnickers, good business...
At least until a crowd forms on the bank...
There's something in the water, which they proceed to chuck their trash at, because it's not like it'll emerge as a huge slimy pissed-off amphibian mutant, right? Right?
That'll teach you to litter.
Yeah, those shoes are still attached to someone. In Soviet Korea, trash recycles you!
"Turn around... slowly."
Having seen her body dragged away, her family assumes the worst, only to receive a crackly, broken-up call from her dying cellphone. Turns out she wasn't eaten, just dropped in a sewer... for later.
But in a fun twist, the government tromps out in bio-hazard suits and face masks, because a KILLER MONSTER isn't enough bad luck, oh no: the government says its skin contains a deadly virus.
MY SKIN IS ITCHY, the hero cries, panicked. OH GOD, DO I HAVE THE VIRUS?
The father is like, shut up, it's just because you haven't bathed.
The monster itself is a hungry hungry hippo with a Venus flytrap for a mouth. It unfurls its jowels to release this... tongue, which it then uses to grab people and slither all over their face, leaving a sticky trail behind. D: D: D:
The girl's family goes on a madcap quest to find her, buying guns, stealing ambulances, dodging government checkpoints, bickering all the way.
It's really romantic, seeing as how they all think they're deadly contagious. You go, guys! The world needs a little more disease!
There's even citizen protest and an all-around questioning of the government, which is surprising considering that this is an Asian film, where even the most minor rebellion is criminal. But I know we all watch monster movies for the political commentary, so it's okay.
For bonus lulz, this movie shares a title with Stephanie Meyer's book The Host. Just browse youtube for a few minutes -- all the trailers have comments like "OMG WHEN DOES THE MONSTER APPEAR IN THE BOOK?" You keep waiting, guys. Hold your breath!
Cloverfield meets Little Miss Sunshine. Really, there's no other way to describe it. It's a monster movie about an oddball Korean family who stumbles their way to death and doom via the slimy mutated sewer-monster that starts rampaging through their city. It's part horror, part comedy, part satire. I'm not sure I've seen any other Asian movie quite like it.
Our action hero.
Meet the folks! A nice little three-generation family running a food stand. We're dropped in the movie on a beautiful sunny day, lots of picnickers, good business...
At least until a crowd forms on the bank...
There's something in the water, which they proceed to chuck their trash at, because it's not like it'll emerge as a huge slimy pissed-off amphibian mutant, right? Right?
That'll teach you to litter.
Yeah, those shoes are still attached to someone. In Soviet Korea, trash recycles you!
"Turn around... slowly."
Having seen her body dragged away, her family assumes the worst, only to receive a crackly, broken-up call from her dying cellphone. Turns out she wasn't eaten, just dropped in a sewer... for later.
But in a fun twist, the government tromps out in bio-hazard suits and face masks, because a KILLER MONSTER isn't enough bad luck, oh no: the government says its skin contains a deadly virus.
MY SKIN IS ITCHY, the hero cries, panicked. OH GOD, DO I HAVE THE VIRUS?
The father is like, shut up, it's just because you haven't bathed.
The monster itself is a hungry hungry hippo with a Venus flytrap for a mouth. It unfurls its jowels to release this... tongue, which it then uses to grab people and slither all over their face, leaving a sticky trail behind. D: D: D:
The girl's family goes on a madcap quest to find her, buying guns, stealing ambulances, dodging government checkpoints, bickering all the way.
It's really romantic, seeing as how they all think they're deadly contagious. You go, guys! The world needs a little more disease!
There's even citizen protest and an all-around questioning of the government, which is surprising considering that this is an Asian film, where even the most minor rebellion is criminal. But I know we all watch monster movies for the political commentary, so it's okay.
For bonus lulz, this movie shares a title with Stephanie Meyer's book The Host. Just browse youtube for a few minutes -- all the trailers have comments like "OMG WHEN DOES THE MONSTER APPEAR IN THE BOOK?" You keep waiting, guys. Hold your breath!