The Host (Gwoemul)
Starring Ah-sung Ko.
Well, we all know that disposing of toxic chemicals into major water supplies is bad, right kiddies??? Not so in this story, which leads to some largely predictable consequences.
When an employee in a top-secret military facility dumps a load of formaldehyde and other chemical nasties down the drain, a large and deadly critter is born in Seoul’s (South Korea) main river. It develops a taste for humans and soon we are drawn in to one family’s plight, as single dad Gang-du (Kang-ho Song) and his family engage in a frantic search to save his young daughter Hyun-seo (Ah-sung Ko). Meanwhile, the city is in chaos as the public fear for their lives and the US military (a feature of South Korean life since the war in the 1950s) attempts to take charge of the situation.
Is Hyun-seo still alive? Will Gang-du really have a frontal lobe lobectomy? Just what is that ‘host’ creature meant to be?
Unfortunately, Joon-Ho Bong’s The Host is a horror/comedy/action flick that seems to be trying too hard. The jokes are forced and far between, and at times the plot moves too slowly towards its predictable end.
Well, maybe I’m being a bit unfair! (Perhaps my being very tired when viewing it led to some bias!) Judge it for yourself, but maybe best to wait till it comes out on DVD! ;)
I give this one 2 out of 5.
Sarah Burton
