The Host (DVD, 2007, 2-Disc Collector's Edition)

Big Monsters are Hugh in Asia.
I had low expectations of this one but had heard some good things about it so I said why not? It is a silly concept as most movies like this are but
I have to say I enjoyed myself. Is great movie?, no not really. Is it worth the time to see. Yes it is. If you like Big Monsters in a highly stylized film this may the one for you.

Way Better than I expected to say the least. The funniest things about this film is having the subtitles on and watching how very different the English Dubbing is from the Subtitling! The movie ranked right up there with the best terrors from the deep movies!!

Bong Joon-ho's "The Host" is the best kind of genre film; a movie that delivers the conventions audiences expect from a horror flick., while also offering surprising new variations on the formula.
The plot resembles any number of Environmental Monster Movies; like "Gojira" or Roger Corman's "Attack of the Crab Monsters", in which human carelessness with toxic chemicals leads to the formation of destructive creatures.
In "The Host", a U.S. Military Officer (veteran character actor Scott Wilson) orders an underling to dump hazardous waste down a drain that leads to a river in Korea; Years later, a Lethal Destructive Monster emerges from the river and wreaks havoc.
The premise promises a lot of old-fashioned sci-fi/horror kitsch; and Bong does not disappoint in the least !! Loaded with delightful images of the creature rampaging on land and in the water as dozens of screaming extras flee; and these scenes will bring a smile to the face of anyone with fond memories of Japanese Monster Movies or Steven Spielberg's "Jaws", (a key influence on Bong's film).
Like Spielberg, Bong seems never to make a wrong choice in terms of editing or camera placement — every action sequence is timed for maximum impact, and the movie contains big scares. It's a very different kind of horror filmmaking from what one finds in movies like the "Saw" series and "Hostel".
Bong doesn't skimp on the scares, but the movie doesn't have any truly 'nasty moments'. It's scary, yet you don't finish the feature shaken and depressed; rather energized and fulfilled (given the extent of visuaized stimulation in special-effects and storytelling premise).
While Bong provides all the expected pleasures of a movie in this genre, what makes "The Host" special is its completely unexpected emotional resonance. The film also focuses on a dysfunctional family; troubled long before one of its members — a young girl — is kidnapped by the creature.
After the child is taken, the tensions in her family reach a boiling point as the characters try to assign blame for the tragedy before eventually joining forces to try and save the girl's life. The scenes of domestic strife are perfectly balanced with the supernatural sequences so that each complements the other - the family arguments are given more intensity because of the high physical stakes involved, and the action set pieces are more exciting because of the complex and compelling characters.
The result is an odd, but highly-effective cross between "Jaws" and "The Family Stone", though to imply that Bong is doing nothing more than combining elements from other films would be inaccurate — he assimilates his influences but doesn't imitate them. And the sincerity of his characterizations gives "The Host" a specific sensibility that distinguishes it from its predecessors; it's cheerfully entertaining; but its emotional pull gives it an appeal for audiences who would normally steer clear of movies about rampaging sea beasts. Bong's love of filmmaking is as obvious and infectious as his love of humanity, and his stylish and entertaining movie is irresistible.

This is a guaranteed hit. Cannot fail you !! SEE THIS !!

One of the best monster flicks I've ever seen... this ranks up there with Cloverfield and Jaws...

Definitely worth watching!

Little Miss Sunshine meets Cloverfield. This movie is part family drama/part monster movie and those two genres surprisingly compliment each other here. Extra cool points for the rather unique monster, which looks like the offspring of the Cloverfield monster and the monster from Tremors.

Kinda of scary, more shock value than anything else. Acting was ok. Generally just a fun time romp with a monster.

When watching this movie, i thought it would just be boring after watching the first few minutes of the movie but i was wrong. After seeing the monster hanging from the bridge i got a sense that this might be interesting. Then it starts attacking people at the park and now it suddenly turned interesting! A must see movie for all movie fans. Great acting sorta but the subtitles is what you need to understand because this movie is not primarily spoken in English. Very terrific special effects for the monster.

The Host is billed as a monster film, and it is certainly that. It would be hard to find a more disgusting, slithery, heartless creature than the one which lurks here. However, the great news for everyone is that The Host is also a clever comedy and a poignant, even uplifting, human drama. How can this happen? You have to see the film to find out; it's too hard to explain...

this had to be one of the worst movies I've watched this year poor story bad actors and a total waste of money let the americans make the movies