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seichanBrowsing safe sites at work *ssshhh*, I saw that The NYT had a positive review of the The Host, a kmovie.
Admittedly, this has been sitting on my harddrive for at least a month and a half. I didn't realize it was getting a US release. From the initial blurb, it sounded like a bad Godzilla-like movie; my reason for completely forgetting about it. In actuality, it's not really a scary sci-fi film nor is it a comedy. It's takes small pieces of both genres and grinds some politics and drama into it.
In a short rundown of the plot, a mutant fish comes out of the river and starts eating people. A loser-type man and his slightly dysfunctional family try to find his daughter who had been captured by the monster and is lost in its lair.
It's not a particularly scary movie, but it also doesn't hold back on its violence. Hm, I really don't recall any truly gruesome scenes though. The movie's charm is how it casually and obviously pokes fun at family incompetence, governmental incompetence, the laxness of the news media, cultural inadequecies, and the *coughidiocycough* of Americans. The wiki entry has a rundown on a few of the current events it smacks. The NYT referred to its environmental issues, but the movie doesn't really try to resolve that area outside of blaming the Americans.
"The Host" does have a small slow spot in the middle, but is definitely worth checking out. It has a great cast, cute background music, and great camera shots. The fish monster was nicely made. It was unexpected at how it moved. I am still undecided over how it ended. If it went the way I wanted, I don't think I would've liked it.
~8/10 rating~
I didn't really get why the movie is called The Host. The mutant fish wasn't a parasite nor did the movie suggest anything remotely like something taking on the role of a host; I guess you can stretch the second interpretation. 괴물 simply translates into monster or something mysterious like an apparition. My guess is that the english translator didn't watch the movie (it seems to happen all the time). The director, Bong Joon-ho, also made "Barking Dogs Never Bite" which I highly recommend.
Admittedly, this has been sitting on my harddrive for at least a month and a half. I didn't realize it was getting a US release. From the initial blurb, it sounded like a bad Godzilla-like movie; my reason for completely forgetting about it. In actuality, it's not really a scary sci-fi film nor is it a comedy. It's takes small pieces of both genres and grinds some politics and drama into it.
In a short rundown of the plot, a mutant fish comes out of the river and starts eating people. A loser-type man and his slightly dysfunctional family try to find his daughter who had been captured by the monster and is lost in its lair.
It's not a particularly scary movie, but it also doesn't hold back on its violence. Hm, I really don't recall any truly gruesome scenes though. The movie's charm is how it casually and obviously pokes fun at family incompetence, governmental incompetence, the laxness of the news media, cultural inadequecies, and the *coughidiocycough* of Americans. The wiki entry has a rundown on a few of the current events it smacks. The NYT referred to its environmental issues, but the movie doesn't really try to resolve that area outside of blaming the Americans.
"The Host" does have a small slow spot in the middle, but is definitely worth checking out. It has a great cast, cute background music, and great camera shots. The fish monster was nicely made. It was unexpected at how it moved. I am still undecided over how it ended. If it went the way I wanted, I don't think I would've liked it.
~8/10 rating~
I didn't really get why the movie is called The Host. The mutant fish wasn't a parasite nor did the movie suggest anything remotely like something taking on the role of a host; I guess you can stretch the second interpretation. 괴물 simply translates into monster or something mysterious like an apparition. My guess is that the english translator didn't watch the movie (it seems to happen all the time). The director, Bong Joon-ho, also made "Barking Dogs Never Bite" which I highly recommend.
