Joon-ho Bong’s The Host is a testament to the multifaceted potential of the arts. By using a cross between a tadpole with a pituitary problem and John McTiernan’s Predator as his springboard, the director merges scathing satire with wry comedy, all amid a heartwarming familial tale, to produce nothing less than a film which would go on to become the highest grossing feature in South Korean history.
Underachiever Park Gang-du (Kang-ho Song) and his dysfunctional, motley crew family–a dedicated but tired father, Hie-bong (Hie-bong Byeon); prize-winning archer sister, Nam-joo (Du-na Bae); and drunken Ivy League brother, Nam-il (Hae-il Park)–are forced to come together when a man-eating aquatic mutation kidnaps his daughter, Hyun-seo (Ah-sung Ko).
By merely having Steve Buscemi at his beck and call (the actor’s name being the pseudonym for the monster while on set), Bong fashions a mocking indictment upon American foreign policy with The Host. After the film opens with a blatant biological hazard tyrannically enacted at the hands of an American, the consequence of which being the titular antagonist, the filmmaker goes on to satirize America’s involvement with Iraq. Shortly after our villain’s existence is reported worldwide, America refuses to assist though it is aware that it is the culpable party. When the United States finally does consent to help South Korea, is does so via a chemical weapon sardonically called “Agent Yellow,” which houses the capacity to kill, not only the fiend, but also any living organism within reach, including humans. Yet, it is the manner in which the politics of fear are portrayed and received that are the most condemning aspects of Bong’s tale. A virus is stated to be associated with the monster, though there is not evidence to support the claim and, in lieu of the fact that Gang-du is aware of the faux statistic, he nevertheless uses it to his advantage as he holds a nurse hostage using a vile of “tainted” blood as a weapon. Devilishly, the director’s most potent barb regarding the marketing of war takes place when, once the virus is proven to be a hoax, the United States holds a press conference in order to absolve them of any responsibility. This is justified in that the government has recently found that it had been issued “misinformation” on the matter (insert WMD here if you will). Thus, Bong gives us a monster created by Man (i.e. the United States), has the problem exacerbated by Man (the U.S. again by way of disassociative lethargy), before Man creates the easiest, but by no means best, solution to remedy the problem (the U.S.’s Vietnam answer, Agent Orange). Once it is discovered that the conditions under which the threat existed is largely fabricated and/or unconscionably unacknowledged, Man, er, the U.S., blames an unseen party instead of taking responsibility for its actions. It is no wonder that South Korea’s nemesis, its northern neighbor, gladly permitted the film to be shown.
Yet, wisely, Bong refuses to permit his politics to permeate and saturate his picture. By sprinkling his feature with wry moments of pitch black, absurdist comedy in the form of a narcoleptic anti-hero, the gallant rescue of the wrong maiden, and the most mournful funeral this side of Billy Wilder’s Sunset Blvd., he creates a segue to a heartwarming tale which subsequently aggregates into the equivalent of Jonathan Dayton’s Little Miss Sunshine meets Ishirô Honda’s Godzilla. Masterfully, as our conglomerate cast of mismatched misfits finds a common cause by which to overcome their petty differences, Bong nevertheless remains true to the premise of his story as two characters unrepentantly perish, figures who, if set in Hollywood would–however forced and artificially–prevail to the final frame in order to appease audience expectation. Instead, as logic naturalistically ensues thereby allowing narrative plausibility to remain intact, Bong reminds us that we can never have our cake and eat it too. As such, we are left to contend with either mourning the loss of our dessert as we revel in its taste or stare lovingly as we admire the hues of the icing while begrudgingly conjecturing how such might melt upon our lips.
And these are only few reasons why The Host is so rewarding and enjoyable. Its refreshing cinematic honestly has a charm onto itself as Bong further aides in developing the personality of his film by way of violating a handful of rules. Characters stare directly into the camera as our creature is premiered early, in full view, and with the assistance of broad daylight no less. Yet, Bong does not engage in celluloid iconoclasm for the sake of rebelliousness par rebelliousness. Instead, he does so in order to propel his tale forward. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that Orphanage’s pristine special effects makes the effort of sustaining disbelief that much easier as we watch our beast dance around the screen anymore than Bong’s presence of mind keeps his viewers visually appeased. For example, when a character is seen brandishing a sign as he charges his enemy, unlike most directors who would shoot the scene head-on in hopes of capturing the figure’s fury (and, for that exact reason–the frequency of directorial choice in such instances distilling the now stereotypical tension), the filmmaker cuts behind a vehicle as we watch the sign bob frantically in and out of view.
Filmed in the actual sewers of South Korea after the cast had been inoculated against tapeworms which are prevalent in the area, The Host provides as many analogous cinematic thrills as it does thought-provoking ideas. It is no surprise that Joon-ho Bong’s feature shattered Box Office records in his native land as the film, rightfully, continues to fill the contented eyes of viewers worldwide. And who said monster flicks were dead and buried?
Conversation piece: The opening scene is–dauntingly–based on a true event. In February of 2000 at a United States military outpost in Seoul, one McFarland ordered–to the vocalized chagrin of a subordinate–to have formaldehyde disposed of via the local sewer system which, as in the film, drains into the Han. When the Korean government attempted to prosecute, the US refused to release McFarland. The American was convicted in absentia.
-Egregious Gurnow
This film provided by Cape Video, the premier supplier of hard-to-find and out-of-print horror films. Check out their website at http://www.capevideoonline.com.
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