Fridae

If you are looking for good solid fun, this 'host' should make you feel right at home. Earlier this year, this monster movie surprised many movie pundits by being invited to premiere at the oh-so-serious Cannes Film Festival. "A sci-fi creature feature at a chi chi French festival?" some asked incredulously.

But as it turned out, The Host was just the kind of film that made cine-snobs question their assumptions. Blending several genres (slapstick comedy, horror, sci-fi, drama, political allegory) together into one witty, touching, frightening whole, it showed how talented director Bong Joon-ho was in being able to refine a B-grade genre into an A-grade movie. Bravo Bong!

The Host begins when a US army scientist dumps toxic chemicals into a Seoul River. Six years later, an enormous tadpole-like creature begins to wreak havoc on the beach, eating up sunbathers and kidnapping others. The family of one kidnapped girl (Ko A-sung) goes all out to hunt down the creature and the girl, which leads to several hilarious events and a sad, funny and wise conclusion.

The Host is destined to be a cult classic among genre fans. Indeed, it is so good, it puts recent creature features like Snakes on a Plane and Slither to shame. Watch this with popcorn and a lot of friends. You won't regret it.