The Host - Film, Movie - Trailer

Plot: The movie opens with an American military pathologist commanding a Korean assistant to dispose of formaldehyde down the drain.

The plot shifts to the present, focusing on a small family. Park Gang-du is a slow-witted man who runs a snack-bar with his father, Hee-bong. Hyun-seo is Gang-du's only daughter, a schoolgirl. Nam-joo is Gang-du's sister, and a national medalist archer. Nam-il is Gang-du's brother, an alcoholic who has not made much of himself since graduating from college.

Gang-du is sent to serve a customer and notices that a crowd has gathered along the edge of the Han River, pointing at something hanging off the Wonhyo Bridge. This turns out to be a large creature that drops into the water. The crowd throw food into the river, to see what will happen, but as the creature emerges, it attacks and devours people whole. Gang-du and an American man try to combat the creature. As Gang-du runs away from the monster, he sees Hyun-seo, recently emerged from the snack bar, unaware of the danger. Gang-du grabs her hand and tries to lead her to safety, but stumbles and grabs the hand of another girl instead. Realizing his error too late, he sees the monster grab Hyun-seo and drag her into the river.

The family grieves at the loss of the young girl. Nam-il blames Gang-du for Hyun-seo's death. Government representatives in biohazard suits arrive and demand to know who has had direct contact with the creature, to which Gang-du raises his hand. The family is dragged away to a hospital for quarantine. The Korean government announces that the monster is not only a direct risk, but also the host of a virus. While quarantined at the hospital, Gang-du receives a phone call from Hyun-seo, who is not dead, but trapped in a sewer. She is cut off as the cell phone battery runs out. No-one believes Gang-du except his family. They escape the hospital, determined to rescue Hyun-seo. In a confrontation with the creature, Hee-bong is killed. Gang-du is captured by soldiers, and Nam-il and Nam-joo separate.

Nam-il goes to a former college friend for help, and is able to trace Hyun-seo's phone call. He is betrayed and barely escapes capture. He manages to send a text message to Nam-joo with the information. Nam-joo meets the creature outside its lair, but she is knocked unconscious. Gang-du, trapped in the hospital, overhears that there is no virus, but the government is going through the motions anyway to save face (including attempting to extract Gang-du's brain to perform tests on it). After they take a sample of his brain tissue, he takes a hostage and escapes from the hospital.

Meanwhile, Hyun-seo survives in the sewer by hiding in a pipe, but she cannot escape. The creature drops the bodies of its victims nearby, saving them for later. Hyun-seo finds them dead or mortally wounded, except for one young orphan boy. She devises a plan to climb out of the sewer using the victims' clothes as a rope. The plan fails and the creature swallows the two children.

Gang-du arrives and realizes that his daughter is inside the beast. He chases it as it swims into the river. The three siblings converge on the monster, just as it is coming up on the riverbank where demonstrators are gathering to protest the use of Agent Yellow, a chemical that will be released by the government in order to combat the fictional virus. Chaos ensues as the creature comes on shore and is shot at. Agent Yellow is released, and it causes the creature to collapse temporarily. Gang-du manages to open its jaws and pull out the bodies of the two children. The creature then revives and tries to return to the river. Nam-il throws molotov cocktails at the creature, but none of them strike it. Then the homeless man who arrived with Nam-il pours gasoline on it and Nam-joo shoots a flaming arrow into its eye, setting it on fire. The creature runs towards the river, but Gang-du blocks its way, impaling it on a broken street sign. Gang-du tries to revive the children but only the orphan boy survives.

Genres: action, adventure, comedy, drama, fantasy

Director: Bong Joon-ho

Producer: Yong-Bae Choi

Written by Baek Chul-hyun, Bong Joon-ho

Starring: Song Kang-ho, Byeon Hee-bong, Park Hae-il, Bae Doona, Ko Ah-seong

Music by Byeong Woo Lee

Release date: July 27, 2006 (South Korea), November 10, 2006 (UK), March 9, 2007 (US)

Running time 119 min.

Language Korean

Budget: US$ 10,000,000

Worldwide Box Office Gross $88,183,897

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