In the aftermath of last year’s Cannes, the New York Times proclaimed that it had found one of the best films of 2006 — yet it was a movie that wasn’t even in one of that film festival’s official competition categories. “The Host” had only participated in the Directors Fortnight series last May; nevertheless, it garnered universal praise from the international press after its screenings in France. And when the film opened in South Korea in July — under the title “Goemul,” the Korean word for “creature” — it broke box-office records, and it rightfully allowed Bong Joon-ho to stake his claim as one of the country’s most compelling storytellers.

For his third film, the director behind the black comedy “Barking Dogs Never Bite” and the mystery thriller “Memories of Murder” demonstrated yet again that he could take on and subvert different genre formulas to produce great artistic works of cinema. “The Host” is the story of a family’s deadly struggle against a monster that lives in the Han River, which cuts through Seoul. Gang-du, who’s a bit of a dimwit in his 40s, lives with his father, brother, sister and beautiful daughter Hyun-seo, and works on the banks of the Han with his father to support his family, if he’s not dozing off. When, one peaceful afternoon, a creature emerges from the river and abducts Hyun-seo, a moving family drama unfolds as Gang-du and his family attempt to rescue her.

KoreAm interviewed the director in January, a few months before “The Host” gets a limited release here in the United States from Magnolia Pictures, starting March 9.

 

 

 

The monster in “The Host” is a direct product of chemical waste dumped into the Han River by the U.S. military. Also, the South Korean government is helpless in dealing with the creature. And along with the “Yellow Agent” virus scare, I assume you are raising political issues through these details.

There is certainly an intention to satirize the U.S.; however, I refuse to categorize the movie as simply anti-American. The way the virus is handled by the Americans and the turmoil caused by the “Yellow Agent” are clearly utilized for satirical effect, a common practice in movies or literature. In fact, political criticism is such a common ingredient in monster movies that it has almost become a tradition of the genre. Also, I didn’t mean to criticize only America, but also Korea. Dysfunctional government is an issue not only in Korea, but everywhere. In the movie, the government and the social system are unable to protect their own citizens, like Gang-du’s family. I think everyone is able to empathize with the powerless, and they can identify with “The Host” as if they are witnessing their own story. Have you ever felt like you weren’t being protected by your government when you were in danger? Neither the state nor the government can save the weak. At the same time, “The Host” is pure entertainment — an exciting movie, family versus monster.