“Host” is a movie about a group of friends that get together on a Zoom call, which takes place in the 2020 pandemic quarantined setting. Right away, the movie proves to be relevant and hits home right away. If someone hasn’t heard of Zoom by now, they’re off the grid and unaware that the world is buried in a pandemic world at the moment, let alone held a Zoom Happy Hour!
The purpose of the Zoom meeting in “Host” reveals the entire reason this movie exists and why it lives within the horror movie genre.
They’re gathering to perform a séance over a Zoom call.
And they thought it would be a fun night, right?
The run length of “Host” is only 56 minutes. Which might account for why it took me a little while to watch this movie. I was hesitant with such a short movie. However, this movie did not need another minute to get the point across. The Directors/Writers were supremely efficient within that 56 minutes.
The set-up was great and to the point. You get to learn about the characters enough to settle in with them. And when things start to go haywire (because who didn’t think a séance on a Zoom call wouldn’t go haywire?) it is fast paced, heart-racing, and extremely creepy! There was no need to go over an hour for this one to get under your skin.
Several features in the Zoom application were smartly used to the advantage of the scare factors, which were well placed throughout “Host”. The movie also didn’t rely solely on jump scare tactics. There’s a scene where one of the characters has to go into her attic because she’s hearing thumps and strange noises. At this point of the movie the characters are already on edge and starting to experience unnatural phenomena. And when she starts climbing the ladder to peak above the ledge (reminders of Paranormal Activity playing through my mind at this point!!) the creators of the movie use creepiness through silence and the unknown, and pure fear of the woman in the situation, to make the hairs stand up on my neck.
It is recorded as a found footage movie would be, but through the Zoom app windows, which I felt came across a differently than your typical handheld found footage movie, for some reason. This added to the newness of the movie, giving another reason to like it.
I really loved this movie. If I need a quick jump scare fix, I can rely on “Host” to come through and supply the need! I highly recommend it! After all, it won’t take long at all.
My Bloody O’ Graph ratings put Jumps and Body Count really high, while gore was really low as it tends to be in these types of movies. Originality, Disturbia, and Yon Beasty were just above middle of the road since a menacing evil presence taking victims is not anything new. However, the categories were rated above the middle because it had enough creativity and difference to pull it above others in its sub-genre.
Enjoy!
“Host”
Released: July 2020
Rating: NR
Director: Rob Savage
Writer: Gemma Hurley, Rob Savage
IMDB Rating: 6.7 out of 10
Metascore: 72 (out of 100)
Rotten Tomatoes: 100%
Free Streaming as of Blog posting: Shudder
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