The Article below was published in Vol. 136, Issue 7 of the Lake Forest College Stentor on April 2, 2021.
Sergio Bardesi-Texocotitla ’22
Staff Writer
Director Rob Savage’s horror film, Host (2020) has received rave reviews. Viewers can watch the movie on Shudder, a streaming platform specifically for horror movies and TV shows. According to Mary Beth McAndrews, writing for the review website Film School Rejects, Host was filmed entirely on Zoom. The movie made a splash. According to IMDB, the editor, producer, sound artists, and director of Host received numerous award nominations. Notably, the film won the Heartland International Film Festival’s Audience Choice award last year.
The premise of the story is something that should be somewhat familiar: a bored group of friends meets over Zoom to participate in a séance. Haley starts the Zoom meeting and invites her friends: Jemma, Caroline, Radina, Emma, and Teddy to join. Their reunion feels genuinely warm, as does the tension when Haley requests that everybody respect the medium who commences the séance session, Seylan Baxter. Gemma accidentally offends a demon that terrorizes the friend group for the rest of the film.
The conversation, fear, and distress these characters feel when confronted by the horrors committed manages to feel genuinely real. This is likely due to the fact that the main cast are all friends with each other in real life. There are several aspects that Savage was not able to directly control or manage, such as makeup, camera framing, and lighting. In an article he wrote for Talkhouse, Savage said that he taught the actors “basic in-camera tricks,” and that they would gather for viewings of horror movies via Zoom to learn the “techniques used to create tension.”
In spite of the fact that key elements were placed into the hands of the actors, the movie comes together exceptionally well. The blood and guts are kept to a minimum. While I was watching the movie, I could not question the “realness” of the effects because of the accompanying violence. As for how Savage portrays the demon, the SFX is somewhat lacking. I am the sort of person where after I know what the creature looks like, I do not get as scared anymore. I could hear the crunchy static of the Zoom meeting audio, which builds the tension beautifully as the next fright waits to strike. My trusty blue blanket came in handy when hiding from these demons.
Overall, I would think of Host as Paranormal Activity meets bored young adults stuck in social isolation. Students have become very familiar with Zoom meetings, and the emotional usefulness the software has had allowing families to reconnect during difficult times such as during the holiday seasons or birthdays without endangering the health of others is evident. The setting of this movie is extremely relatable.
Above all else, I really like how short it is: 56 minutes! This is terrific, especially for a busy student’s lifestyle (my textbooks won’t read themselves). As for another way of framing this movie, there is an idea of disrespect against worldviews that is repeatedly brought up. Jemma offended the spirits, causing the film to unfold. Haley (the only American) simply requested that her friends respect the spirits. A simple moral can be drawn from the story: respect everyone’s opinions.
However, one must be able to critically question and understand the opinions of everybody else. Jemma could have asked, “Why should I not disrespect the spirits? Oh, because I could offend them and make them angry? Ok, thank you.” Of course, this would not have made for a wonderfully horrific film that received a score of 100% from Rotten Tomatoes, and an A rating from me.
