Tales From The River Bank (Gwoemul (DVD))

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Product:	Gwoemul (DVD)
Date:	16/01/07 (141 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Good effects, some stylish scenes, nicely Anti-American

Disadvantages: It's absolutely mad

In a US military base, somewhere in South Korea, somebody is about to make a big mistake. Gallons and gallons of formaldehyde are to literally be poured down the drain. When a laboratory technician points out the implications of this on the environment, his pleas are ignored and the foul liquid is soon all gone.

Years later, local fishermen in the Han River spot something strange in the water; a curiously deformed creature. In disgust they discard the revolting animal and carry on with their fishing.

To the present day, where a family resides next to the Han River, making a cursory living from drinks and snacks sold to holiday makers and local people. When a disturbance alerts Kang-du to the riverside, he watches in curiosity as an enormous, lizard-like creature drops from the road bridge and swims across the river. But his curiosity soon turns to horror when said creature climbs out of the river and starts chasing and killing anyone it can reach. As the crowds flee, his young daughter Hyun-Seo emerges from the family’s trailer, unaware of the imminent danger. Grabbing the child’s hand, he urges her to run for her life, but as he looks down at the small child’s hand he realises that he has grabbed the wrong child. His last image of his daughter is one of terror, as the monster’s enormous tail wraps round the child’s body, lifting her into the air before plunging back into the river to an unknown fate.

In spite of the authorities’ insistence that the young girl has perished, Kang-du refuses to accept that his daughter has died, and when he receives a garbled mobile phone call from his daughter, he realises that she must still be alive. United with his brother, his sister and his father, the family embark on an emergency mission to rescue Hyun-Seo from the river mutant.

The Host (Gwoemul) was released in cinemas late in 2006, but was pretty difficult to pin down at your average multiplex due largely, I should imagine, to the native Korean language and need for subtitles. I managed to locate a screening at an independent cinema and after rave reviews from virtually everyone on the planet, I expected something great.

What I actually got was quite the most curious film I’ve seen for a long time and one which, I’m afraid to say, overall just didn’t do it for me. I think I must have missed something. “Like a cross between Jaws, Jurassic Park and Godzilla” I was told. Hmm. I’m not so sure.

We’ll start with the good. The film is competently made, with special effects support from the same team who worked on Lord of the Rings. The monster / beastie looks authentic enough, with some fairly nifty moves and in a bid to avoid “cop out” criticism, the creators make the brave step to show him extensively in daylight, where CGI limitations threaten to be exposed. We’re never quite sure exactly what he is supposed to be, but in summary he looks rather like a giant, mutated tadpole with several jaws, hideous eyes and a penchant for human flesh. Nice.

The plot is, at its heart, fairly interesting. The sinister opening scenes of the film betray a darker heart (never truly exposed, it has to be said) but the genuine adventure of the lead family makes for fairly entertaining viewing, particularly as the characters are all rather weird and wonderful. The anti-American sentiment is a stark contrast to most modern films, and is littered throughout the film without an ounce of subtlety. The Americans are responsible for the initial pollution scandal (apparently based on truth); an American citizen subsequently rushes in to try and save everyone (to no avail); the Americans then decide to muscle in on the South Koreans’ efforts to neutralise the bad guy before finally being exposed as being up to no good. It’s all depressingly realistic, but nicely told in a non-hysterical manner. In spite of the film’s horror tag, it’s a black comedy horror at best with many mirthful moments offset by some slightly nastier bits where people get eaten. The contrast between Eastern and Western humour makes for interesting viewing, with a bizarre scene of the Hyun-Seo’s family grieving (and subsequently fighting) hysterically over the loss of their little one.

The director also shows flair and character. There are some wonderful scenes in this film. The monster’s initial assault on the public is gruesome but exciting and has an authentic feel to it that convinces you that what you are watching is real. The climax of these scenes (Hyun-Seo’s abduction) is hugely atmospheric, filmed in slow motion as we watch powerless to see her caught up in the monster’s tail. Most memorabe are the film’s closing scenes as our heroes face off against the bad guy for the last time, particularly as Kan-du’s sister puts her archery skills to good use. The cast members are all convincing enough in the parts, although I certainly wouldn’t go as far as to say likeable, apart from Ah-Sung Ko’s delightful portrayal of the young girl Hyun-Seo.

My main problem with The Host, however, is that it’s just a bit too mad. I wondered at times if the director was on drugs. The initial monster scenes are fairly conventional in a “monster / disaster” movie kind of way, but the film quickly loses track in a berserk fashion. Initially alerted to the monster’s presence as an environmental disaster, the authorities believe that the creature is carrying some kind of virus and round up anyone who has had contact with the creature in a militaristic fashion. It’s all done in a very tongue-in-cheek manner, from the outset. The first man on the scene slips over and then struggles to maintain any kind of presence in front of his public. Kang-du and his family engage in a bizarre fist fight on the floor for what seems like forever and then proceed to convince everyone in the hospital that they’re completely mad. An escape comes next, followed by one strange event after another. A weird, conspiracy theory idea is subsequently introduced, featuring a scary, boss-eyed American scientist, shortly after which Kang-du is lobotomised, whilst his brother and sister are in various predicaments on their way to meet Hyun-Seo. A political rally follows, as the Americans threaten to gas the entire district and then Kang-du finally goes on the run in his hospital night gown. Hyun-Seo meanwhile…. well, that would be telling.

It’s all completely and utterly mad and I found that it just overwhelmed me, partly because I was taken by surprise. What started out as a gripping, conventional monster movie became so much more. With each weird and wacky scene, the viewer would find himself lured into a strange sense of security before the action switched back to the monster, often in a malevolent or unpleasant fashion. The finished product is an unsettling rollercoaster of ups and downs; from slapstick comedy straight through to grisly horror and right back again.

Many of the characters are also intensely irritating (intentionally so, in most cases). Kang-ho seems to suffer from narcolepsy (or should that be laziness) and often falls asleep. With his shock of silly died, blonde hair, he is the film’s central buffoon and he wears thin, very quickly. His father isn’t much better and his brother and sister just seem completely random, with the latter being a medal-winning archer. Whuh?

Joon-ho Bong’s directorial style is to be admired. The Host is certainly a brave film and nothing like anything that Hollywood would ever produce. For me, however, the contrast between East and West was just a bit too much and I found myself longing for some conventional gung-ho shooting and day-saving. Nonetheless, the more discerning movie-goer should almost certainly check this one out in person as it seems quite certain that he / she will love it. I seem to be the only person in the world who didn’t. Harrumph

Summary: Bizarre and disappointing - well, at least that's what I think anyway