Host (Rob Savage, 2020)

The best thing to come out of lockdown

My absolute favorite film of 2020, Host is both the perfect product and time capsule of a unique moment in our shared history when all the world was on lockdown due to the global Covid pandemic.

And while there might have been a lot of “pandemic movies” that eventually found their way on to our screens, none had a shred of the creativity or sly inventiveness that Host oozes with abandon.

The movie really did capture lightning in a bottle, and it seems the people responsible were acutely aware of that. The film was rapidly shot and distributed within a matter of weeks in order to ensure that it was still contemporary and relevant. On that front, both the good and bad news is mission accomplished.

The story is strikingly simple: a group of friends, unable to meet in person due to the UK’s strict lockdown protocols instead have regular virtual happy hours. On this occasion, they’re organized for a medium to join them so they can conduct a séance over Zoom. Because why not?

Unfortunately for them — but happily for us — something inevitably goes wrong, some great evil from the beyond is unleashed, and all each of them can do is watch in terror as their friends are first horribly haunted then brutally slaughtered in quick succession.

Host has a remarkably uncomplicated plot, told in a concise running time (under an hour, to replicate the length of an actual Zoom call), perfectly executed.

It seems relevant at this point to detail the marketing myth-spinning that surrounded the film’s release. Audiences were led to believe that Host was simply the surprisingly watchable outcome of a group of friends deciding to cobble together a feature film when all the world shut down and they were temporarily excused from having to go into the office every day.

While there’s for sure a kernel of truth in that, it neglects to mention that this group of friends were already film-making professionals, and that they had a budget of $100,000 to play with.

Regardless of whether or not you’re aware of all that prior to watching the film for the first time, it’s inarguable that the effects employed are impressive. Even more so considering that many of them were executed by the actors themselves in isolation in their own homes.

It really is a solidly impressive piece of filmmaking all round.

And let’s give the actors the credit they absolutely deserve here; each of them turns in a lived-in performance that feels incredibly authentic and well-rounded, despite the fact we actually know very little about these characters. But we know enough. And each one feels real, distinct, and likable.

Does it hold up now that Covid is a few years hence? Absolutely. Although Covid is heavily present throughout the film — from being baked into its very concept to Jemma donning a mask before fleeing her flat — the film transcends the moment it portrays.

Essentially, Host now serves as a period piece and, unlike many of the other pandemic movies we were subjected to, it remains an entertainingly wild ride. Future generations can get a glimpse of what life was like mid-2020 but not dwell on it and instead enjoy getting their spook on and just having fun.