Proving how much of the "Twilight" phenomenon was lightning in a bottle, "Twilight" scribe Stephanie Meyer's sci-fi novel, "The Host" received not only a critical lashing from reviewers but a failure at the box office despite being helmed by acclaimed Science Fiction director Andrew Niccol.
"The Host" essentially plays out like a lighter version of "Invasion of the Body Snatchers." Saoirse Ronan stars as Melanie Stryder, a teenager on the run in a near-future in which human society has been dominated by a race of alien parasites called "Souls."
The Souls have been implanted within human bodies, dominating their hosts in order to run something of a utopian society in which human free will and emotion is suppressed. Melanie, implanted with a soul referred to as Wanderer, shares her body with the invader, whom holds a sympathetic view towards snuffing out human will. This leads her to aid Melanie's human resistance and even fall in love with another member, something that draws her into conflict with her host and her love life before possession.
The Souls have been implanted within human bodies, dominating their hosts in order to run something of a utopian society in which human free will and emotion is suppressed. Melanie, implanted with a soul referred to as Wanderer, shares her body with the invader, whom holds a sympathetic view towards snuffing out human will. This leads her to aid Melanie's human resistance and even fall in love with another member, something that draws her into conflict with her host and her love life before possession.
What went Right
The major positive that "The Host" has in its favor is a far more cerebral tone than its peers.
It may be ultimately far from smart or even particularly thought provoking but I have to give the film an A for effort in forgoing cheap fantasy effect tactics in favor of focused character drama in a setting that could potentially unveil more about the human condition than we would find otherwise. Despite the inability to follow through with better storytelling, "The Host" sets itself up in traditional sci-fi fashion and doesn't deviate throughout its entire run time.
In a similar vein, the concept of Melanie and Wanderer locked in mental argument was a sound concept in theory. The tension of figuring out what course of action to take when you are of 2 minds on every topic as well as Melanie's loved ones desire to get her back could have been well compounded by the inner conflict of who will win control of the body in the end.
It may be ultimately far from smart or even particularly thought provoking but I have to give the film an A for effort in forgoing cheap fantasy effect tactics in favor of focused character drama in a setting that could potentially unveil more about the human condition than we would find otherwise. Despite the inability to follow through with better storytelling, "The Host" sets itself up in traditional sci-fi fashion and doesn't deviate throughout its entire run time.
In a similar vein, the concept of Melanie and Wanderer locked in mental argument was a sound concept in theory. The tension of figuring out what course of action to take when you are of 2 minds on every topic as well as Melanie's loved ones desire to get her back could have been well compounded by the inner conflict of who will win control of the body in the end.
What went Wrong
Unlike its other fellow train wrecks, "The Host" only has one major problem at the heart of its design. It is dreadfully boring.
While all of its positives are proven strong ideas that are well executed in better cinema, "The Host" lacks any of the dynamics that makes films like "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" or "The Thing" work.
While the cast is certainly a massive step up from "City of Bones" or "Vampire Academy," the characters are still rather limply written and while the Niccol's history of getting decent performances out of actors helps, it doesn't change the feeling of pervasive lifelessness instilled within almost every second of the film. I don't know if Meyer's book is at fault or if Niccol's screenplay stripped out better ideas but the movie just doesn't do very much to justify a roughly 2 hour run time, which shouldn't be very difficult to fill out.
Ronan's veteran acting ability appreciated and doesn't go unnoticed. Unfortunately both her and Wanderer's personalities and love interests lack any particularly fascinating or endearing character traits to make their admittedly unique love triangle worth seeing through to the end.
"The Host" finds itself at something of a crossroad at the end of the day. Going into the territory of the more sophisticated science fiction and horror concepts that the story deals with means being willing to drop the more immature notions and tropes expected of a less discerning audience after some sort of clear cut instant gratification in order to look at a bigger picture that comments on the state of society. Instead, the film decides to take the trappings of better stories before it while clinging to the weakest element of its Young Adult style from a storytelling perspective, resulting in a product that feels watered down and bloated with the worst aspects of both worlds.
The only thing that managed to make me even remotely perk up were any sequence involving Melanie berating Wanderer from within her mind for her actions. Ronan's disembodied voice berating the events playing out on screen like a vocal female teenage fanatic screaming at horror movie victims walking into their impending doom is unintentionally hilarious and provided me with the few fleeting moments that kept me awake in an otherwise dry, dull and forgettable flick.
While all of its positives are proven strong ideas that are well executed in better cinema, "The Host" lacks any of the dynamics that makes films like "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" or "The Thing" work.
While the cast is certainly a massive step up from "City of Bones" or "Vampire Academy," the characters are still rather limply written and while the Niccol's history of getting decent performances out of actors helps, it doesn't change the feeling of pervasive lifelessness instilled within almost every second of the film. I don't know if Meyer's book is at fault or if Niccol's screenplay stripped out better ideas but the movie just doesn't do very much to justify a roughly 2 hour run time, which shouldn't be very difficult to fill out.
Ronan's veteran acting ability appreciated and doesn't go unnoticed. Unfortunately both her and Wanderer's personalities and love interests lack any particularly fascinating or endearing character traits to make their admittedly unique love triangle worth seeing through to the end.
"The Host" finds itself at something of a crossroad at the end of the day. Going into the territory of the more sophisticated science fiction and horror concepts that the story deals with means being willing to drop the more immature notions and tropes expected of a less discerning audience after some sort of clear cut instant gratification in order to look at a bigger picture that comments on the state of society. Instead, the film decides to take the trappings of better stories before it while clinging to the weakest element of its Young Adult style from a storytelling perspective, resulting in a product that feels watered down and bloated with the worst aspects of both worlds.
The only thing that managed to make me even remotely perk up were any sequence involving Melanie berating Wanderer from within her mind for her actions. Ronan's disembodied voice berating the events playing out on screen like a vocal female teenage fanatic screaming at horror movie victims walking into their impending doom is unintentionally hilarious and provided me with the few fleeting moments that kept me awake in an otherwise dry, dull and forgettable flick.
Why did it fail
While it stands to reason that a Stephanie Meyer property would have more luck capturing the "magic" of a Stephanie Meyer property's popularity, watching this film sheds quite a bit of light on why it may not have been picked up for continuation, regardless of Meyer's own status regarding the writing of a sequel to the novel.
Regardless of who is at fault for the terrible dialogue and painfully dry and overly simplistic plot, I can't help but wonder if the dissonance between storytelling styles wasn't picked up on by the "Twilight" audience. The marketing wasn't exactly in full effect for non-fans of YA stories so if the YA audience themselves wasn't their to give it the support that it was fully counting on, it is far from surprising why this one barely even managed to break even.
It would seem that some successes just can't be replicated, even by their architects.
Regardless of who is at fault for the terrible dialogue and painfully dry and overly simplistic plot, I can't help but wonder if the dissonance between storytelling styles wasn't picked up on by the "Twilight" audience. The marketing wasn't exactly in full effect for non-fans of YA stories so if the YA audience themselves wasn't their to give it the support that it was fully counting on, it is far from surprising why this one barely even managed to break even.
It would seem that some successes just can't be replicated, even by their architects.
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