I guess there are reasons why I found this latest Stephanie Meyers release to be a sort of mixture between Gattaca and The Matrix. Firstly, let’s start with acclaimed Writer/Director, Andrew Niccol. This New Zealand native’s resume reads of human perfection flicks such as “The Truman Show,” “Gattaca” and “S1m0ne,” just to name a few. This certainly explains the profound underlying theme of “The Host.” Secondly Meyers, whom you may have come to know as the mastermind behind the “Twilight” saga – Breaking Dawn part 2, has gone on record stating that Niccol’s 1997 “Gattaca” was her favorite sci-fi movie because she loved that “it’s not about gadgets and lasers and fighting robots,” but “It’s about humanity, not how cool a space ship can be designed in CGI.” As she explained in the film’s production notes. With all that said, one can expect to be swept away in a futuristic world not unlike that of aliens vs. mankind and mankind’s relentless pursuit of perfection in a sorta’ “Twilight-saga” love triangle sorta’ way. Consequently, everything about this film feels too familiar to the point that it is at risk of boring audiences to tears (which it doesn’t necessarily do).
On the other hand, casting was sorta’ interesting with Saoirse Ronan (Hanna – 2011) [pronounced Seer-sha] playing the lead role as one of remaining human-beings leading the rebellion against alien occupiers. I can’t say I found her to be a perfect fit, but her talent really shows through, having to play somewhat of a cross-bred/hybrid being with two coexisting mindsets. Her talent allowed her to play the role quite well, but she probably wouldn’t have been my first choice for the part, considering the part seems to be more of a Milla Jovovitch, type. READ FULL THE HOST REVIEW >>