User Reviews

This was so much better than I expected.

It's low budget, made under restrictions and all this did for the movie was breed creativity. More films should try it. I think this movie is pretty creepy. When I was watching it I was pretty on edge. I also enjoyed that is was so short, the filmmakers had an idea and made it, it didn't matter to them that it wasn't over the hour and a half mark, they didn't pad it out so the movie is paced so well.

I saw a trailer for this appearing on the IMDB homepage and I told my wife to look it up! Looks good! The movie was very in the moment as far as the quarantine, and a lot of people can find that relatable. Plenty of jump scares and I was on the edge of my seat! Very entertaining and it kept my interest. The acting looked intense and real. These people looked terrified! Getting down to the point, I thought this movie was great and It's not even an hour, so even If you're a hater and don't like it, it wasn't much time lost. Peace.

Rob Savage's 'Host' plays out like the greatest hits of found footage. It takes the scariest elements of genre favorites like 'The Blair Witch Project' (1999) and 'Paranormal Activity' (2007) and delivers a shock every few minutes. It is edited, crafted, and scripted well. The relaxed, naturalistic performances from the actors immediately create a sense of believability that helps when things start getting scary. A deceptively simple yet downright terrifying thrill ride.

I'm no great fan of horror, but I had seen several of the director's short films, including the 2 minute video that led to this one, so I got a trial on the horror channel just to watch this. I've also only used Zoom once, and rarely use video during conference calls, so in that sense I am not quite target audience for this. Despite this it worked very well. The plot sees a group of friends all stuck in their various homes, using Zoom to get together and do a virtual séance for a bit of fun. Sticking with the Zoom format in a sort of 'found-footage' approach for the modern age, it follows the séance as it 'goes wrong'.

At a tight 60 minutes running time, the film doesn't waste a lot of time, but opens nicely so that we are in familiar territory - the technical issues, the glitches, the slightly forced air of 'fun', the people who put in too much effort, and the people who are showing off a bit too obviously. Whether you find that engaging or annoying, it is certainly convincing. From here we move into the bangs and odd occurrences, and things escalate quickly. The cast do a lot of good work in convincing of their fear - and given that mostly we are focused on faces looking at screens, it is an important factor. Mostly the scares are jump scares, but the consistency of them does create its own mood and tension. It is very much a genre piece, with Blair Witch, (Rec.), and endless other horrors in its construct - rather than seem derivative though, it manages to feel like it is drawing on the past to inform the current; it may not date well, but certainly for the current time the use of lockdown, isolations, Zoom chats etc, it does fit and works well.

Best watched like you're on the call - on a laptop in a darkened room.

First of all, the reviewer who stated this movie is formulaic needs to learn the definition. I know what they are trying to say, but that isn't the correct word.

I enjoyed this movie, it was intense without music or an abundance of sound effects and the acting was very good.

It's pretty well done but a really shallow movie.

The Zoom angle adds a bit of freshness, but it's not as good as the first Unfriended.

lots of loud noises, shaky camera's and essentially a long series of jump scares knitted together - even at 60 mins it felt a bit too long

Inane chat, but fairly natural conversations, zero story, but what it does, it does well. Just don't come looking for something engaging - it's a ghostrain on film.

I strongly believe the people who didn't get scared while watching this either lack empathy, or like my girlfriend were not really following and played with their phones throughout the movie.

This project proves low budget does not equal a bad movie. If you pay attention and try to put yourself in the characters' positions and listen to all the little noises and stuff you're in for a ride.

I rate movies based on how they make me feel, not on how much they cost to produce or what other people are saying about it. People involved in the production of this movie seem to really understand their target audience. Absolutely terrifying. Perfect for Halloween.

Six friends gather online for a seance during lockdown, but end up sending out the wrong invitation.

Pretty much the same set up as Unfriended, using the tried and failed idea of getting the characters to sit around and face each other ... hang on - the cheesiest device in horror just found its perfect scenario!

This is pretty good. With no opportunity for a wide shot of a car travelling on a country road, the director just gets down to business with the characters. The performances are fine, given there's so little back story or history to work with. The process of going through the looking glass is gradual, although the pace does pick up about half way through, and it all fits nicely into the run time.

Some decent frights, but nothing original, and the mythos is fuzzy as a couple of kills happen outside the circle of the seance. Also, the title suggests a particular plot device on the Zoom platform, but I don't think that was followed through. A big problem with jump scares is that they need good sound design, but in this format and these circumstances it's not available. Plus the only music is internal, which really limits the horror effect.

In the end, I was hoping for a reveal to cause a sharp intake of breath, like in Rec or Blair Witch, but no luck.

Still, it's an improvement on Unfriended, which also had a neat concept but was way too busy with onscreen information and stuffed with gurning performances. But that was five years ago, and we have yet to see the computer screen deliver the same intelligence as the cameras in Blair Witch.

Overall: One small step on horror's road to hell.

An atmospheric chiller with believable natural characters that draw you in to their joint Zoom séance. The movies low budget was rendered irrelevant due to the good timing and imagination of the director. However it's weakness was the lack of narrative and short running time; the film was more an episode in a horror TV show and so should be watched in that light to enjoy an hour's creepiness.

It's unfortunately a little bit dull until the last 20 minutes. Things kick into gear with a particularly well-executed (and properly set up!) jump scare, and then escalate accordingly.

Even then, the finale isn't that much more impressive than the final act in your average paranormal horror movie, but the ZOOM stuff does become a bit more than a gimmick at that point, with some clever ways to deliver scares in a slightly new way.

Until then though, it's a bit dull, with characters + a set up and middle third that feel like a pretty standard horror movie.

Still, it delivers some pretty decent spoopiness in just under an hour, so I'd say it's worth a watch for horror fans.

I simply can't fathom all the love for this movie. It's not AWFUL. The banter between friends is kind of fun. And the idea is okay. But friends dragging laptops around their homes (even the apartments are bigger than my little house) while checking on strange noises goes beyond suspension of disbelief. And there's no build to the story (although granted,, they didn't have time for one). There's a jump scare or two, and it goes fast enough with the short run time, but...I just don't get these 10-star reviews. I feel like they watched one of the other movies called Host that fill up the results box on IMDB when I type a search in.

Ans yes,yes,yes...nobody carries laptops around etc.etc.etc...For me the important thing is,that this film made me feel at least something scary)))after watching horrors for the last 30 years,not too many films can make me feel like that)I'm trying not to dissect logically every film,but just to enjoy a well made one.Go with a logic and the only thing you will be able to watch is documentaries) Anyhow,really loved this little movie,highly recommended for all the horror lovers!

REVIEW - HOST

As we all know over the past 4 months there have been very few new films because of the pandemic, which in a strange way actually made this film even more enjoyable.

Filmed during lock down and referring to the situation around the current pandemic a shot UK film was released that probably no one has heard of.

A group of teens do an online Zoom session with a medium to try and see what would happen, of course things go wrong when one of them doesn't take it seriously and summons........

Small budget, but hugely enjoyable and even actually made me jump in one place!

Definitely one to watch but just a word of caution, don't watch it on a windy night and leave your Windows open so your doors move on their own, spooky.

Rating 7 out of 10

I watched this movie because it had a 100% rating on rotten tomatoes and was listed as the scariest movie of all time through some b.s. Heart rate focus group.

Movie has zero plot. Boring zoom seance turns into a bunch of girls crying and talking over each other.

Audio is awful. I get it it's a zoom call, but remember this is supposed to be an enjoyable movie.

If you like the same jumpscares you've seen a thousand times before this waste of hard drive space may be for you.

I'm ashamed at the 10 star 100% reviews, what do you people watch?

OMFG this was a very surprising experience. I didn't read the comments about this movie, I didn't believe the ratings, but I really love this type of a horror. and the best is that it's only an hour long, everything is in point. don't expect much from this and you'll be rewarded 😈💜

Definitely got my heart racing, although I did watch it in the dark, behind the computer and by myself :') I assume it's low budget, but it was scarier than most horror movies out there. Aside from some silly details (, like why would you bring your computer/phone with you if none of the others in the call are watching), it was very realistic. One of the few downsides is that it is relatively predictable (, but nowadays that's unfortunately common in horror).

One of its main plusses is the script and acting: the conversations are very much like I speak with my friends and there are hardly any dumb lines that can ruin the experience. They also behave in different ways that make sense if you're scared out of your mind.

Also a big plus is that it doesn't try to (over)explain what is happening: it simply is scary and claustrophobic. And last but not least, it's a short movie with good pacing. They refrained from using fillers just to make it one and a half hours long, but chose quality over quantity. If you're a fan of horror, I definitely recommend this hidden gem.

I want to get this out of the way: I am a friend of Haley Bishop's (who plays Haley, the lead and the host of the Zoom call). We met in college and lived in the same dorm, so we got close. I remember her as a good singer at the time, and since then I started to know her as a good up-and-coming actress. I have been supporting her as she's getting more roles, so when I first learned that she was in Host, I knew I had to check it out ASAP.

Anyway, onto the film that I would coin as "Paranormal Activity meets Unfriended meets quarantine" (not Quarantine the movie, but our current situation heh). This 56-minute Shudder original production plays succinctly, and this becomes an advantage for the film's story structure. It might have helped because I'm personally connected with Haley, but because she was essentially playing "herself" I was easily able to connect with the other members in the Zoom call, seeing them as "her friends." I didn't need massive amounts of character introduction, and they were able to naturally develop and distinguish themselves in quick and short order. They don't feel like campy horror movie characters, they just felt like people. It made it feel really easy to be involved in the session.

The timing of this film is also noteworthy, and in my opinion it is most important that people who CAN watch it now are also able to. This flick is focused around a seance through online chat because they are quarantined. This is our lives right now, and this is the kind of way that something like this would and should have to occur. We aren't a stranger to the elements that the writers and director of Host wanted to convey most strongly. This helps brings a little bit more charm for us who are all feeling a bit insane during these times. This time, watch others live it for a little while, and watch terror occur in the process! Heh.

The audience members who were critical of Christopher Nolan's Dunkirk had fits partly with the lack of girth that could have been used to build the characters and story. In a similar sense, Host wastes no time giving you the characters, perhaps a foreshadowing item or two that you expect to arise later, and won't answer every question that you might have about what you see on screen. To this, I say that is completely fine. They work hard on giving you less and leaving you wanting more, and honestly the movie is better because of it. David Sandberg's short film version of Lights Out was impeccably creepier than its full-length feature film because they didn't try to provide exposition and background to everything, and this movie is like that but with a lot of character interaction in the process. I don't feel you'll be disappointed in this regard if you understand this intent.

This is well acted by all parties involved. What was nice is even if the movie might not necessarily scare you in itself (depending on who you are), the way that the actors convey fear when appropriate (as you'll also get bouts of denial and ignorance) makes you frightful as they are. Unlike Unfriended, this feels a lot less "produced," and that's a good thing, because I feel like Haley and the other actors could really play this in as few takes as possible, and even improvise when needed. There is at least one part that they had to play off an unintended mishap, and it was left in the movie not as a gag reel highlight, but rather as a happy accident.

I started playing this at 2:00 AM, knowing that I wouldn't be able to stay awake even an hour longer and I'd finish it the next day. Come 3:00 AM, I'm at the credits and wondering how I'm tenfold more awake than I was when I started the movie. It never really lets you breathe too much to say what a good stopping point would be if needed, and that's kind of a cool facet that many other films aren't able to have as often. It doesn't really play in "scenes," it's simply a "session" and I loved it for that.

Anyway, I will completely acknowledge my bias here, but I like that it did the screencasting found footage format differently, specifically by trimming the fat of the run time. It really worked in its own favor. If people here haven't seen Searching, you'll get another different take on what this format has to offer and excels as well (given that it takes more than one kind of source, has a soundtrack, zooms on parts of the screen, etc.), so it just goes to show that this format can work in a lot of different ways and still be successful in the process. Again, this helps for the times that we live in right now, and I highly commend them for executing it well on top of it.

If you're not a fan of Unfriended and Paranormal Activity, this MAY not be for you. However, if this review gives you slight hope of optimism, you have an hour to spare, and you would like to support my friend in the process, please hop onto Shudder and give this a looksie!

Keep your expectations in check and there is a lot of fun to be had here. The Zoom thing doesn't feel like a gimmick and the acting is very naturalistic and believable. It's nice how they reined themselves in with an hour running time, less is more in this case.

I'm uite shocked at how good this was! Very creative with the scares and uses the setting and technology to great effect. Acting is all solid and convincing, which I thought was going to be one of the weaker aspects. Does a great job building tension as well and catching you off guard without stuffing it full of cheap jump scares (although there are a few in there that feel a little cheap). Not sure why they all have geiger counters near their laptops, but other than that strange sound design choice the film is excellent and I would recommend if you are on the lookout for something different, especially if like me you feel like you've seen so many cliche films.

I'm a horror movie enthusiast that will not easily handout accolades. Host, takes the movie Paranormal Activity, and brings it into the abyss which we have come to call 2020. The movie accurately reflects the times and does not lightly skim over the new norms such as elbow bumps instead of hugs or handshakes. I thought it was going to be gimmicky and hokey. I was pleasantly surprised and truly put on the edge of my seat. The length of the movie is even the same as a the free version of a Zoom meeting. Well thought out, wonderfully executed, no complaints with the acting. Excellent work! Well done!

One person asked, "what kind of idiot does a seance on a Zoom meeting?" To which I ask, what kind of idiot does a seance unless they're 12? What difference does it make?

Which leads me to my next point -- I noticed a lot of other people saying "who grabs their laptop and carries it with them to check out noises around the house?!" Well...probably the kind of idiots who do seances over Zoom. Does it seem that unrealistic that they would bring the camera with them for the other participants of the seance to experience as well? I'm surprised so many people couldn't figure that out.

So normally I'd take away 5 stars automatically for it being a found footage. That's how serious I am in my campaign against that type of uninventive, lazy filmmaking. However, I found the idea a little creative and relevant with the runtime being the length of a free Zoom meeting, so I gave it a shot. That it was 57 minutes was a huge strength, any longer would have been unacceptable. And given the fact this was filmed during a worldwide pandemic, I forgave the fact that it was filmed as found footage.

All-in-all, it was a decent time. Nothing extraordinary, but not a pile of ass, either. Stay safe and healthy, everyone. ✌🏼

First of all, this deserves a round of applause for recycling an tried and passed concept into something good while following the quarantine protocols. It is edited, crafted and scripted well. Yes there are some convenience the script takes but I am going to forgive all that considering the challenge and outcome.

Plot is simple. Six friends hold a seance on a zoom call, then everything goes to sheet. all the characters of this movie are cliché horror characters but in a hour you're not going to really care or root for any except for being scared for them ok a human level. It is acted incredibly well for a horror movie and that's really all that matters to make you believe into the plot.

A must watch horror in this quarantine. Ask your bf or gf to join for a watch along on zoom for extra effect.

Kudos to the team for pulling off this project.

This was a quick good movie. I liked how minimal camera and the use of the technology that has been so part of many of our lives. It made it more realistic the way this movie was done. The séance through Zoom was a interesting concept that I enjoyed. Again being a quick movie made it very enjoyable not to drag out. Overall good movie.

Short, good, scary, sweet as... for the horror movie lovers like me. Enjoyed it