“Host,” directed by Rob Savage and released exclusively to the horror-based streaming service Shudder, is unlike anything we’ve seen before. Of course, the found-footage style is nothing new (“The Blair Witch Project”) and even computer/webcam found-footage has been done to some success (“Unfriended”), but “Host” stands out thanks to the birth of its creation.
Born from a prank that Savage pulled on some of his actor friends during the COVID-19 outbreak in the UK, the pandemic and associated lockdown is infused into every fiber of the film. The actors set up their own cameras, lighting, arranged the stunts, and oversaw their own practical effects in their homes while Savage directed them remotely. Viewers may be surprised to find that the result is a creepy, if familiar, Zoom-based feature that utilizes its lockdown setting to create fear in the only place any of us have felt safe in the last few months.
Running a lean 57 minutes, or the length that a Zoom call is allowed to be before you have to start paying (the horror!), the plot of “Host” is going to sound familiar to just about anybody who has seen a horror film before. We follow a group of young adults as they seek to break the monotony of lockdown life with a socially-distanced séance. Ringleader Haley Bishop warns her friends to respect the medium she brings in for the occasion, so of course shenanigans are quick to ensue. It all starts out innocent enough, with some in the group secretly taking a shot every time they hear the words “astral plane,” but when Haley’s rascal neighbor Jemma Moore takes things too far and unintentionally invites something else into the digital séance, our group finds themselves stranded in a Zoom call from Hell.
The story is familiar beat-for-beat, but writers Savage, Gemma Hurly, and Jed Shepherd sprinkle the no-frills storytelling with hidden detail and foreshadowing of events to come. There are no throwaway lines or props. This is made even sweeter by the fact that the actors’ surroundings are their real-life lockdown surroundings. One of the guys even happened to have a scary clown doll laying around. This DIY sensibility, what should be “Host’s” biggest constraint, is also what gives it its legitimacy. It feels like a film made the only way it possibly could have been and is even more authentic for it. Across the board the performances are exceedingly natural because these people are real life friends who were party to Savage’s original prank. They walk around their homes like they live there because they do.
A scene from Rob Savage’s “Host” (Shadowhouse Films, 2020).
The only question that remains, then, is “is any of this actually scary?” Fortunately, it is! “Host” is not likely to cost you any hours of sleep tonight, but Savage maintains the atmosphere throughout and delivers some solid scares along the way. Cheap jump scares are kept to a minimum and a lot of the quieter moments, like a certain scene in an attic, were very effective. The filmmakers demonstrate a clear understanding of Zoom, and take advantage of features like green screen backgrounds, facial recognition, and text chat for some spooky set pieces. VFX is used tastefully here and there, but most of the effects were practical and looked great. Turns out sometimes all you need is some fishing wire.
Rob Savage and company brought us a feature that demands your attention for a scant 57 minutes so it can scare you. Not a lofty goal, but one that “Host” accomplishes in spades. It was hard to be too bothered by a rote horror story because it is just so astounding that they pulled the whole thing off in the first place. “Host” is a testament to artists flourishing under strict limitations, and is in that way something we haven’t seen before. In a time where we are confined to the comforts of home, “Host” delivers the horror to your front door.
