Host (2020): as good on Blu-Ray as it was streaming (Review)

The call is coming from inside the computer! Horror fans have fought and largely won the battle for their preferred genre to be respected as art. It’s worth acknowledging, though, that part of the genre’s power comes from how disreputable it can be. The subterranean status of horror licenses it to explore contemporary anxieties and fears while they’re still raw wounds, years before they can be addressed in genres which thrive on respectability. Some time around 2033, Adam McKay or Paul Greengrass will win an Oscar for a drama about the pandemic, but Rob Savage’s Host caught the mood of the first lockdown while it was still happening. It was a sensation on Shudder, and it’s now released on limited edition Blu-Ray by Second Sight Films.

Releasing a film like Host, which is so tied to its original online format, on Blu-Ray is a risky venture. Is this going to be the home entertainment equivalent of one of those disappointing tie-in books for novelty Twitter accounts? As it turns out, having the option to watch Savage’s film on something other than a laptop or a phone makes its craft shine through. Those moments where the sound breaks up are not, it turns out, the fault of your crappy internet connection – they’re deliberate attempts to heighten a mood of fragility and tension using the native elements of the world Host is set in. There is such a delicious showmanship in the moments where Savage shows you the laptop volume being boosted before a jump scare, or displaying an on-screen warning that there are only ten minutes left in the meeting. In real life, that’s a sign things should be wrapping up. In Host, it’s a sign things are about to spin out of control.

Savage is clearly a keen student of found-footage landmarks; Emma Louise Webb cowering under her bedclothes recalls Heather’s teary monologue from The Blair Witch Project, while an early scene where a mysterious light may or may not appear behind Radina Drandova gaslights the audience in the same way as Ghostwatch‘s CCTV footage. The cast, most of whom use their real names, are terrifically effective. never striking a false note struck. Particular plaudits go to Seylan Baxter as a convincing, non-stereotypical medium and Jemma Moore, who arguably has to cover the most emotional distance and does it tremendously well.

You could argue that Host had to happen, and not just because so many people have spent so much time looking at a Zoom screen this year. We think of Gothic horror as being permanently trapped in the cobwebbed ballgowns of the Victorian era, but in its time it was the most determinedly modern of genres. Most notably, Dracula is replete with mentions of then-cutting-edge technology, from gramophones to blood transfusions. This isn’t just Bram Stoker showing off his research in the manner of an airport thriller author, it’s part of the essential meaning of the sub-genre. You get the frisson of an ancient, forgotten horror reasserting itself, as well as the terrifying uncertainty of wondering what havoc it might wreak in a more advanced world. This is exactly what Host is about, and this kind of thematic strength works on a laptop, a Blu-Ray or anything you fancy.

The other compelling reason to buy Second Sight’s Blu-Ray is the extras, which are, frankly, stupendous. There are prestige labels releasing storied decades-old classics which haven’t put together a package as impressive as this, including a BFI Q&A, an interview with Evolution of Horror, and a commentary with Savage and producer Douglas Cox which shines a light on some of the things that don’t look complicated but – thanks to the film’s pandemic-era production – really were. There’s also some test footage, a cast commentary, Savage’s two acclaimed shorts Dawn of the Deaf and Salt, a cast interview and – most intriguingly – a recording of the cast and crew doing their research by performing their own seance over Zoom. Is it real? It looks real, but we know too well from the main feature that Savage and his cast are no slouches at faking these things.

Thank you for reading Graham’s Review of HOST (2020)

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