So I’ve been trying to diversify my movie watching portfolio lately, and I saw an article not too long ago about the best movies from around the world, and for the Korean category there were two movies being mentioned but one that ultimately made it to the top; these were The Host and Oldboy. The Host being probably one of the best monster movies you have ever laid eyes on and Oldboy being the best WTF movie you have ever seen. So let’s start this off with Oldboy.

Oldboy

Theatrical Release: Mar 25, 2005

Oldboy centers around a Korean man named Dae-Su (Choi Min-Sik) who is locked in a hotel room for 15 years without knowing his captor’s motives. When he is finally released from captivity he finds himself still within a web of conspiracy and ultimately on a quest for vengeance and along the way falls in love with an attractive sushi chef. From here on I can’t reveal much else because what follows is a whole lot strangeness, and incredibly malicious twists and turns that lead to a climatic end which leaves you literally saying “WHAT… THE… F*CK!!!” All I’ll say is, you definitely do NOT want to be hypnotized after seeing this movie.

Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 82%

The Johnson Meter: 8.5/10 inches

The Host

Theatrical Release: Mar 9, 2007

The Host is quite literally the best monster movie you have ever seen! It is the perfect mix between thrilling creature-feature and intense human drama. It is hilarious, thrilling, adventurous, and keeps you on your toes and hopeful to the very end. You root on for the little girl and wonder how the hell she’s lived through all that, and you root for the family as they go through all kinds of struggles, face the monster head on, and laugh at the hilarity of the characters and their own reactions to everything that is going on around and to them.

It starts off with some scientists dumping chemicals down the drain which incidentally ends up polluting the Han River. Gang-du (SONG Kang-ho) works at a food-stand right in front of the Han River and notices a crowd taking pictures of a strange creature in the distance. A few minutes later, the tranquil area turns into a chaotic mess as the creature starts attacking humans and rampaging everything in its vicinity. Gang-du and his daughter, Hyun-seo ( KO A-sung), run for their lives but suddenly when the creature is about to leave, he takes hold of little Hyun-seo with his tail and dives right back into the Han River. The government announces that the creature is the host of an unknown virus and quarantines everyone that was in contact with the creature or in close proximity to the incident. Gang-du receives a phone call from his daughter while in quarantine with his family and finds out that she is still alive. From here on Gang-du and his family make their way into the forbidden zone to find his daughter.

Trust me, this is a MUST WATCH!

Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 92%

The Johnson Meter: 9/10 inches