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The Host

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The Host

PG-13

Released Mar 29, 2013

2h 5m

Sci-Fi

Romance

Adventure

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Popcornmeter

10%

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131 Reviews

50%

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50,000+ Ratings

When an unseen enemy threatens mankind by taking over humans' bodies and erasing their minds, Melanie Stryder risks everything to protect the people she cares about most, proving that love can conquer all in a dangerous new world.

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Critics Consensus

Poorly scripted and dramatically ineffective, The Host is mostly stale and tedious, with moments of unintentional hilarity.

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Noah Berlatsky

The Atlantic

The acting, as well as Andrew Niccol's writing and direction, are all awful; I can't in good conscience recommend that anyone see this film.

Aug 28, 2019

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Kimberley Jones

Austin Chronicle

Three bodies plus four minds is some fertile arithmetic, but The Host can't be bothered with the intellectual or kinky ramifications of its setup.

Rated: 2/5

Apr 5, 2013

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Leonard Maltin

leonardmaltin.com

The only reason I had any hope was the presence of Saoirse Ronan in the leading role...

Apr 2, 2013

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Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

Fails to adequately explore either its characters or the specifics of its concept-driven world.

Rated: 1.5/4

Sep 12, 2022

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Kip Mooney

College Movie Review

Anyone who enjoys the shallow romance of the Twilight series will absolutely love this trash.

Rated: D

Sep 18, 2021

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Sarah Brinks

Battleship Pretension

I did enjoy the film and despite its short comings in the story department I can recommend it to anyone who is willing to watch a film based on a book by the author of the Twilight Saga... you know who you are.

Mar 17, 2021

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Dan D

“The Host” was one of, if not the best, “alien” type movie that I have ever seen! Most alien movies are full of slaughter and “the typical end of the world” type story lines. The Host shows that some aliens have compassion towards humans. Lots of unexpected twists and turns keeps the viewer interested until the dramatic conclusion. I highly recommend this movie for teens through adults!!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/17/25

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Anna C

I have read this book multiple times, and I never expect the movie to fully live up to the detail achieved in the book version. However, this was much worse than I imagined it could be. For a storyline written around a main character with 2 different active streams of consciousness, there is barely any dialogue (internal or external). The writing is painfully plain, and the scenes are disconcertingly short and oddly devoid of emotion. The acting is terrible, and is further diminished by a soundtrack that could have been selected at random from a catalog of elevator music. There is zero attention to character development, and there is nothing fulfilling about making it to the end. I would not recommend watching this, even as something to have on in the background. If the storyline intrigues you, read the book - it's phenomenal.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

03/10/25

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Miguel F

- el inicio es un poco brusco la manera que explican todo. - historia adolescente pero el global podia estar interesante - va como muy a saco, sin mucho desarrollo - no empatizas con las decisiones de los personajes - la organizacion d elos humanos.. de donde sacan recursos y tal.. muy poco creible - tremendo personaje el baboso que se enamora de la chica del otro, la trama amorosa del baboso con la cosa pff - la idea 3a buena pero mal montada, esq va todo rapido - estos campan a sus anchas con furgonetas en un mundo plagado por los otros y como si no pasase nada

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/15/25

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Audience Member

I don't get the hate for this movie.. 9/10 for sure. Better than a lot of other garbage out there.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/11/25

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Esther M

It's a movie that can be liked by teens not grown ups. Big ups for the effort. Still a 9/10.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

01/26/25

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Robert M

The reason why the host is such a fascinating movie is because the aliens and the humans and the kindness. The people have for the alien that joined forces with them.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/12/25

Full Review

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Andrew Niccol

Director

Saoirse Ronan

Melanie

Jake Abel

Ian

Max Irons

Jared

Frances Fisher

Maggie

Chandler Canterbury

Jamie

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Video Interviews with The Host Cast: Saoirse Ronan, Max Irons, and Jake Abel

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Synopsis

When an unseen enemy threatens mankind by taking over humans' bodies and erasing their minds, Melanie Stryder risks everything to protect the people she cares about most, proving that love can conquer all in a dangerous new world.

Director: Andrew Niccol
Producer: Nick Wechsler, Steve Schwartz, Paula Mae Schwartz, Stephenie Meyer
Screenwriter: Andrew Niccol
Distributor: Open Road
Production Co: Nick Wechsler, Fickle Fish, Chockstone Pictures
Rating: PG-13 (Violence|Some Sensuality)
Genre: Sci-Fi, Romance, Adventure
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 29, 2013, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 10, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA): $26.6M
Runtime: 2h 5m

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