Whew. Now that I'm back from Cannes, it's time to dive back into checking out what's going on in the world outside the glamor and glitz of the world's sexiest film industry trade show. Of course, one of the first things I wanted to catch up on was what's been going on in the world of Twilight fandom. Before leaving for Cannes, I snagged a copy of Stephenie Meyer's' newest book, The Host, and I devoured it every night while on the trip.

Quick thoughts on The Host: Compelling and dramatic story, great characters, and it pretty much has "adapt me into a movie, please!" written all over it. For those not in the know, the book is a tale about an alien invasion by a race of intelligent parasitic beings who take over the body of a host and obliterate the "soul" of the person who previously resided there.

Ever since it premiered at the 2006 Toronto Film Festival, Bong Joon-ho's The Host (Gwoemul) has been earning a lot of fans all over the place (including this very blog), and we started hearing the sequel rumblings almost immediately. (And the flick really holds up well to repeat viewings if you ask me. Queue it and see!)

We've been hearing little dribs and drabs recently, but Twitchfilm's Todd Brown just shared some info that seems to confirm a prequel direction. According to Twitch, "the script is being handled by Korean comic artist Kang Full and is set three years prior to the events of the original film." One possible plot structure involves the excavation of an ancient stream ... an excavation that awakens not one but several ravenous beasties. The producers seem to be shooting for a 2009 release date.

Unfortunately we'll have a new (as yet unnamed) director in the prequel/sequel chair, but since I'm such a pathetic sucker for anything with a giant monster in it, I remain happily optimistic.

It has the greatest, most literal title since Snakes on a Plane, but hopefully Dragon Wars won't be as disappointing. The South Korean movie -- which features American actors, settings and dialogue -- has already made a ton of money back home, and it's due to open in the U.S. on September 14. I shouldn't have to tell you what it's about, since the title explains all you need to know, but here goes a try: an evil, giant, serpent-like creature arrives in Los Angeles with an army of soldiers and monsters in order to find an ancient 'gift', which is located inside a 20-year-old girl, who is the reincarnation of a Korean who possessed the 'gift' 500 years ago. The 'gift' is some sort of magic that will turn the serpent-like creature into a dragon. A local reporter, who happens to be a reincarnated warrior who protected the girl centuries ago, now has to stop the ancient creatures and save her. Makes no sense to me, and so it probably makes less sense to you, so let's just say it's about what the title says: dragon wars.

Anyway, if you're really curious and want to know more specific information about the crazy, hard-to-follow plot, MTV Movies Blog has some helpful visual aids that provide some background about the different creatures we'll see in the movie. There seem to all be paintings rather than screen captures, and include Dawdlers, Dragons, Bulcos, Imoogis and Evil Imoogis. The Evil Imoogie, named Buraki, is the serpent-like creature mentioned above that attacks L.A. Apparently Buraki really, really wants to become a dragon, which is shown as being similar to the long, Eastern-styled dragon familiar via Chinese mythology. Meanwhile, the Bulcos, described as mutated birds, look more like the Western type familiar to fantasy fans. The Dawdlers are the coolest looking, though, mainly because they rocket launchers attached to their backs make me think of Dino-Riders. Admittedly, I'm probably more confused after looking at these renderings, but at least I'm intrigued. Despite the crazy plot, I think Dragon Wars (formerly, and also, known as D-War) is going to be another cool monster movie from the country that gave us The Host.

Many of us at Cinematical have written about just how great the Korean, record-breaking horror flick called The Host is. It is no perfect film, but it has heart, laughs and this funny way of sticking with you. I still smile every time I think of the over-the-top gymnasium scene (check out the DVD to see what I'm talking about). While we're lucky enough to be able watch it from our own comfy couches starting tomorrow, some people are seeing it for the first time. The film has made its way into India, and grossed a respectable 8.39 million Rupees ($208,000) in its first week there on 62 screens, selling 72,500 tickets -- something to note since it seems to be the first Korean flick released in the country.

The success of this Korean flick doesn't seem to be some one-of-a-kind feat, and another film is hot on the killer tadpole's tail. Variety has reported that a new monster movie, D-War, has grossed a super-solid $20.3 million in South Korea after only give days -- just missing the record-breaking opening for The Host. Unlike the other, D-War is a Korean flick with U.S. actors, and it follows a Korean legend about a giant snake that's got its sights set on Los Angeles. The film, which stars Jason Behr, Amanda Brooks and Robert Forster, is going to be released stateside on September 14 under the name Dragon Wars. Horror might be struggling, but monster movies are going good and strong.

I will admit that at first, I didn't want to see The Host. As much as I love camp, I wasn't prepared to use one of my TIFF slots on it. However, after a long day of films, I was offered a ticket to the Midnight Madness showing and was very glad that I went and entered Cinematical's ring of Host appreciators. It was a puzzle of strangely-shaped pieces that fit together in the way most horror films don't. As the giant killer tadpole gets ready to attack US screens, it will do so as an award winner.

The film recently scored a bunch of awards at the 2006 Korean Film Awards. Some are more obvious -- it's no surprise that the daylight effects of the water monster scored the film accolades for Best Special Effects, which go along with some of the other technical awards like Best Sound Effects, Best Lighting and Best Cinematography. However, that's not all! The hungry tadpole also scored Best Picture and Best Director. Yes, a horror film slid into Korea's top spot.

Times like this kind of make me wish that the film industry hadn't evolved to its current system. Beyond random blips like My Cousin Vinny, the top honors are over-run with drama, history and social commentary. I can appreciate that all well and good, but it wouldn't hurt to throw some slaughtering tadpoles into the mix. If you follow the "Read" link, you can see the current trailer for the film, which plans to hit theaters on January 29 for a limited release. Keep in mind that although the movie takes you on a rollercoaster of emotions, it's not half as serious as the trailer suggests.

Rocchi dug it, Jette-ski dug it -- and I did too! Coming soon is Bong Joon-ho's The Host, which is hitting North American theaters on January 26, courtesy of Magnolia Pictures. We've already covered the slimy, slithering hell out of this Korean monster epic, but I figured that anyone psyched to see the flick might enjoy sitting through a handful of clips from The Host. (Or maybe you'd rather NOT watch a bunch of isolated and semi-spoilery scenes from a film you're already planning to see. That's probably how I'd approach it.) Either way, the option is yours.

For those who plan to enjoy The Host in its entirety, I'll skip the clip synopses. Suffice to say the movie's about a giant mutated SOMETHING that rolls out of the Han River and turns all of Seoul into its own private buffet. A family of brave-yet-inept knuckleheads are the only thing that stand between "the host" and an eternity of Korean carnage. Oh, and there's some stuff in there about diseases and infections and archery, too. It's a really fun flick.

[Video clips provided by Bloody-Disgusting.com.]

The South Korean monster movie The Host (aka Gwoemul) has been one of the biggest box-office smash hits ever in its home country. Naturally, you know what happens when a foreign film makes tons of money -- an American company decides it's a great idea to remake the film in English. After all, anything in another language is going to be even better in English, right? Look at Point of No Return (remake of La Femme Nikita), The Ring (remake of Ringu) and City of Angels (remake of Wings of Desire) ... yeah, I don't understand why they do it, either. Once in a while it does work: I liked The Departed just fine, although I haven't seen its source, Infernal Affairs, so I don't know if the original is superior. And of course there's always the granddaddy of Americanizations of foreign films, The Magnificent Seven.

It should therefore be no surprise at all to learn that Universal has picked up the remake rights to The Host. The Korean film won't be released in the U.S. until January 27 of next year, but apparently the studio feels certain that we'll love an Americanized version of the film. I saw The Host at Fantastic Fest and I did in fact like the movie a lot -- but I'm not at all sure how it could be adapted for a U.S. setting and still retain its charm. For one thing, the U.S. Army has a moderately bad-guy role in the film. And without giving anything away, I can't see a Hollywood studio-produced film, designed to draw a large audience, with the same ending as the Korean film. On the other hand, American filmmakers are top-notch at depicting hilariously dysfunctional families like the one that faces the creature in The Host ... so perhaps that could work.

If you've seen The Host, do you think an American remake could be successful? (Don't give away the ending when you answer that.) Are there any American remakes that you think are better than their source materials from other countries?

Related links:

• Hooray! US Distribution for The Host!
• TIFF Interview: The Host Director Bong Joon-ho

When I cover a film festival, I usually do a small handful of interviews for various publications. In nearly every case, the sit-down is with a young filmmaker or some indie actors. When I was asked if I'd like to spend a half-hour with the Midnight Madness Guru for the Toronto International Film Festival, I figured it'd be a whole lot of fun. I mean... the guy's job is to pick through the world's newest wierd movies and pick his ten favorites! Now that's a guy you want to drink a coffee with! Here now is a conversation between Colin Geddes, filmmaker J.T. Petty and yours truly. And I had to snip about 35% of this chat session because it often devolved into a really nerdy conversation between three hardcore genre geeks. Obviously it was a lot of fun.

Cinematical: How important is a "midnight movie" slate to a festival like Toronto?

Colin Geddes: The Midnight Madness category was originally devised as a spot for films that didn't really "fit in" with a traditional festival agenda. We're talking back in, say, 1988, when genre films didn't necessarily "belong" at a film festival. So the category gave us a chance to introduce quality genre films to an appreciative audience. Plus these movies often work as a "gateway" for new audience members. With the festival being so huge, it's sometimes overwhelming. And if you're an 18-year-old kid coming to Toronto, like I was, where are you going to start? You're probably going to start in the horror stuff, the weird stuff. The rest of the film festival gets the "art," and I get the "fun." And the art. And what we see now is that, of all the different slates, Midnight Madness is one that almost always sells out, ticket-wise. From an industry standpoint, these are quite often the films that sold -- and seen.

Cine: And they're not always horror films either. You have seven or eight of 'em, but then something like Borat makes the cut as well...

CG: Yeah, it's a mixed bag. Now, Borat is an outrageous comedy, but I also knew it would it would bring a lot of attention, and it's great to have that kind of "hook" sometimes. If I can get an 18-year-old kid who'll come and see Borat, and then he comes back to see The Host from Korea or Princess from Denmark, I've done my job there. Borat is kind of the "anchor." On the other hand, I like to take a chance with one or two selections. Two years ago I programmed Calvaire (The Ordeal), which was ... an out-there film. Half the audience was truly perplexed by that one, but it's an excellent film and precisely the kind of title we like to "introduce" to our viewers. This year we have J.T. Petty's S&MAN, which is in a similar vein. Something that's going to be confrontational; something that might divide audiences.

Cine: Something that's going to get people talking. ...

The official Cinematical presence at the 2006 Fantastic Fest was the wonderful Jette Kernion, and I think she managed to bang out about eight reviews ... while the fest was still running! I saw JK everywhere, from the queues to the parties to the local barbecue pits. Frankly I think her coverage rocked the house, and I'm not just saying that because she let me butt in line with her for The Beach Party at the Threshold of Hell.

But since the FF guys were cool enough to welcome Cinematical with such eerily open arms, I figure it's only right to share my favorite movies, moments and memories of mayhem from the 2006 FantFest. And so I shall.

The Best Flicks

Simon Rumley's seriously disturbing The Living and the Dead, the Swedish vampire flick Frostbite, Adam Green's fun-time slasher throwback Hatchet, William Friedkin's compellingly intense Bug and the quietly cool haunted Brit flick Lie Still. I also had an unexpectedly good time with Mel Gibson's Apocalypto -- and although I'd already seen Abominable, The Host, The Fountain, Pan's Labyrinth and Severance, they're all films I have no problem recommending. Oh, and William H. Macy's performance in Edmond ... wow.

I also trekked away from the festival to enjoy a good portion of Feast -- which was negated by my plane ride home. Lindsay Lohan's Just My Luck was the in-flight movie, and that flick packs perhaps the worst screenplay I've dealt with in three years. Stunningly bad.

Oh, and right before I nodded off every night, I watched just a little bit more of The Office: Season 2. If you don't watch this show, you're plain old robbing yourself of multiple peals of bulky laughter. And why would you want to do that?

There are few surprises in the initial slate of submissions for Best Foreign Picture. Last year's submissions were fraught with controversy, as Austria's French-language entry, Caché was deemed ineligible by the Academy along with Italy's entry, Private, which was dinged for featuring Arabic and Hebrew but no Italian. This year a rule change has gone into effect that allows foreign picture submissions to feature any combination of languages (not just the dominant language of the submitting country) so long as the primary language is not English.

Canada's submission, the first to take advantage of the new rule, is Deepa Mehta's Water, a Hindi-language film starring Canadian-born actress Lisa Ray. Mehta, though born in India, is herself a Canadian resident. Water was the third in Mehta's controversial and political "elements" trilogy that started with Earth and Fire, and features a story centered around the plight of widows in India, who are often relegated to life of poverty. The tale of what Mehta went through just to make this film could be a movie in and of itself. Initially set to film in India, the set was shut down after numerous death threats when the Indian government determined it could not ensure Mehta's safety, and didn't start filming again for over three years.