Way back before I started blogging, I read The Host and absolutely loved it! It took a while for me to get into but the second half made it completely worth it. So of course I, like many others, was super excited when they decided to make the book into a movie. Luckily for me, unlike many others, I was not really disappointed with the movie.
I’m not really sure if it’s just because it’s been so long since I read the book that I just don’t remember all the minute details, but I thought that for the time they had, this movie adaptation was fairly accurate. Of course, the movie is usually never as good as the book and that’s the case with this one.
I know a lot of people didn’t like how the “Souls” looked but they were pretty much what I was imagining while reading. I think they did a great job with showing the different voices of both Melanie and Wanda. I can’t really see how they could have done it differently and still make it easy for the viewer to distinguish between the two, especially if they hadn’t read the book. I think the movie could have used a lot more romance between Wanda and Ian, but I will take what I can get. I know that in the movie things seemed a bit rushed, but I think that had to do with how much they were trying to cram into this one movie. The Host isn’t a small book. So the time period wasn’t as easy to grasp as if you were reading. So I think for anyone who hadn’t read the book, it looked like all of this happened in only a short period of time, when it was actually over a longer time period.
As for the casting, at first I wasn’t really sure what I thought of it at first. None of the actors cast were really how I envisioned the characters in my head, except for Jared and I never liked him in the book. Luckily he is played by Max Irons, so even though I still thought he was a jerk (rightfully so) he was still hot. I still prefer Ian though and think that Jake Abel was a great pick for him! I wasn’t really sure what I thought of Saoirse Ronan for Melanie/Wanda but as the movie went along she grew on me and I ended up really liking her. I will say though that their choice for Wanda’s body in the end was not at all what I thought it would be and I didn’t like it!
Overall though, the movie was entertaining, if a bit rushed. I really wish Stephenie Meyer would continue the book series, but I have a feeling she’s not going to. It really is a much better series than Twilight for me! I will probably watch this movie again when it comes out on BluRay.
A Glo-Worm Reads 
I’m one of those who really disliked the movie, but it wasn’t because it didn’t live up to my expectations from the book (I read that beast back in ’08! Haha). While I appreciated the cinematography, I just couldn’t get past how awkward the relationship between Mel and Wanda was portrayed or how they chose to separate the voices (though, like you said, I really can’t imagine how else they would have done it).
I just think some books are better left as books. And The Host is one of them.
Yeah, I read it quite awhile ago too. The relationship was a bit odd, but yeah. Not really many ways you can differentiate between them.
This might have been better left as a book with no movie, but I guess they had to try. I think they were hoping that Stephenie Meyer’s name would bring in all the Twilight fans.
This is one of the few positive reviews of the movie I’ve seen. I do think trying to shove everything from all 600 pages in the book is difficult to do. With Twilight it’s all about the falling in love and looking longingly into each other’s eyes, which is easy to cut down to the basics. But for this, there is so much going on and so much internal struggle that it’s really hard to cut down. I’m not sure if I’ll see the movie, or at least not until I can rent it cheap!
Oh and I agree. I remember after reading The Host I thought it was better than Twilight and hoped that Meyers would continue the series. Of course, I have sort of given up on that and am not sure if it’ll ever happen. And if it does, I’ll probably have to go back and reread the first book because I barely remember it.
Glad you liked it! 🙂
Yeah, there is a lot more to fit in the Host than in Twilight.
I’m afraid she won’t continue now that this movie wasn’t as successful as Twilight. I have the feeling she is going to ride the Twilight train and forget about anything else, unfortunately. I do hope that she’ll finish the series though!
Yeah, it’s been forever since I’ve read it but I’m sure if she’d released the next book (Seeker? I think that’s what it was going to be called) I would probably read it. But she does seem to be caught up in everything else to really ever come back to writing.
Maybe once the Twilight train she’s riding dries up…
But that being said, all of her books that are published have now been made into movies, what’s left for her to do?..lol She needs to write them or I’ll be very sad.
Interesting that everything happens over a longer time period in the book. Because, yeah, watching the movie, I thought it happened over a few weeks or something. I was also kind of surprised by the girl they chose for Wanda at the end. To be honest, I think I would have a hard time picturing anyone besides Saoirse Ronan for Wanda, because that was how she looked during all the time I got to know her, you know?
Yeah, it’s hard to see her as someone else after all that time. In the book they give her a 16 year olds body and she lies and says she will be 18 in two weeks because Ian is too honourable..lol.
But yeah, the story takes place over quite a few months. Every time they go out on a trip to get supplies it’s a few weeks at a time. But in the movie it all felt very fast paced.
If you’ve read the book, you might get the movie more than I did, but as a movie, it’s just terrible. Nice review Jenn.
Thanks 🙂 And yes, I think if you’ve read the book you definitely come away with more. I do know a lot of people who have read the book weren’t happy with it as well, but everyone has different opinions. And generally people aren’t that happy with movie adaptations..lol