In HOST, six friends hire a medium to conduct a séance during lockdown for their weekly Zoom call. Jemma decides to pull a prank and makes up a story about a boy she knew in high school who hanged himself. By doing this, Jemma inadvertently invites a demonic presence to cross over. Soon the friends begin noticing strange occurrences in their homes as the evil spirit begins to make itself known, and they all realize this night may be their last. For thoughts on Host (2020), please see previous thoughts here.

Video Quality Host (2020) comes to Blu-Ray with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in its original aspect ratio, and this is one film that is NOT going to stand out on the Blu-Ray format. Due to the creative aesthetic of the film, crisp high definition footage you usually yearn for is sacrificed for the terrible quality of Zoom videos. The colors in the film are not the most vibrant with barely any hues in the modern production design making an impression. Fine detail is likewise nearly nonexistent with very little in the way of depth to the image. The picture features artifacts and blobs of undefined murkiness during the shadowy moments. The cinematography of the film is very intentional, and, while it may not be the most beautiful presentation, this disc captures it as well as you could hope. Overall, this is a fine looking transfer for the type of film it is. Audio Quality Host (2020) comes to Blu-Ray with a commendable DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio track which tries to stay faithful to its Zoom roots. The environmental sounds provide an unsettling atmosphere for the story, but they are understandably restrained. The low end of the track gets a bit active during more forthright moments of spiritual confrontations. The dialogue and sound effects are appropriately balanced, but there is some intentional clipping and distortion left in for narrative impact. Like the video, the audio presentation strives more for authenticity over anything that would show off your A/V system. There are English SDH subtitles provided.

Special Features

Behind The Scenes Of Host: A 34-minute piece which shows all of the behind-the-scenes efforts that it took to pull off the movie from the initial inspiration to the stunts, rehearsing, the makeup work, the sound design of the audio and more.

Seance with the Cast of Host and Crew of /Film: A hefty 85-minute seance with some of the staff members from /Film and the actors, writers and director of Host which provides a fun context for some insightful interview bits.

Bloody Disgusting Presents The Boo Crew Podcast – Host Episode: A 22-minute episode of the popular podcast is provided here which interviews Host’s Rob Savage and Jed Shepherd.

Final Thoughts Host (2020) is an incredibly effective entry into this subgenre of horror which allows for an immense amount of creativity and ingenuity without the need for a blockbuster budget. The spry runtime allows the film to not overstay its welcome with unnecessary padding while still providing enough character details for you to become invested in the fates of these poor souls. There might be some slight exaggeration in the hype surrounding this particular title, but it does genuinely provide some unsettling, thrilling moments which are sure to delight horror fans. RLJE Films has released a Blu-Ray featuring an A/V presentation that is good as the material will allow and some great special features. If you want a quick injection of thrills into your life, this is a good choice. Recommended Host (2020) is currently available to purchase on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital. Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray. Disclaimer: RLJE Films has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.