Host Is the F*cked Up Horror Movie You've Been Hoping For in 2020

Video calls have become a daily reality for countless masses in 2020, so it should come as no surprise that the first Zoom horror movie has arrived. What is unexpected, though, is that it's really good. Host was released via Shudder at the end of July, and it's been gaining steady buzz from audiences and critics. Need proof? Look no further than its 100 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes. A perfect score is impressive for movies of any genre — it's even more elusive when it comes to horror movies.

Set in the midst of (and filmed entirely during) the Coronavirus pandemic, Host revolves around a group of friends who employ a medium to conduct a seance with them via Zoom. No spoilers here, but things go poorly. A horror movie composed entirely of a Zoom call — literally, it's a grid view — could easily fall into cheesy territory, but with a runtime of 56 minutes, it's a tight and terrifying watch. In the same way that The Blair Witch Project was groundbreaking when it came out, Host will give you the same "is this real" chills. The actors (Haley Bishop, Jemma Moore, Emma Louise Webb, Radina Drandova, Caroline Ward, and Seylan Baxter) are also relatively unknown, which makes the film feel even more authentic.

As with most horror movies, your experience will be better if you don't know much about the premise, so take this as a call to action to just watch it, like tonight. You'll need to subscribe to streaming platform Shudder to watch it, but if you're the kind of person who gets excited about the *it* horror movie of the year, it's worth the $5 investment.