The Perfect Host (2010)
Warwick Wilson is the consummate host. He carefully prepares for a dinner party, the table impeccably set and the duck perfectly timed for 8:30 p.m. John Taylor is a career criminal. He’s just robbed a bank and needs to get off the streets. He finds himself on Warwick’s doorstep posing as a friend of a friend, new to Los Angeles, who’s been mugged and lost his luggage.
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Very disappointing...
Sick Product of a Sick System
Overrated and overhyped
For all the hype it got I was expecting a lot more!
The perfect host has it all. It will make you laugh, scratch you're head, have you on the edge of your seat, and plenty of WTF moments. I didn't see most of the little twists and turns this movie had coming. David Hyde Pierce absolutely kills his role as "the perfect host". A magnificent Indy thriller, and a great overall watch!
John Taylor (Clayne Crawford) is on the lam. We get flashbacks of the crime as the movie progresses. He cons his way into the home of Warwick Wilson (David Hyde Pierce) who reminded me of a gay Kelsey Grammer. John's picture is all over the news. Before the party can start, John reveals to Warwick who he is and forces him to call the guests and cancel the party that is supposed to start in 15 minutes.The film has an early twist...and a few lesser twists later on, so don't expect to see too much on plot in reviews. We have seen this kind of thing in horror movies, but the delightful soundtrack turned this movie into an excellent dark quirky comedy. I suggest you watch the movie and not read Amazon reviews on this one as they give away too much of the twist.F-bomb, no sex, no nudity.
The concept is really nice for a creepy story, though it's built on a common basic premise of cops and robbers. The movie gets a bit slowed down on the nut-house world of the host a bit too long. I see that the creators are trying to set those scenes as the focus, but those long duration, and the quite scary images of the last 'guests' that should be disturbing loses their influence when just about half the duration, they turn out to be fake and makeup. Frankly, for me those turns out the mood of the movie from scary to something off. But the twists on the chess play and the robbery plot is nice mix to the whole story, and also the possibility of another twisted 'party' on the ending lifts up the mood of being a scary flick. The acting is a bit below average, though just as expected. A 5 out of 10 score is from me.
I watched this after a friend's suggestion. She was very excited and insisted that it would be just the right movie for me. Usually I don't take these claims too seriously. Too many times I have sat down to watch the perfect movie for me to end miserably disappointed, particularly from the idea people seem to have of me.This was not the case. In fact I am only writing this review so I can give a boost to the inexplicably low rating it has on IMDb. It is a brilliant movie that more people ought to know about and what makes it even more so is that it was obviously made on a small budget. I won't go into detail because I feel the less you know the more you'll enjoy watching it. It is clearly not for everyone and I clearly understand that some viewers might be put off by the what might strike them as over the top plot. Perhaps it demands from its viewer a suspension of disbelief but to me at least, it is all worth it! Excellent performances and a game between two characters, each with a dark side of his own, takes life and captivates the viewer. A third, female character that is mostly absent through the film plays the vital role of setting this intrigue in motion. Does it ring any bells? To me it was very similar to the original Sleuth film. Playing between thriller and subtle comedy with a neo-noir luster this is a must-watch for all lovers of the difficult black comedy genre. Further more, it proves beyond any shadow of a doubt that you don't need famous people, special effects and a mountain of money to make good cinema.