The Hangang River flows through Seoul from east to west, dividing the city into its northern and southern halves. After flowing out of the city again, it continues a little further west before emptying into the Yellow Sea. Over the years, a number of bridges have been built over the river. Starting with the Hangang Railway Bridge in 1900, a total of 29 have appeared so far. The history of the Hangang is intertwined with that of the people of Seoul. So much so that the river has come to symbolize the city itself.

 

At least 80% of Bong Joon-ho's film <The Host> was filmed in the vicinity of the Hangang and its bridges. Locations from the film can easily be found at various spots along the river. 
 

Directed by Bong in 2006, <The Host>, telling the story of a monster that appears by the Hangang, caused a sensation upon its release. The emotional family science fiction movie set a new box office record, being watched by around 13 million Koreans.
One sunny day, Gang-du lies snoozing in the shop that his father runs by the side of the Hangang. Suddenly, the peace of the riverside park is shattered by the appearance of a monster. The unidentifiable creature promptly starts trampling and chomping at everyone it comes across. Within an instant, the scene is transformed into one of carnage. Gang-du, too, eventually gathers his wits, grabs a hand that he thinks belongs to his daughter, Hyun-seo, and starts running away. At the moment he turns to look back, he sees the monster snatching up Hyun-seo, ambling off with her and disappearing back into the river.
Gang-du must find Hyun-seo, wherever she may be. Following the sudden appearance of the monster, access to the Hangang is sealed off and the whole of Seoul comes to a standstill. Gang-du's family has lost everything overnight: its home, its livelihood and – most precious of all – Hyun-seo. He sets off to the river, now a restricted area, to find her.

 

 

 

Bong and his production team spent two years location hunting along the river as they wrote the script. By constantly checking the appearances of the Hangang and the parks that line its banks every season and at every time of day, they were able to put the best images that the river has to offer into the film.

 

 

 

 

 

In Yeouido Hangang Riverside Park, at the south end of Seogang Bridge, people relaxing on the riverbank and Gang-du, delivering the squid a customer ordered, run away at the first sight of the monster. A girl sitting on the grass, listening to music through earphones and reading a book, is ambushed by the monster; we see Gang-du's daugher, Hyun-seo, being snatched away.

 

 

 

 

This shop in the park, run by Gang-du's father, is as lively as Gang-du himself. Even after losing his father, Gang-du carries on life in the shop as normal. The shop is housed in a shipping container 5 meters long, 3.5 meters high and 2.5 meters deep.
The shop was created temporarily for the film set. It was put up in Yeouido Hangang Riverside park for the duration of filming, then taken down again. It was built to look just like any of the real shops found in parks along the river.

 

 

The structure from which the monster dangles in this scene is the Seogang Bridge. The people in the park still have no idea what it is, and are abuzz with excitement, watching it with curiosity as it hangs from the steel beams under the bridge.

 

 

 

 

The scene where Gang-du's family first goes head to head with the monster, on a rainy day, was filmed at the southern end of Dongjak Bridge in Hangang Riverside Park. Audiences were left choked up by this scene, in which Hyun-seo's grandfather, Hee-bong, is killed while fighting the monster.

 

# Final fight scene: family vs. monster
 

The scene at the climax of <The Host>, in which Gang-du and other members of his family including brother and sister Nam-il and Nam-joo, fight their final battle against the monster, was filmed in Ichon Hangang Riverside Park, at the northern end of Wonhyo Bridge.

 

 

# Nam-joo chases the monster
 

 

The scene in which Gang-du's sister, Nam-joo, chases the monster along a platform beneath a bridge while carrying a huge archery bag on her back, features Hangang Railway Bridge. The mere sight of Nam-joo making her way through the steel structure is enough to make the audience feel dizzy. 

 

 

 

 
Following the appearance of the monster, the police and army begin measures to disinfect the river in the belief that the creature is spreading a virus: this scene was filmed on Jungji-do, at the southern end of Hangang Bridge.

 

 

 

 

The scene where two fishermen catch a baby monster was filmed in the river below the northern end of Jamsil Bridge. This scene forewarns of the appearance of the terrible monster that shatters the peace of the Hangang.

 

 

The sewers that Gang-du's family roams in search of Hyun-seo are all real. The riverbanks contain labyrinths of storm drains and sewers that carry rainwater from the riverside skyscrapers, houses and roads into the river itself. Bong searched these networks high and low in order to find the sewers that appear in the film.

 

 

Below the northern end of Wonhyo Bridge is a sewer outlet with a diameter of 40 meters. This is where Nam-joo runs straight into the monster, and where Gang-du, still in his pajamas after escaping from hospital, searches for Hyun-seo.

 

 

 

Gang-du and Hee-bong search for Hyun-seo

 

 

 

 

Gang-du's family searches for Hyun-seo in a sewer

From early on, Seoul Metropolitan Government gave plenty of support for the filming of <The Host>. It not only waived the fee for the use of the Hangang Riverside Parks, but also allowed filming to take place on Bamseom Island, normally a closed area. The city government also permitted the temporary relocation of streetlights and other municipal facilities for filming. The people of Seoul, meanwhile, endured various inconveniences caused by the filming while offering active cooperation. This was the background that enabled production of <The Host>.

 

<The Host> rendered the Hangang River, a familiar place to the people of Seoul, new and unfamiliar. It played a role in creating a new image for Seoul and the river. The 29 bridges linking both halves of the city; the dark, gloomy concrete caves along the riverbanks; and the tangle of storm drains and sewers allowed the rediscovery of the river through the film. Based on thorough location scouting, the familiar, ordinary, everyday spaces of the Hangang became globally unique film locations. Returning to these spots along the actual river allows us to feel the emotions of the film all over again.