Parasite (2019) – 8/10 – Fresh, dark thriller drama on society’s class struggle
PARASITE is a South Korean drama thriller about an impoverished family’s racket to defraud a wealthy family that goes wrong. The director, Bong Joon Ho, is a top South Korean director and is famous for his amazing film MEMORIES OF MURDER. I have viewed many films, and this makes my top 100. Nevertheless, it won the 2020 Oscars for Best Motion Picture, Best Achievement in Directing, Best Original Screenplay, and Best International Film. I think 1917, JOKER, and FORD V. FERRARI deserve the 2020 Oscar for Best Motion Picture.
The Kims are a poor Korean family living in a basement apartment in Seoul. The family includes the parents, father Ki-taek and mother Chung-sook, and their two adult children, son Ki-woo and daughter Ki-jung. They are all unemployed, and their old apartment is in disarray. Ki-woo’s friend is attending university and needs someone to help tutor the wealthy Park’s daughter in his place. Ki-woo gets the job after lying about his education. He then finds out Mrs. Park is searching for an art therapist for their little son. Ki-woo lies about his college friend being a therapist and brings his sister instead to take advantage of the Parks’ gullibility. He continues the scam with two other servants, bringing in both his parents under fake names to replace those positions. However, their plans soon unravel and things go wrong.
PARASITE is a fresh movie that I enjoyed, even if it’s not as flawless as the reviews make it appear. The directing, cinematography, script, dark atmosphere, and editing stood out to me. The technicals were on point. Although the cast performed well, the characters were unlikable. I didn’t sense a connection or relation to them until near the end. It’s okay to feel conflicted about whom to root for, but it’s frustrating when you find each character obnoxious and out of touch with reality. The script and dialogue were decent. This film considers themes such as poverty, class struggle, mistreatment of the poor by the rich (condescension), survival, and wealth inequality. The tragic reality reflects many people’s experiences, which I found relatable. Most of the class struggle material is accurate, but that wasn’t the problem. As for specific issues, I’m uncertain about the ending. The ending came up short, and I deducted a point for it. Unlike MEMORIES OF MURDER, which impressed and inspired me to watch more films by this director, this movie left me underwhelmed.
Few interesting tidbits from IMDb trivia. They built the two houses from scratch inside a massive water tank for this film. This was one of three films ever to win both Palme d’Or and Oscar for Best Picture after THE LOST WEEKEND (1945) and MARTY (1955). It’s also the first Korean film to win either award. The hi-tech trashcan used in Parks’s rich house costs $2,300 because it makes no sound and opens/closes smoothly.
Would I recommend this? I believe it’s worthwhile because the story is original and new. I watched it based on the high IMDb score and recall it winning multiple Oscars. Maybe I missed certain things, but I hoped for more, considering the hype. There’s still depth in its take on society’s ongoing class struggle, but more likable characters and a stronger ending would raise my rating. If you’re okay with subtitles, then see it. My rating is 8/10.
*Any trivia facts were obtained from IMDB’s trivia page and plot/basic history/name information from Wiki
