Friday, November 22, 2019

[Review] Parasite


Get that money, but at what cost?

Following the dystopian crossover Snowpiercer, director Bong Joon-ho returns with Parasite, a South Korean tragicomedy and twisted economic parable that sneaks up on you and reverberates through your nerves.

On one side of town resides the Kim family. They’re living in poverty — I’m talking stink bugs on the table and bump your head in the bathroom type of poverty. On the other side of town lives the wealthy Park family —  I’m talking home is designed by a famous architect and the refrigerator is stocked with Voss water type of wealthy. The Kims hatch up a scheme to get on the Park family’s personal payroll. Fake your way into being tutors? Worth a try. Usurp the chauffeur? It might work. Take over the housemaid’s job? That’s the key. And, well, it’s only a matter of time before it all hits the fan. 

Parasite is an experimental petri dish of mixed genres and specimens of morality that are as murky as flooding sewer water. The plot transforms in three stages. The first stage unfolds like a sitcom — there’s funny dialogue, awkward predicaments, and deceptive and desperate con artistry that you can’t help but smirk and chuckle at. The middle stage turns into a thriller with infectious suspense that’ll make your pulse race. The final stage is more like a horror film, and I don’t mean in the supernatural or creepy crawly way — I mean in the horrific circumstances way. It’s a nightmare that’s all too real. 

The film is pristinely shot, and Bong Joon-ho’s direction is meticulous and affecting. Each and every cast member is excellent here, and their performances will stick with you. In the end, Parasite is a scathing and thought-provoking dissection of class conflicts and disparity. It feels like a dream, and yet it doesn’t.

( 8/10 )

2 comments:

  1. I really liked this too and I'm happy I got to see it. I was worried it was going to be one of those films I had to wait for DVD.

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  2. This sounds a lot different from Snowpiercer. It makes me want to see it. It's not showing yet in the theaters here, though.

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