Hello and welcome to Foreign Movie Fridays, where each Friday, I’ll be taking a look at a well-known foreign film and giving my thoughts on it. I am a huge fan of foreign movies and this is something that I’ve been planning on for a while. So today, I’ll be taking a look at Bong Joon-Ho’s Academy Award-winning film, Parasite. In 2020, Parasite made history by becoming the first foreign film to win an Oscar, winning six awards, including Best Picture and Best Foreign Film. The film was also financially successful in South Korea and worldwide, becoming the highest-grossing South Korean film in history.
Having seen the film twice now, it’s no surprise why it received praise to me because Parasite is such a well-crafted film that showcases Bong Joon-Ho at the height of his talents.
The story of Parasite focuses on two families: the rich Park family and the poor Kim family, and a series of events are set into motion they the two families collide. Ki-taek’s son, Ki-Woo, poses as a university student to take over his job as an English tutor for the daughter of the wealthy Park family, which leads to the Kim family’s scheme to infiltrate the Park family’s household by posing as unrelated, highly qualified individuals.
I love how this movie manages to showcase the contrast between the rich family and the poor family, where we see the Kim family struggling to achieve their goals, while the Park family allows their wealth to get away with their troubles, not facing the consequences of their actions. It also takes a jab at the modern socio-economic state of South Korea, which treats the poor as the lower class. Bong Joon-Ho does a magnificent job of establishing these themes while also delivering an emotional journey to these characters and making the audience care about them.
The technical aspects of the film also elevate the viewing experience, as the set design does a brilliant job of showcasing the differences between the Park and Kim families, the cinematography showcases some beautiful imagery and the script manages to combine elements from different genres while also delivering a compelling story. The performances by the cast are nothing short of phenomenal, as each actor manages to make you feel what the characters are going through in the film and it’s hard not to relate to any of them.
Overall, it’s no secret to see why Parasite deserved its Oscar win.
As the film benefits from its gripping storyline, amazing performances, and brilliant twist that will keep the audience at the edge of their seat, and it will be hailed as one of the greatest films of all time. Take a bow, Mr. Joon-Ho.
Abdul
