2019--Parasite, Bong Joon-Ho

2019--Parasite, Bong Joon-Ho 

Nominated: Ford Vs Ferrari, The Irishman, JoJo Rabbit, Joker, Little Women, Marriage Story, 1917, Once Upon A Time...In Hollywood

Should Have Won: 1917

Be sure to see: Booksmart, Good Boys, Knives Out, Late Night, Midsommer, Queen and Slim, Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark,  Toy Story 4, The Upside, Us

"You know what kind of plan never fails? No plan at all."--Ki-Taek Kim 

In the Academy Awards' 92 year history, only one horror movie has won the best picture honor. A couple more should have won like The Exorcist and Rosemary's Baby. Of course 2017's The Shape of Water was a throwback to 1950s Universal Monster movies and a couple more have been nominated. Parasite,  2019's winner, might not fall into the horror category in the traditional sense but it certainly teeters on the edge of the genre. It has many horror trappings ranging from brutal knife violence to suspense to using secret identities to accomplish unethical results. As much as I enjoy these themes, I'm hesitant to agree with the movie being a best picture caliber movie, though I am glad to see the pendulum swing. 

The destitute Kim family is living in a basement, making their living folding pizza boxes. The son, Ki-woo, gets word the wealthy Park family needs an English tutor for their child. Upon seeing how well-to-do the Parks are, the rest of the Kims pose as unrelated people yet highly qualified potential employees. Until this point, the film is played out like a drama, as most best picture winners are. It is when the Kims begin their employment with the Parks that the movie shows a darker side. 

Kim daughter Ki-Jung poses as an art therapist for the Park's son. She frames the Park's chauffeur for sexual misconduct so her father can take his job. But it is how Chung-Sook (the Kim wife) infiltrates the housekeeper role intrigued me most. It is the only time I've ever seen a peach allergy and a packet of hot sauce used to end a career.  It is in the is segment of the movie where elements of other filmmakers' styles shine through. The way this scene mixes up the lineage of the narrative is straight out of Quentin Tarantino's playbook. The technique is not a flashback, per se, but as Ki-Taek (the husband/chauffeur) is talking to Mrs. Park about a possible incriminating picture he "accidentally" took, the movie flashes back to the family practicing their lines of how this encounter should play out.  This is one of my favorite scenes. The rehearsal part is pretty realistic. In an Oceans Eleven-type movie, there would be no hiccups in the rehearsal. A plan would be quickly discussed, then carried out. But the Kims are not professionals so going over the plan doesn't go as smoothly as they'd hoped. Once the family takes over as various caregivers in the Park house is when we see where the title comes from. The poor destitute Kims leach onto the Parks and when the Parks are away on a camping trip, the Kims are hanging out at their house. A key piece of dialogue is spoken about the class system and the reasons the Kims want to carry out this plot. This is a key moment in the movie, I think. Until this point, I'd say the Kims are villains. They are dishonest and have corrupted lives. But if their actions are to better themselves and pointing out the haves vs the have nots, how much can they be faulted? 

The last third of the movie kicks in when Moon-Gwang, the Parks' former housekeeper, reappears because she had forgotten something in the basement when she was fired. The comedy fades away and the movie turns sinister, violent, and, in the tradition of lots of Asian horror movies, just plain weird. There are scenes that reminded me of so many other movies I have seen or emotions I have felt while watching some classics. When the Kims are hiding under tables and beds in hope they won't be discovered, I got worried they would be discovered. Then I remembered we really should not be rooting for this family since they are the dishonest ones. This aspect held elements of Double Indemnity or Psycho. The linear mix up in the sabotage of the housekeeper  is a Tarantino staple but there is also a moment where somewhat of a hostage situation takes place not by a gun or a bomb, but by the threat of hitting a send button on a phone. Remember the opening scene in Pulp Fiction? This whole segment is the apex of this movie. We figured sooner or later the Kims' luck would run out but not in this way. From the time Moon-Gwang appears to check on what she had left until the credits roll, it was one surprise, shock, or flash of violence after another. Then, in a surprise, the final couple of minutes touch a completely different set of emotions. Pretty sentimental actually when compared to the previous half hour.  I was extremely surprised this movie was even considered a best picture contender. The violence in Silence of the Lambs had a sort of elegance to it, perhaps fooling the Academy. Parasite is a hateful and murky violent movie...well the final act anyway. Other than Moon-Gwang and her secret, there are really no characters to root for. Even the Park family, though they did nothing wrong, aren't particularly likeable.  Or maybe they are likeable but Ki-Taek Kim's interpretation of them to his family had me believing him, too. In a way, the Kim family tricked me just as much as they had tricked the Parks. 

I really did enjoy the movie and I'm glad it won simply because a movie with such creepy themes hardly ever gets recognized. I don't really agree with it though. 1917 or Tarantino's Once upon a time in Hollywood would have been better choices. But it really is a movie fan's movie, I think. Either intentionally or unintentionally, I picked up on nods to lots of older movies.  I noticed aspects that reminded me of Pulp Fiction, Double Indemnity, Rear Window, Psycho, Dial M for Murder,  Abbot and Costello Meet Frankenstein, The Hand That Rocks the Cradle, JoJo Rabbit, The Boy, and a milliion movies where people are hiding for an extended period of time with the danger mere feet away. I think this movie has many themes but the one I took to the most is who do we root for? Is it ok to root for the bad guys every now and then? 

Note: Parasite was the 11th foreign language film to be nominated for best picture and the first to win. Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon is the only other one I've seen. Also, this was the final best picture winner of the decade. I'll rank them here from my favorite to tenth favorite.

1. The Shape of Water, 2017
2. Parasite, 2019
3. The Artist, 2011
4. Argo, 2012
5. Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance), 2014
6. 12 Years a Slave 2013
7. Green Book 2018
8. The King's Speech 2010
9. Spotlight 2015
10. Moonlight 2016