Parasite (dir. Bong Joon-Ho)

santana75

Saw this tonight and its another film that is way overhyped. I saw mark kermode's review where he absolutely raved about it. He's seen it 5 times already. That sold me along with the universally glowing reviews. But it's just not as good as everyone is making it out to be. It's alright, I'm not saying it's a bad movie, but personally I found it mediocre. It's up for best picture tomorrow alongside Once upon a time in Hollywood and for my money the latter is the better film, by quite some way. It starts off well and the middle section is interesting but the last third of the film is farcical and I found myself losing interest.

I saw it in the cinema last summer, watched it a week ago with my brother, and am thinking about watching it again today. It just works so well for me, but I can see why the final third could throw some people.

RasTa

I think I hyped this film up too much. Tis good but didn't suck me in like the Lighthouse.

mikhail

I enjoyed this a lot! It's a bit like a good heist movie in that there's humour and satisfaction in seeing the con artistry (however horrifying some of the details) unfurl. It finds so many great situations to mine the tension of someone nearly getting caught. Ultimately, it isn't afraid to have a complex ending, or at least not a simple happy ever after. The class commentary adds an interesting edge to it, but doesn't get preachy like too many modern US movies. As others have commented, it looks great. The geography of the Park home is used to great effect to show people spying, hiding, or simply having multiple threads of the narrative almost colliding. The language is playful, from the various connotations loaded onto the term 'sis' as wielded by the three older women, to the random use of English phrases as a sort of code signalling of class.

Fingers Mcginty

Not bad 6/10 for me. IMO this film is way overhyped.

MJohnston

Who cares about the hype? A review of a film that’s almost entirely based on what other reviews of the film have been saying is a pretty worthless thing.

A film will live a long, long time past the point where people remember hype or not, so try and take these things on their own merits instead of reacting to the noise around you. Otherwise, honestly, most comments I see that mention hype, I pretty much always write off as trying too hard to seem contrarian, and I think most people do this too.

speedboatchase

One of the most inventive movies I've seen in years.

Quartzy99

Really good movie, original with clever plot.
Would recommend avoiding reading any reviews before you go to see it!

mailburner

loved it also and I fancy it will be the first foreign movie to
take home the best picture oscar

johnny_ultimate

Never thought an Oscar win would put a big smile on my face, but so happy this emerged victorious.

I’ve been watching Bong Joon Ho films in the cinema since The Host, and it brings me nothing but joy to see him finally breaking through and shattering the limits of what foreign language filmmakers can achieve. Delighted the win will also make this film even more widely seen (not that it needed the help - apparently this is shattering foreign language cinema records after being released on Friday).

Incredibly nice guy; masterpiece of a film; Oscar history made (in a good way, for a change). That’s a good Monday morning.

brevity

Yea, very happy for everyone involved. It’s a super film. Would love to see it in the cinema again.

p to the e

I've been waiting to see this for months and I resisted the urge to download it (legally of course) as I felt it warranted a cinema visit. What I felt this film was was an experience. People can be forgiven for thinking that film and/or cinema is about entertainment. They can forget that it is also, in its purest sense, an artform. Films don't just have to entertain us by blindly leading us through one happy scene after another but can also be used to shock, confuse, arouse and many other emotions against our will.

That's what Parasite is. It's an experience that you just have to let the director take you where he wants to go. You think it's going one way then it decides to veer left and confound you. You're presented with so little about the characters yet you know so much. I've been entertained by other films more this year but none have had the lasting impression on me like Parasite.

Note: Song Kang-ho has impressed me since I saw him in "Memories of Murder", his first film to collaborate with Bong Jon-ho. It's great to see him start to get the international acclaim he deserves although a best actor nomination for a non English speaking role might have been a bit too much for the academy this time.

Technocentral

Very much enjoyed it but not as good as the Irishman, 1917 or Joker for me.

Technocentral

"the last third of the film is farcical and I found myself losing interest"?

You do know its a satire right!!

spurious

Delighted it won. Looking forward to watching it again.

Hrududu

Saw this at the weekend and really enjoyed it. Had no idea what to expect going in. I haven’t seen 1917 yet to compare them but delighted it took home Best Picture. It’s rare that I enjoy the types of films that end up winning that award.

MJohnston

I can’t help but keep thinking about that sequence when they’re returning home in the rain - it’s so filled with silent subtext, and also manages to look like something Hayao Miyazaki might animate. Stunning moment.

sporina

i actually plan to go to see it again... what a masterpiece - not a lover of the Oscars but delighted for the director none the less..
what a rollercoaster of a movie. and so intelligently written - man - nothing but respect for these people.. wow.. love the Arts

johnny_ultimate

Caught it again yesterday, thankfully with a decent few weeks gap between viewings.

Two words I'd use to describe the film (beyond the usual gushing adjectives ) are light-footed and precise.

Light-footed because it flows like a dream. It's a rare feat for someone to make a film that is as formally and thematically rigorous as this one while still being such a wild, exciting film to watch. Didn't notice the overt Hitchcock nod the first time, but Bong is one of the few filmmakers to be playing in the master's ballpark in that sense. It's thrilling and funny, with many lengthy sequences - like the

peaches

montage or the entire 45 mins long stretch that unfolds

after the doorbell ominously rings

- being masterful examples of pulpy filmmaking. Whole thing grabbed my attention from the off and never let up, twice now. Especially impressive given how bleak some of the subtexts and later proceedings are. But like Hitchcock films, this one is so playful - indeed, both love trolling the audience in their own way, constantly upending our expectations of the story and characters.

But then equally - and this is where the precision comes in - there's the command over tone, imagery and form: whether that's the brilliant motif of characters ascending and descending stairs to underscore the wild class dynamics at play here, or the incredible set design in the house which is immediately an all-timer of a film setting (that dark door down to the basement alone is such a potent image). Jung Jae-il's score is something I appreciated much more second time around - waltzing almost imperceptibly between farce and tension, and helping Bong land the tonal dance.

I know the ending has left some cold, but for me there's one key scene early on that underscores why it works.

When they're all in the evac centre after the flood, Kim Ki-taek's points out the only plan that always work is no plan. So when his son starts imagining this perfect plan to buy the house himself and a perfect family reunion, to me it's a sort of tragedy and hopelessness. I'm usually not a big fan of a film fading to black late in the game before fading back in, but Bong does it so well here - we get the dream, but then we sadly fade back to reality, the camera dipping back into the basement apartment one last time.

p to the e

Interesting article about the theme of smells in Parasite.

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2020/feb/13/parasite-smell-bong-joon-ho

gmisk

johnny_ultimate wrote: »

Caught it again yesterday, thankfully with a decent few weeks gap between viewings.

Two words I'd use to describe the film (beyond the usual gushing adjectives ) are light-footed and precise.

Light-footed because it flows like a dream. It's a rare feat for someone to make a film that is as formally and thematically rigorous as this one while still being such a wild, exciting film to watch. Didn't notice the overt Hitchcock nod the first time, but Bong is one of the few filmmakers to be playing in the master's ballpark in that sense. It's thrilling and funny, with many lengthy sequences - like the

peaches

montage or the entire 45 mins long stretch that unfolds

after the doorbell ominously rings

- being masterful examples of pulpy filmmaking. Whole thing grabbed my attention from the off and never let up, twice now. Especially impressive given how bleak some of the subtexts and later proceedings are. But like Hitchcock films, this one is so playful - indeed, both love trolling the audience in their own way, constantly upending our expectations of the story and characters.

But then equally - and this is where the precision comes in - there's the command over tone, imagery and form: whether that's the brilliant motif of characters ascending and descending stairs to underscore the wild class dynamics at play here, or the incredible set design in the house which is immediately an all-timer of a film setting (that dark door down to the basement alone is such a potent image). Jung Jae-il's score is something I appreciated much more second time around - waltzing almost imperceptibly between farce and tension, and helping Bong land the tonal dance.

I know the ending has left some cold, but for me there's one key scene early on that underscores why it works.

When they're all in the evac centre after the flood, Kim Ki-taek's points out the only plan that always work is no plan. So when his son starts imagining this perfect plan to buy the house himself and a perfect family reunion, to me it's a sort of tragedy and hopelessness. I'm usually not a big fan of a film fading to black late in the game before fading back in, but Bong does it so well here - we get the dream, but then we sadly fade back to reality, the camera dipping back into the basement apartment one last time.

Brilliant take
Saw this tonight in packed screening.
Fantastic film had me totally hooked, south Korea produces some seriously good movies.
The ending worked for me.

bennyl10

This is a special, special movie.
The cinematography is stunning, and the story flows wonderfully.

Didn’t feel like over 2 hours at any point.

One of the best movies I’ve seen on a long, long time.

buried

Mighty entertainment. Just go in and watch it and try not to look up anything about it beforehand. Really brilliant night out.

El Duda

Parasite – 9/10

I went in cold and it took me a little while to adjust to big screen subtitles and to figure out what the hell was going on. Once this film grabs you it doesn’t let go. The sharp turns it takes are utterly enthralling. It sets up complex dynamics in such a delicate and effortless way.

Initial reaction was that this was an 8/10 but it has stuck with me. The more you think about it the more impressive it is. Bong Joon Ho has you in the palm of his hands and guides through this labyrinth of tension and classism. Not my personal favourite movie from this awards season but it is a deserved winner.

Optimalprimerib

Went to see it last night with 4 friends. After the film, we all brought something different out of it. The only thing that was common was that we all loved it.

ancapailldorcha

Absolute belter. Saw it earlier this week but unfortuantely got stuck behind some troglodyte with a mobile phone which ruined it somewhat.

sporina

ancapailldorcha wrote: »

Absolute belter. Saw it earlier this week but unfortuantely got stuck behind some troglodyte with a mobile phone which ruined it somewhat.

why didn't you discretely tap them on the shoulder and ask them to put it away?

ancapailldorcha

sporina wrote: »

why didn't you discretely tap them on the shoulder and ask them to put it away?

Didn't want to risk making a scene. He was already an inconsiderate twat. Shame as I feel like there's one truly excellent film a year at my local Cineworld and this was it.

Relikk

ancapailldorcha wrote: »

Absolute belter. Saw it earlier this week but unfortuantely got stuck behind some troglodyte with a mobile phone which ruined it somewhat.

My last screening of this had someone in front of me (only once though, thankfully) with the brightness cranked all the way up during some of the more dimly lit scenes for about 5 minutes. And of course the incessant rustling of a flimsy packet of whatever behind me throughout the entire film.

Bugger off. :rolleyes:

mikhail

Relikk wrote: »

My last screening of this had someone in front of me (only once though, thankfully) with the brightness cranked all the way up during some of the more dimly lit scenes for about 5 minutes. And of course the incessant rustling of a flimsy packet of whatever behind me throughout the entire film.

Bugger off. :rolleyes:

People who take out their phones in the cinema after the film starts should be tarred and feathered. Not metaphorically. We should paint them with boiling tar and stick feathers to them. I'd make an exception for doctors on call. The feathers probably wouldn't be hygienic.