PARASITE: A Deliciously Cinematic Experience Only Bong Joon-ho Could Create

Ever since its Palme d’Or winning debut at Cannes, Parasite has been accumulating buzz like a virulent bloodsucker. This level of acclaim can often serve as unnecessary baggage for a film, especially when audiences are tasked with consolidating expectations with the reality of the product itself. Fortunately for Bong Joon-ho, he need not worry about said baggage, as his latest effort is truly a cinematic masterpiece.

Set in modern day South Korea, Parasite revolves around a family of four played by Song Kang-ho (a Bong Joon-ho regular), Hyae Jin Chang, Choi Woo-shik and Park So-dam. Living life in a way that seems to border on the poverty line, they somehow find themselves working for a much wealthier family through unexpected circumstances. And what starts off as an amicable relationship eventually evolves into something much more complex and sinister.

The Essence of Bong Joon-ho

Like all of Bong’s previous films, Parasite has a certain cinematic quality to it. In a sense, every frame and transition just feels deliciously cinematic. This is admittedly a pretty vague statement, and arguably applicable to any product of the medium. But anyone familiar with his work will likely know what I’m referring to here.

Be it a mundane conversation around a crowded dinner table or a massive pig-like creature running down a busy street (a la Okja), Bong has a certain command to the filmmaking process that renders every scene perpetually exciting. There’s an embedded echo of both intensity and playfulness throughout Parasite, and it’s a quality that seems to be present in all of his films. It’s unclear how he’s able to pull this off every single time, but to the benefit of his growing audience base, he somehow manages to.

Another essential quality to any Bong Joon-ho film is the effortless juxtaposition of comedy and tragedy within its narrative. Thanks to its standout ensemble cast, Parasite is thoughtfully witty and deservedly funny from start to finish. I can’t remember the last time I had this much fun watching a dramatic feature.

But seeping out of this entertaining through line are much more serious undertones, which culminate in a tragic finale that feels both surprising and expected. The seeds of what might come, at least tonally, are planted right from the start. It’s a masterful way of filmmaking that helps punctuate the final turn of events in the film.

Capturing the Division of Class in Society

Despite all the twists and turns in Parasite, the film never loses sight of the social commentary pulsating through its main narrative. This is by and large a story about the division of class in society, captured through a struggling family on the brink of financial desperation. Their interactions with a much wealthier family as the hired help forms a seemingly mutually beneficial relationship in the beginning, but as reality kick in, there’s clearly a divide. The question is, which side is actually the parasite, and which is the unassuming victim?

As one would expect, there’s no clear answer here. Instead, we get a nuanced examination of whether a truly symbiotic relationship between classes is even possible. What’s particularly striking here is that Bong expresses all this primarily through his actors, and not necessarily through the film’s tantalizing story line. There are a slew of captured facial expressions that say more than any words or narrative device could hope to evoke.

All performances are unique and impressive in their own way, and collectively, create a wall of emotion that caves in on the viewer. Even if you might not relate to these characters’ social circumstances, you’ll have no problems relating to their inner turmoil as human beings. It’s essentially what cinema is all about.

Awards Buzz and the Divide in Cinematic Journalism

After making its rounds through the fall festival circuit and having already captured the admiration of audiences back home (it was released in South Korea back in May 2019), the conversation has shifted to whether Parasite will become South Korea’s first Oscar winner for Best International Feature Film. As if being the country’s first film to nab the top prize at Cannes wasn’t enough! But in all seriousness, conversations like this have no actual bearing on a film’s cinematic merits, and anyone serious about cinema will know this to be true. And this rings especially true for a film as accomplished as Parasite.

Having said that, the amount of North American press speculating whether or not Parasite can do what Shoplifters couldn’t in 2018 (after also winning the Palme d’Or at Cannes the same year) is hard to ignore. And it almost speaks to a division in cinematic journalism itself, whereby a critically acclaimed film is somehow only half of the equation. After all, garnering award recognition is perhaps still more of a universal currency when it comes to the mainstream admiration of a film. And winning an Oscar is still seen as the crown jewel for cinematic achievement in the eyes of the general public, no matter which part of the world you live in.

Which one is more important? Like the division of class noted in Parasite, there might also be a divide here. And on another eerily similar note, both critics and awards buzz seem to feed off each other in a symbiotic way. It’s an oddly meta-focused concept that bears so much more relevance given Parasite’s subject matter.

Parasite: Conclusion

What everyone will likely agree on, regardless of one’s inclination towards film criticism versus Hollywood awards glory, is that Parasite is truly a cinematic marvel. It’s a film that will take some time to digest, especially after your first viewing. There’s a lot of intricate commentary and emotions to process, and it’s hard not to be shaken to your core by the time the credits roll.

What requires no time to digest at all, is the amazing cinematic experience that the great Bong Joon-ho has crafted here. Parasite is cinema at its very best, and will continue to be lauded as a timeless masterpiece.

---

Watch Parasite