South Korean movie is original, witty and storytelling at its very best

Rating: 8/10 (2 November 2019)

"Parasite" (2019 release from South Korea; 132 min.) brings the story of the Kim family. As the movie opens, we get to know the family: they live in a semi-basement apartment, and mom and dad are out of work, and their teenage son and daughter aren't in much better shape. Then one day, the son's friend Min informs him that he is leaving the country, and that it would be good if the son takes over for him as the private English tutor of a HS sophomore girl, whose family is well-off, if not rich. The son agrees, and before we know it he is now the English tutor... At this point we are 10 min. into the movie but to tell you more of the plot would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.
Couple of comments: this is the latest film from Korean writer-director Bong Joon-ho, best known for his 2013 "Snowpiercer" film. Here he brings a one-of-a-kind story that is so plot-heavy that I cannot take any risks in spoiling anything, so my comments will be brief. Let me say this: there is a good reason that "Parasite" won the top prize (Palme d'or) at this year's Cannes film festival, and I will already go on record that there is zero chance that this movie isn't getting an Oscar nomination early next year for Best Foreign Language movie. The movie is everything that Hollywood at its worst (with endless sequels, prequels, franchises and "re-imaginations") isn't: It's original, it's witty, and it's storytelling at its very best.
"Parasite" got a limited release in New York and LA in early October, and has gradually been rolling out to more cities. The movie opened this weekend at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati. Man, I couldn't wait to see this! The Friday late afternoon screening where I saw this at was attended okay but not great (10 people), but I am quite certain that as word of mouth gets around, this will find its box office legs in the weeks to come. If you are in the mood for a top=notch foreign movie that is original and witty and will have you on the edge of your seat, I'd readily suggest you run, don't walk, to check this out, be it at the theater, on Amazon Instant Video, or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray, and draw your own conclusion.