A Solid Metaphor Film

Rating: 7/10 (24 March 2020)

Let me say right away here that "Parasite" may very well indeed be even better than a 7/10 star film. For my viewing experience, there were a number of factors that may well have dampened the overall experience. No matter how you slice it, though, "Parasite" is a solid metaphor film that engages both on surface and deep levels.
For a very basic overview, this film focuses on two families in South Korea: The Kims are the definition of poor, living in a cramped sub-street level apartment and barely scraping together enough to subside. The Parks are much wealthier, living in a spacious mansion and employee tutors, drivers, and a housekeeper. Through a serious of events both fortuitous and comical, all four Kims become employed (in varying capacities) by the Kims. The juxtaposition between "clans" is readily apparent, and brought to an even starker contrast when a momentous discovery changes/defines the entire back half of the film's narrative.
On the surface, "Parasite" is pretty entertaining, using a multi-genre approach to keep the viewer's interest. While watching, you will be treated to comedy, drama, farce, seriousness, etc. There is never a dull moment, in other words, and the acting is strong throughout. The subtitles only take a few minutes to get used to (from an American viewer perspective) and will quickly become second nature, so don't let that be the reason you may shy away from this movie.
More importantly, though, "Parasite" is also very much a metaphor movie, dealing with class structures and the fundamentals of capitalism itself. I won't go into spoiler details here, but there are much deeper meanings here than simply what is visually/physically portrayed. Multiple, deeper readings/viewings of the material are very easy to pick out and analyze.
Like I said in the opening paragraph, "Parasite" may be objectively higher than 7/10 stars. For me, though, it was watched during a nationwide pandemic state, in which it was hard to focus on the issues these filmmakers wanted to put forth. Also, and this is very much a personal preference, I prefer metaphor films to "sneak up on me" as opposed to knowing that going in. With this film, though, the cat was out of the bag after the Academy Awards, which is when it will garner the majority of its popular viewings. So, I knew to look for the "deeper stuff" from the get-go, and I feel like that may have influenced by overall viewing experience (and perhaps not for the better).
So, as of right now, I'm giving "Parasite" a 7/10 ranking. A solid film that I enjoyed, but not necessarily amongst my personal all-time favorites. Perhaps upon a second viewing in a different personal/social climate, it will climb the ranks further. It certainly won't go any lower.