An Ongoing Metaphor About Class Struggle

Rating: 9/10 (8 November 2019)

GRADE: B+
THIS FILM IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
IN BRIEF: Brilliantly directed, Parasite is a dark satire about class warfare that burrows into your moviegoing pleasure and doesn't let go.
JIM'S REVIEW: Korean director Bong Joon-ho is a very versatile talent whose work is always visionary and highly personal, but not always successful due to his penchant for overstatement. His film subjects most always deal with social issues and oppressive forces against the common man. Yet, his films can range to a host of genres, from horror film to surreal sci-fi to political satire. One cannot easily pigeonhole this director and even his lesser films which become borderline contrived, still contain powerful messages about greed, consumerism, and class struggles.
Parasite may be his best film to date. It is a thrilling and complicated tale that keeps the moviegoer guessing its outcome. The film starts out as a dark comedy, then suddenly veers into pure satire before finishing its journey as a crime story. It is an exhilarating ride. Dare I say, very twisted, metaphorically speaking.
The literate screenplay by Han Jin-won and co-authored by the director contrasts two Korean families: the Kims, a clan of poor grifters living in squalor in a sub-basement apartment doing menial low-paying jobs just to get by, and the Parks, an affluent and dysfunctional family that take their wealth unwisely for granted. The Kims' work their way into the Parks' lives through their lies and deceptive action, all resulting in tragic events.
The script cleverly weaves The Kims' greedy scheming against the Parks' naivety and shallowness to a crescendo of mayhem and violence. The film does have one too many anti-climatic endings and needed a bit more concise storytelling for stronger impact, but Bong Joon-ho masterfully conveys his raging vision of the working class and the elite at war.
The cast is wonderful. Song Kang-ho is the impoverished patriarch and Jang Hye-jin is his shrewish wife. Choi Woo-shik is their idealistic son and Park So-dam is their wily daughter. They battle Lee Sun-kyan as a haughty businessman and Cho Yeo-jeong, in a scene-stealing role, as his fragile and dim wife.
Strong production values reinforce the sharp divide between the classes. Visually, the dirty and cramped cluttered apartment contrasts dramatically with the sunlit contemporary Architectural Digest prototypes created by designer Ha-jun Lee. Cinematographer Kyung-pyo Hong lenses the two settings, lighting one home in dark umber hues and claustrophobic low angles while using bright intense lighting to imply the stark formal symmetry of the other dwelling in order to establish the imbalance of both families.
Parasite is insightful and excels in its execution. Bong Joon-ho creates lasting images that correspond directly to his narratives. His film has much to say about the ongoing power struggle between those who have and those who have not. Simply put, it is one of the year's best films.