Excellent film, with very unique and effective techniques

Rating: 10/10 (17 February 2020)

Parasite is Bong Joon-Ho's latest political thriller, and definitely his most complex one yet. Similarly to his 2013 sci-fi film Snowpiercer, Parasite follows a group of people ignoring their standard place in society, and trying to climb up the social ladder to the rich and powerful. Unlike Snowpiercer, however, Parasite's view of social classes is much less simplistic. Using only 10 characters and a single household, Bong Joon-Ho tells an incredibly truthful and realistic portrayal of modern times. The more the family of 4 protagonists disrupts social order, the more they uncover about how society is run.
The movie follows many different perspectives of the world, perspectives that other characters aren't aware exist. Mainly, ignorant rich people, and the workers who are scamming them. Due to the increasing amount of perspectives throughout the movie, many normal things begin to seem quite ridiculous. What some characters think of as master plans no longer seem as masterful to the audience, and what are some characters' pleasant memories of harmless fun, are for others' intense near-death experiences. This type of divide in viewpoints both further shows the divide in social classes and creates some of the most hilarious moments in cinema. However, Parasite is not only a satire on social structure, but also one on modern art, education, technology, social norms, business, and Korean politics, making for a story covering multiple aspects of society.
While most directors' first foray into another genre is usually noticeably shoddy, Joon-Ho Bong's first primarily comedic film is actually much better than most comedies written nowadays. Instead of taking the modern approach of making unclever jokes and then stretching it out until it becomes painfully obvious to every single member of the audience, Parasite follows the old method of screen comedy used by many early Hollywood writers, and most notably, later by the Cohen brothers. Many segments of the movie will contain multiple concealed jokes in each sentence of dialogue or corner of a shot. While it is true that they happen too quickly and too obscurely for a given audience member to understand every joke, they also create a movie that is much more satisfying on rewatches, or even just in retrospect. 2 different audiences will laugh at 2 completely different parts of a scene. While cell phone use may seem normal to younger audience members, older ones will more easily notice the ridiculousness of them. Korean and American audiences read the meanings of scenes in 2 different regards, with some things only noticeable to one of the cultures. All of this makes for viewing experiences that actually follows the previously mentioned satirical formula of the movie.
Aside from (usually satirical) juxtaposition, there is another major technique used throughout the film to make it more intense and interesting. This is tied to one of the movies main messages: that life never goes as planned. This is either hinted at or proven in almost every scene, starting with the first, in which the wife jests to her husband after their wifi goes down, "What's your plan?". This line is followed by a shot of her athletic medals, obviously showcasing the fact that her early life plan to become a professional athlete did not go as expected. There are many other lines in the same vein as this one. At one point, one of the main characters blatantly admits their philosophy in life is that "the best plan is to have no plan". In general, it feels as though Bong Joon-Ho's technique in writing the more intense sequences in the movie was to make sure that, no matter what, nothing would ever go as planned for any of the characters. This ensured that the audience will always be on edge as to what would happen next, and most of the film's major and minor plot twists or advancements are due to this.
I think the best example of all of this is during the sequence when the rich family is out of town. The protagonists expected to be able to relax for the next couple of days, and even talk about what they want to do later in life, like one day being able to buy a nice house just like that one. This doesn't go as planned when the old maid arrives and ruins everything. Later on, the maid and her husband act the same way, abusing their power to relax and daydream about the old days when they felt free and alive. They many references to North Korea, probably hinting at themes that American audience members (such as myself) don't fully understand. Their expectation too goes haywire when the protagonists charge them and take the phone. Another plot twist occurs when the rich family suddenly call the house saying that they'll be home in a few minutes. Another great example of differing perspectives can be found as the family arrive at home to nice meals and a clean house, unaware of all that is happening behind the scenes and that they are in the middle of a fast-paced, intense action sequence.