Parasite (2019, Bong Joon-Ho) is a Korean comedy/thriller, which won Best Picture in the 2020 Oscar Academy Awards. It is renowned for being the first foreign film to win this prestigious award and this marks a key point in history. The film revolves around the struggling Kim family who seek out an opportunity to usurp the places of the working class members who serve the wealthy Park family.
The narrative format and structure of Parasite is extremely interesting. The film is initially established as a light-hearted comedy in which the Kim family frolic their way into a position of power, in which each family member occupies a different role. Ki-taek becomes the family’s chauffeur, Choong-sook becomes the maid, Ki-jung becomes the son’s art therapist and Ki-woo becomes the daughter’s English tutor.
However, near the end of the film’s second act, Parasite undergoes a dramatic tonal shift. The film shifts from a light-hearted comedy to a suspenseful thriller. Bong expertly executes this a naturally subtle way, through the narrative device of the video call between Choong-sook and Moon-gwang.
Personally, I was absolutely enthralled with Parasite from the first second until the last. Over the course of the film’s 2hr 12min runtime, I was highly entertained with every scene which were all crucial to the film’s plot. Parasite is a masterclass when it comes to pacing – no scene drags on for too long or rushes by too quickly; and this is perfectly demonstrated in the film’s 5 minute montage near the middle.
I think that the meaning Bong Joon-ho was trying to convey throughout the film was the social hierarchy portrayed throughout South Korea. The tonal dissonance in the film could potentially be a metaphor, with the wholesome comedy section representing the rose-tinted life that the Park family happily live through; whereas the Kim family’s poverty-stricken lifestyle is represented by the suspenseful and intense second half.
Otis Morley’s A-Level Film Studies Blog 