Nickel Review of “Parasite”

Nickel Review: 5 Categories, 5 Words
Feature Review of “Parasite”

Cinematography: fastidious
Score & Sound: prosaic
Art & Wardrobe: discordant
Story: ensconced
Acting: beguiling

Nickel Rating: 4/5¢

Cinematography: From the first scene, you can clearly see Bong Joon-ho’s fastidious blocking at work. Every frame is diligently crafted to show you the characters, how they interact with their settings, and what that tells us about them. There are no stacking issues to be found, and each scene is filled to the brim with little gems of info. More specifically, Bong Joon-ho takes this opportunity to highlight a society divided, utilizing bleak and sterile light for the protagonist family’s compromised situation versus the vibrant tungsten paired with softer lenses to lift the audience into the wealthy family’s home.

Score & Sound: The piece’s bubbly soundtrack is the only aspect lost on me. It did not luster like the rest of the quality of the experience. They do say that subtle sound design is a win, but this was a missed opportunity to accentuate the parasitic themes at play. It was prosaic, telling us what is necessary about the audio of the world, and not much more than that.

Art & Wardrobe: The film highlights the discordant disparity of wealth in the films world with grace and elegance. You’re first thrust into the pauper world of the protagonist with the vivid, relocatable imagery of siphoning their neighbors Wi-Fi. As the family’s conditions improve, so do their wardrobes and home appliances. The film masterfully depicts the struggle of the lower class in contrast to the whims and pleasures of the bourgeois.

Story: Each of the characters presented here is has an ensconced agenda. They present themselves strictly in a particular, specifically to conceal their true intention. This intention is so far removed from who they present themselves to be, that any suspicions fall flat, if they arise at all. There are master manipulators at work, all struggling for a piece of the pie in a socioeconomically divided setting.

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Acting: Casting truly had its work cut out with this piece. You needed talent that could master the call to action: actors that can act like people who are also acting like other people. In a beguiling manner, the protagonist’s family is able to parasite themselves off of this wealthy family in creative and charming ways. For the while, the family is none the wiser. Happy masks are worn by the entire cast, with a veiled perspective beneath.

Nickel Rating: 4/5¢: Parasite is a film that everyone needs to see; fully deserving of it’s recent plaudits. Filmmakers will have a unique appreciation for its composition, as it is such a lovingly crafted piece where every department shines throughout. Get over the subtitles hurdle, and watch this magnificent piece of art.

Warm Regards,
Nick Candido

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