Some Thoughts on Parasite and Us

[unspeakablehorror]

Parasite had such an immense emotional impact on me. It's given me much to think about.  But I haven't been able to watch it again.  Because watching it was like...ripping away the veil of tolerability to show society at its bleakest.  I'll be thinking about it for a long time though, whether I have the courage to rewatch it again or not.  One thing I find so fascinating about Parasite is that...

(under a cut because while there are no specifics the following could be considered mild spoilers about the protagonists of the film)

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...it doesn't depend on the virtuousness of it's protagonists to convey its horror.  In fact its protagonists all at various points engage in some pretty deplorable acts.  I feel like some people completely miss the point of this because it doesn't fit into the narrative of virtuous impoverished victim who exists only to be pitied.  

But I think it's much more real in conveying the desperation of existing at the margins and how suffering and loss doesn't necessarily make someone a better person. And I think it's also much more real about  what 'pulling yourself up by your bootstraps' entails in a cutthroat world of dwindling opportunity.

 

Meanwhile I've already seen Jordan Peele's Us twice and even though it is a scary, scary film on more than one level it's also just...way more cheery while still going some bleak places.

Both films employ quite a bit of humor and deftly mix it with drama and horror.  I also thought it was cool that Bong Joon-Ho namedropped Us in the interview I watched of him talking about Parasite, not long after I'd watched Us myself.  The movies definitely have some overlapping themes and imagery, so I can see why he'd bring it up.

I probably sound like a film buff right now but in truth I usually don't watch many movies.  It's just lately that I've been going back and watching some of the many movies I haven't seen before.  Also, whenever I watch a film, I will then go read and watch a bunch of reviews on it so they can help me pick up on all the cool connections I missed.