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Sarah (7800 KP) rated Parasite (2019) in Movies

Jul 17, 2020  
Parasite (2019)
Parasite (2019)
2019 | Drama
Deserving of the hype
I very rarely rate Oscar winners when I eventually see them. For me, apart from a few exceptions, most tend to be overrated. However Parasite is definitely one of the exceptions.

It takes a lot of concentration to watch a foreign language film and constantly read the subtitles, but Parasite is that interesting and entertaining that I virtually forgot it was in Korean. I was so enthralled by the life and schemes of the Kim family. What surprised me the most was how funny this was. I'd been expecting a serious drama and whilst it was serious in parts, the first half of the film is quite humorous watching the Kim family scheme their way into the lives of the Parks. It really is a crazy plot but that's what makes it so enjoyable to watch. And the final act of the film is bonkers yet a work of absolute genius - I never would've predicted that the film would turn out that way.

There are a lot of great things about this film - a fantastic script, a clear message on the divide between rich and popt and a plot spanning a variety of genres from drama, comedy to even horror. It's wonderfully directed too and there's no surprise on the Oscar for that one. It's not perfect, there are a few niggles and unbelievable elements. But for the most part, this is a brilliant film. Is it deserving of the hype? Absolutely. Is it deserving of the Oscar? Possibly. Most likely. It's definitely as deserving as 1917 was, despite them being polar opposites.
  
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Jeff Nichols recommended Dreams (1990) in Movies (curated)

 
Dreams (1990)
Dreams (1990)
1990 | International, Drama, Sci-Fi
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Movie Favorite

"Let’s tall about Kurosawa‘s Dreams. When Bravo first came on television, they were figuring out who they were as a cable network and would just play random foreign films. This was before the travesty of reality television permeated their station. I was at home alone in high school, I think I was a junior in high school and Dreams comes on by Kurosawa. I could not separate myself from it. I didn’t know who Kurosawa was — I didn’t care. I was just a kid absorbing things that flashed on the screen in front of him. I was immediately captivated by this thing that was at once beautiful — obviously surreal — but at the same time palpable enough to actually hit home emotionally. I think not many people would probably describe scenes in my movies as surreal, but there are some. Kind of this magical realism that exists in that film. Also it feels ancient; it feels like when this boy comes home having witnessed the wedding of foxes and his mother’s there and says he can’t enter the home because he spied on the foxes and then presents a dagger to him and says, “They want you to kill yourself. Run. Run and ask for forgiveness.” It feels like an ancient story, it feels like something — I’m not sure what. It feels like something that kind of bubbled up from our beginning. I was fascinated by that. Just go watch it. It’s all skits, it’s basically short films strewn together. Get’s real weird by the end, but the first three are three of the greatest films I’ve ever seen."

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The Painted Veil (2007)
The Painted Veil (2007)
2007 | Drama, Romance
If there's one thing John Curran excels at more than anything, it's evoking emotionally gut-wrenching performances out of his actors over a gorgeous backdrop & score to deliver not-great-not-awful dialogue for a potentially stimulating premise that deserves more than just the okay execution he ends up giving it. An oddly specific trademark, now that I think about it. As decent a recreation of an Old Hollywood romance as the year 2006 probably could have offered, with as skilled and engrossing performers such as Watts and Norton (finnicky accent from the latter aside - they're tremendous) this is still more than watchable in spite of its lack of any nuanced bone in its body. Could have rated this even higher to tell the truth - it is quite sophisticated and well paced after all - though not only does it rush itself out the door in its final scenes, but the age-old "white people save misguided foreign nation" stuff really turns me off here. It's like it intentionally brushes off all its politics in favor of ensuring these two white people remain relatively happy. At one point the Mother Superior gives an entire lecture about how Watts saving her own ass and finding her husband is more important religiously than staying and helping all of the deathly ill Chinese people and the horribly undermanned staff overseeing them. Not the only time it does something like that either, but for what it's worth this does it much less aggressively than other films like it, I guess? Wouldn't watch it again but I liked it, it is what it is.
  
American Made (2017)
American Made (2017)
2017 | Mystery
Biopics can be problematic in their attempt to retell history or use individual perspectives to inform their audience about events that many may already be familiar with. In American Made, Tom Cruise plays Barry Seal, a TWA pilot who is recruited by the CIA to fly reconnaissance missions in Central America. He soon finds himself at the center of drug trafficking, gun trafficking, and as a pawn of several different entities seeking to use his skills and expertise for their own purposes.

The film is ambitious in trying to tell serious historic events as a campy adventure in which Barry is care free despite the consequences of his actions. Nothing about the film seems right. It unfortunately, can make an audience feel uneasy cheering on a drug smuggler who is making inordinate amounts of money for some of the most dangerous individuals on the face of the earth.

A positive effect of the film is that it demonstrates to audiences the complexities of American Foreign policy, drug policy, and corruption that existed in the 1980s and that it shouldn’t be viewed with rose colored glasses. If anything, it may offer another perspective about the period that not too many people may be familiar with and create a desire in them to research more about the period and events.

American Made offers audiences a funny, introspective, personal account of one man’s experience working for the government and drug cartels that allows for a break from some of the more serious and dark portrayals that have typically been featured. Audiences will enjoy reminiscing about the 80s and think back to how complicated the period actually was.
  
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