Greed and class discrimination threaten the newly formed symbiotic relationship between the wealthy Park family and the destitute Kim clan.Greed and class discrimination threaten the newly formed symbiotic relationship between the wealthy Park family and the destitute Kim clan.Greed and class discrimination threaten the newly formed symbiotic relationship between the wealthy Park family and the destitute Kim clan.
- Won 4 Oscars
- 309 wins & 260 nominations total
- Ki Woo
- (as Choi Woo Shik)
- Ki Jung
- (as Park So Dam)
- Geun Se
- (as Park Myeong Hoon)
- Da Hye
- (as Jung Ziso)
- Da Song
- (as Jung Hyeon Jun)
- Driver Yoon
- (as Park Keun Rok)
- CEO of Pizza Place
- (as Jeung Esuh)
- Neighbor
- (as Jung Ik Han)
- Internet Cafe Staff
- (as Hwang In Kyung)
- Street Fighting Person 1
- (as Ahn Seong Bong)
- Street Fighting Person 2
- (as Kim Jin Hyung)
Summary
Featured reviews
Some crafty members of this underclass manage to con contemptuous rich man into employing them as his servants. For many Asians smell is a way to express utter contempt, and this is often directed against the white people, who, being able to process milk, smell "like butter" and are seen in rac ist light as unclean, but the same rac ist contempt is directed towards the poor. The poor accept these valuations and fight for the crumbles, like roaches in the dark, but in life and death situations, resentment might boil up and the contempt might cost the rich their empty heads.
The movie paints a sad picture of modern East Asian societies, with many subtle points, criticizes their culture and emulation of the America, with a few cruel but precise strokes. The sheer talent of the Korean filmmaker, but also the fact that West likes movies from foreign countries that are self bashing, allowing the worst condescension rooted in colonialism that failed miserably in East Asia to thrive, one more reason to cheer this slightly overrated movie.
I love a film that respects its audience. There are so many details in this movie that are crucially important and yet the film trusts its audience to notice them and acknowledge them without ramming them down our throats. There are a lot of layers to this film and I suspect for this reason its rewatch-ability factor will be very high.
The film was incredibly entertaining too. I can't think of a boring scene in this movie and yet on the surface for large parts of the film you would say not a lot is happening, at least in terms of action. Fascinating characters and brilliant dialogue are what create this. I had a great time with 'Parasite' and I think most that give it a chance will too.
That's not to say that Us is an ineffective film by any means, but when it comes to crafting weighty social commentaries under the guise of lighter fare, writer-director Bong Joon-ho is in a class of his own.
The film follows a lower-class South Korean family as they slowly integrate themselves in the lives of an upper-class family and their lavish household. As their entanglement is spun out of a web of deceit, the lowly family find themselves skating on thin ice when it comes to keeping up appearances.
It's a twisty satire on social-economic disparities in South Korean society that swings broadly in tone, and sometimes threatens to tip over the edge, but never feels less than meticulously calculated in its tonal shifts.
However, to reveal anything more about the story would be to take away from the overall experience, as each act is marked by a major plot twist or revelation that keeps the film one step ahead of the viewer at all times. Go in blind if you can and expect an unforgettable ride.
Oscars Best Picture Winners, Ranked
Oscars Best Picture Winners, Ranked
Did you know
- TriviaKi-woo's job, at-home tutor, was chosen because director Bong Joon Ho realized that sadly the job is the only way that families from two extreme ends of the class spectrum in modern-day South Korea can cross their paths convincingly in the story arc.
- Goofs(at around 1h 30 mins) When the Kims are sneaking out of the house while the Parks are sleeping on the couch, the Kim's are barefoot. When seen running home they somehow now have their shoes. If they had left their shoes at the entrance the Parks would likely have noticed them. It would be more likely they would have left them in the garage.
- Quotes
Ki-taek: [to his son] You know what kind of plan never fails? No plan. No plan at all. You know why? Because life cannot be planned. Look around you. Did you think these people made a plan to sleep in the sports hall with you? But here we are now, sleeping together on the floor. So, there's no need for a plan. You can't go wrong with no plans. We don't need to make a plan for anything. It doesn't matter what will happen next. Even if the country gets destroyed or sold out, nobody cares. Got it?
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official sites
- Languages
- Also known as
- Parásitos
- Filming locations
- Jahamun-ro, Buam-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea(Ki Taek and family enter Jahamun tunnel, walking back home in the rain)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $11,400,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $53,847,897
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $393,216
- Oct 13, 2019
- Gross worldwide
- $262,617,321
- Runtime
- 2h 12m(132 min)
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.39 : 1