I enjoyed watching Parasite and was hardly alone in comparing the experience to Slumdog Millionaire. There are some parallels there including the depictions of poor people literally wallowing in sewage. That might be what it takes to produce the punch in the gut feeling for jaded audiences in the Western world and earn consideration for an Oscar.
At first there was some debate about Slumdog Millionaire in India, most of it having to do with the depiction of squalid conditions and shantytowns, and how they allegedly are tired images of India. But all that talk vanished with its Oscars conquest. Parasite had its critics too but success, as they say, is the best revenge.
Back in the day, Slumdog left me with very mixed emotions not many of which were positive. Whatever the objective goodness of the movie, as a desi it was difficult for to process it because it had won the Oscar. That felt morally dubious. I could think of several dozen movies made in India in a variety of languages that were just as if not more deserving - movies that most in the West had never heard of. I remember recommending my favorite art-house movies from India to local friends to help them understand that India has been long capable of producing excellent cinema.
I felt a lot of those same emotions upon watching Parasite. There is a strong story-line and the themes have an universal appeal. The cast of characters is excellent and they have complex and nuanced motivations. The pacing is perfect as the story unfolds. All in all a solid good movie and yet the Oscar win put it in the same category as Slumdog for me. I am not sure if I am really supposed to like Parasite.
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