The following article is an in-depth review of the South Korean suspense movie Parasite (2019) and was posted on Reddit. The article is written by a South Korean national with the intent of sharing a native perspective and interpretation of the film as it was intended for a native language speaking audience. Spoiler Alert: The following article does contain several details from the movie regarding plot and character development, so proceed through the reading material with caution if you have not seen the movie yet.
Tag: Oscars
Formally known as the Academy Awards, it is a collection of categorical awards given annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) for artistic and technical merit in the film industry.
Overlooked Nominations: The Oscar 2020 Snubs
The full list of nominations for the 2020 Oscars were announced on Monday morning and the editorialized Snub Lists are starting to populate across the country. Many names and movies will appear on multiple snub lists, usually pulled from the same pool of mainstream movies that were widely seen by the critics, audiences, and Academy members. In many cases, some of the overlooked candidates that were not included in the final list of nominees were in contention for recognition earlier in the awards season, such as the Golden Globes and the Critics’ Choice Awards.
So, throwing an opinion into the overflowing pool of Oscar Snubs, here is The Buzz Track list of overlooked nominees for the 92nd annual Academy Awards:
Actor, Actress in a Leading Role
- Lupita Nyong’o, Us
For the movie, Lupita had to manage double duty with creating and performing two separate characters who are polar opposite from each other, but in a minor way they are also the same person as well. Have you seen the movie? Then you would know the duality of the characters within the story. - Adam Sandler, Uncut Gems
The last time Adam had ever really pushed himself this far into a drama movie was back in 2002 for Paul Thomas Anderson’s Punch-Drunk Love. He has demonstrated the potential for being a contender during the awards season, but tends to stick around in the comedy world more often than not. - Robert De Niro, The Irishman
Joe Pesci, Al Pacino, Martin Scorsese, Thelma Schoonmaker, and many others were individually nominated for their contribution for this movie. So, why was Robert De Niro overlooked? - Awkwafina, The Farewell
She made history by being the first Asian American woman to win a Golden Globe award for the leading actress category. Within just a couple of years time she skyrocketed to fame, but The Farewell is a movie that really helped her prove she can act. - Song Kang-ho, Parasite
Hailed as being a great contemporary character actor by Bong Joon Ho, the director of Parasite, it was rather surprising that Kango-ho Song was not considered for any of the acting awards this year. His performance in this movie was top notch! There are several moments in the movie where the audience is reeled right into his character’s emotional journey.
Actor, Actress in a Supporting Role
- Willem Dafoe, The Lighthouse
One of the best character actors still working to this day, nominated for an Oscar in four separate years; this movie should have been his fifth nomination and hopefully the first win. - Park So-dam, Parasite
She is the one person in the entire movie who stole the attention in almost ever single scene she appears. The laughter from the audience was genuine when she was on screen. She held so much power and control of her character that it was very easy for the audience to fear and respect her at the same time.
Best Director
- Robert Eggers, The Lighthouse
Only his second feature length movie in five years, the first movie being The VVitch (2015), he should not be overlooked. He’s a writer and director with a strong skill in brainy storytelling. In due time, he will be given a well deserved recognition by the Academy. - Lulu Wang, The Farewell
She arrive on scene with a splash for The Farewell by showing us a genuine and heartfelt story of what it’s like to be an Asian-American woman having to bridge the gap between two cultures within the same family.
Best Original Screenplay
- Robert Eggers & Max Eggers, The Lighthouse
Writing a feature length screenplay with a prominent use of Old English syntax and grammar can be a daunting task. Trying to limit the movie to only two characters for the vast majority of the entire story is a very steep hill to climb. The only other character to appear in the movie is a mermaid who does not speak and would be an implied hallucination for one of the two main characters. Yep, the writing duo accepted the challenge and did a pretty good job at pulling it off. - Lulu Wang, The Farewell
The story is based upon her own real life experience, so Lulu was able to bring a lot of raw emotion to the movie that connected on an emotional level with the audience. It was genuine and heartfelt, which is a must-have selling point to pull the audience right in.
The 92nd Oscar Nominations
The announcement of the nominations for the 92nd annual Academy Awards will be take place in a two-part live presentation on Monday, January 13th and will cover all twenty-four categories. Actor and producer John Cho alongside actor, writer, and producer Issa Rae will serve as hosts of the two-part live presentation from approximately 5:18 a.m. to approximately 5:41 a.m. Pacific Time. The announcement will be broadcast live on multiple platforms, including an online live stream on the Academy’s websites and social media accounts along side a satellite feed that will be relayed on linear television by local and national broadcast stations.
The ceremony for the 92nd annual Oscars will be held on Sunday, February 9th at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, and will be televised live on the ABC Television Network at 8 p.m. Eastern Time (5 p.m. Pacific). The ceremony’s preceding broadcast “Oscars: Live on the Red Carpet” will air at 6:30 p.m. Eastern Time (3:30 p.m. Pacific).
You can watch the live stream of the Oscar nominations announcement below. Following the announcement, the full list of Oscar nominees will be posted on Academy Awards website as well as here on this web page.
There were a few names of individuals who were not included in the nominations this year for a well deserved category, or not at all. Visit the Oscar Snubs article to view the list of individuals that we believe should have earned a spot of recognition for their work this year.
The Official List of Nominations
Actor in a Leading Role | Antonio Banderas, Pain and Glory Leonardo DiCaprio, Once upon a Time…in Hollywood Adam Driver, Marriage Story Joaquin Phoenix, Joker Jonathan Pryce, The Two Popes |
Actor in a Supporting Role | Tom Hanks, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood Anthony Hopkins, The Two Popes Al Pacino, The Irishman Joe Pesci, The Irishman Brad Pitt, Once upon a Time…in Hollywood |
Actress in a Leading Role | Cynthia Erivo, Harriet Scarlett Johansson, Marriage Story Saoirse Ronan, Little Women Charlize Theron, Bombshell Renée Zellweger, Judy |
Actress in a Supporting Role | Kathy Bates, Richard Jewell Laura Dern, Marriage Story Scarlett Johansson, Jojo Rabbit Florence Pugh, Little Women Margot Robbie, Bombshell |
Adapted Screenplay | Steven Zaillian, The Irishman Taika Waititi, Jojo Rabbit Todd Phillips & Scott Silver, Joker Greta Gerwig, Little Women Anthony McCarten, The Two Popes |
Animated Feature Film | How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World Dean DeBlois, Bradford Lewis & Bonnie Arnold I Lost My Body Jérémy Clapin & Marc du Pontavice Klaus Sergio Pablos, Jinko Gotoh & Marisa Román Missing Link Chris Butler, Arianne Sutner & Travis Knight Toy Story 4 Josh Cooley, Mark Nielsen & Jonas Rivera |
Animated Short Film | Dcera (Daughter), Daria Kashcheeva Hair Love, Matthew A. Cherry & Karen Rupert Toliver Kitbull, Rosana Sullivan & Kathryn Hendrickson Memorable, Bruno Collet & Jean-François Le Corre Sister, Siqi Song |
Best Picture | Ford v Ferrari Peter Chernin, Jenno Topping & James Mangold The Irishman Martin Scorsese, Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal & Emma Tillinger Koskoff Jojo Rabbit Carthew Neal & Taika Waititi Joker Todd Phillips, Bradley Cooper & Emma Tillinger Koskoff Little Women Amy Pascal Marriage Story Noah Baumbach & David Heyman 1917 Sam Mendes, Pippa Harris, Jayne-Ann Tenggren & Callum McDougall Once upon a Time…in Hollywood David Heyman, Shannon McIntosh & Quentin Tarantino Parasite Kwak Sin Ae & Bong Joon Ho |
Cinematography | Rodrigo Prieto, The Irishman Lawrence Sher, Joker Jarin Blaschke, The Lighthouse Roger Deakins, 1917 Robert Richardson, Once upon a Time…in Hollywood |
Costume Design | Sandy Powell & Christopher Peterson, The Irishman Mayes C. Rubeo, Jojo Rabbit Mark Bridges, Joker Jacqueline Durran, Little Women Arianne Phillips, Once upon a Time…in Hollywood |
Directing | Martin Scorsese, The Irishman Todd Phillips, Joker Sam Mendes, 1917 Quentin Tarantino, Once upon a Time…in Hollywood Bong Joon Ho, Parasite |
Documentary Feature | American Factory Steven Bognar, Julia Reichert & Jeff Reichert The Cave Feras Fayyad, Kirstine Barfod & Sigrid Dyekjær The Edge of Democracy Petra Costa, Joanna Natasegara, Shane Boris & Tiago Pavan For Sama Waad al-Kateab & Edward Watts Honeyland Ljubo Stefanov, Tamara Kotevska & Atanas Georgiev |
Documentary Short Subject | In the Absence Yi Seung-Jun & Gary Byung-Seok Kam Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl) Carol Dysinger & Elena Andreicheva Life Overtakes Me John Haptas & Kristine Samuelson St. Louis Superman Smriti Mundhra & Sami Khan Walk Run Cha-Cha Laura Nix & Colette Sandstedt |
Film Editing | Michael McCusker & Andrew Buckland, Ford v Ferrari Thelma Schoonmaker, The Irishman Tom Eagles, Jojo Rabbit Jeff Groth, Joker Yang Jinmo, Parasite |
International Feature Film | Corpus Christi (Poland) Honeyland (North Macedonia) Les Misérables (France) Pain and Glory (Spain) Parasite (South Korea) |
Live Action Short Film | Brotherhood Meryam Joobeur & Maria Gracia Turgeon Nefta Football Club Yves Piat & Damien Megherbi The Neighbors’ Window Marshall Curry Saria Bryan Buckley & Matt Lefebvre A Sister Delphine Girard |
Makeup and Hair Styling | Kazu Hiro, Anne Morgan & Vivian Baker, Bombshell Nicki Ledermann & Kay Georgiou, Joker Jeremy Woodhead, Judy Paul Gooch, Arjen Tuiten & David White, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil Naomi Donne, Tristan Versluis & Rebecca Cole, 1917 |
Original Score | Hildur Guðnadóttir, Joker Alexandre Desplat, Little Women Randy Newman, Marriage Story Thomas Newman, 1917 John Williams, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker |
Original Screenplay | Rian Johnson, Knives Out Noah Baumbach, Marriage Story Sam Mendes & Krysty Wilson-Cairns, 1917 Quentin Tarantino, Once upon a Time…in Hollywood Bong Joon Ho & Han Jin Won, Parasite |
Original Song | I Can’t Let You Throw Yourself Away, Toy Story 4 (I’m Gonna) Love Me Again, Rocketman I’m Standing With You, Breakthrough Into The Unknown, Frozen II Stand Up, Harriet |
Production Design and Set Decoration | The Irishman, Bob Shaw (Design) and Regina Graves (Decoration) Jojo Rabbit, Ra Vincent (Design) and Nora Sopková (Decoration) 1917, Dennis Gassner (Design) and Lee Sandales (Decoration) Once upon a Time…in Hollywood, Barbara Ling (Design) and Nancy Haigh (Decoration) Parasite, Lee Ha Jun (Design) and Cho Won Woo (Decoration) |
Sound Editing | Donald Sylvester, Ford v Ferrari Alan Robert Murray, Joker Oliver Tarney & Rachael Tate, 1917 Wylie Stateman, Once upon a Time…in Hollywood Matthew Wood & David Acord, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker |
Sound Mixing | Gary Rydstrom, Tom Johnson & Mark Ulano, Ad Astra Paul Massey, David Giammarco & Steven A. Morrow, Ford v Ferrari Tom Ozanich, Dean Zupancic & Tod Maitland, Joker Mark Taylor & Stuart Wilson, 1917 Michael Minkler, Christian P. Minkler & Mark Ulano, Once upon a Time…in Hollywood |
Visual Effects | Dan DeLeeuw, Russell Earl, Matt Aitken & Dan Sudick, Avengers: Endgame Pablo Helman, Le&ro Estebecorena, Nelson Sepulveda-Fauser & Stephane Grabli, The Irishman Robert Legato, Adam Valdez, Andrew R. Jones & Elliot Newman, The Lion King Guillaume Rocheron, Greg Butler & Dominic Tuohy, 1917 Roger Guyett, Neal Scanlan, Patrick Tubach & Dominic Tuohy, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker |