A QUIET PLACE (2018) - Emily Blunt, John Krasinski

A QUIET PLACE

Released:  2018

Director:     John Krasinski

Writers:      Bryan Woods, Scott Beck, John Krasinski

Actors:       Emily Blunt, John Krasinski, Millicent Simmonds, Noah Jupe

Now available on Hulu and other TV cable shows, this film received 109 award nominations and 34 wins, including a SAG Best Supporting Actress win for Emily Blunt.

The movie has a very simple storyline.  A family must survive against killer monsters with super hearing abilities.  Their only tool of survival is silence.  It is brilliantly conceived, masterfully executed, and powerfully acted. 

Along with the danger, what is immediately established is that this family is glued together with love and loyalty.  The directing is clean and no-nonsense, without indulgent interludes.  Indulgence wasn’t necessary.  The emotions generated by the events in the scene are built by so clearly that we can only identify with the terrible horror at what’s about to happen.

This is good clean directing.  Krasinski knows exactly what needs to be established to predict the outcome ahead.  What adds to the power of the story is that we understand so clearly how the progression of events leads to the inevitable result.

The acting is also top-notch.  We expect it of Emily Blunt and John Krasinski, but the children prove themselves equal to the task.  We identify so powerfully with each character’s dilemma we are engaged to maximum capacity.  In an unforgettable scene, we watch John Krasinsky (who plays the father, as well as directing) make an inevitable decision and our hearts break because we know he has no other choice.  Truly heroic stuff.

This is destined to be a classic for all the reasons noted above.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6644200/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_3

TAGS:  A QUIET PLACE, Emily Blunt, John Krasinski, Millicent Simmonds, Noah Jupe, Bryan Woods, Scott Beck

PARASITE (2019) - Kang-ho Song, Sun-Kyun Lee,

Director:     Bong Joon Ho

Writers:      Bong Joon Ho

Actors:       Kang-ho Song, Sun-kyun Lee, Yeo-jeong Jo, Woo-sik Choi, So-dam Park, Hye-jin Jang

Director/writer Bong Joon Ho received Oscars for Best Picture, Best Screenplay and Best Writer on this one.

All the actors who portrayed the Kim family members were entirely credible.  I felt like I was given special 3-D glasses to witness a real slice of life.

Parents Ki-taek and Chung-sook are utter failures as parents to clever son Ki-woo and quick-on-her feet daughter Ki-jung.  But when it comes to taking advantage of opportunities, the parents have taught their children well.

With charm and friendly ease, the Kim family con their way into becoming welcome fixtures in the wealthy Park family home.  To watch how brilliantly this is achieved is a lesson in sheer strategy.

Despite how much we like them, because of their ruthless exploitation of the Park family, we begin to see the Kims as villains with no ethical values.  Then suddenly they become the victims themselves.   The scene which creates this twist in momentum is not only hilarious, but we suddenly find ourselves sympathetic to the villainous Kims again. 

What first appears as a sitcom becomes a horror story and finally morphs into a complete tragedy.  Bong Joon Ho is not only a master storyteller, he’s a brilliant manipulator of audience response and engagement.  He takes us on an experience which generates our sympathy, charms us, captivates us, entertains us and then ultimately horrifies us.

Most films focus on a specific genre, but this film covers them all.  At first I thought this movie was another disease-disaster story.  On a metaphorical level, it is, but on a human-condition level, it’s an all-encompassing journey destined to be considered a classic of its time.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6751668/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0
TAG:  Parasite, Bong Joon Ho, Kang-ho Song, Sun-Kyun Lee,