Apr 16, 2021 Rome is battling to save its famous umbrella pines after a deadly parasite from the US infected 80 per cent of the city's iconic trees. The trees are infected with insects, known as pine tortoise. The profound effect that Knives Out had on me led me to retroactively reassess Parasite, the only other social commentary thriller I had ever watched. But this time it was September, not March. Feb 10, 2020 Knives Out Marriage Story 1917 Once Upon a Time in Hollywood Parasite – WINNER. Best adapted screenplay. The Irishman Jojo Rabbit – WINNER Joker Little Women The Two Popes. Best live action short.
Often, by the time I get to see a movie these days, I’m already aware of how much the label of greatness has been thrust upon it. Between film festival screenings and staggered releases, to say nothing of the difficulties of getting out to movies sometimes, it can be all but impossible for me to go into something without any kind of expectations – or, in the cases of Bong Joon-Ho’s Parasite and Rian Johnson’s Knives Out, without expecting a couple of masterpieces. But what can still surprise you is exactly what form that greatness can take, because while each of these are every bit as good as you’ve heard and then some, what makes them great isn’t quite as immediately obvious as something like Moonlight or The Florida Project; instead, both these films explore – and explode – genre conventions and subtly convey their ideas, all while executing their stories on masterful levels.
A common thread connects Parasite and Knives Out, two of the best films of the year. That thread is not just the representation of class, but more specifically the servant as kind of figure of class struggle. At first glance this is surprising, nothing seems more archaic, more out of touch with the existing labor relations than a household servant. Rian Johnson's Knives Out will close out Fantastic Fest 2019, as announced in the second wave lineup also featuring Parasite, Synchronic, and more.
Because make no mistake, both of these films are pure genre exercises, even as they play with audience expectations that come with those genres. Parasite initially feels like a con artist tale, following an economically impoverished family as they find ways to make themselves into indispensable members of a wealthy family’s hired staff – a process that does involve them finding a way to get the existing staff members out of favor first. Meanwhile, Knives Out takes the form of a classic murder mystery, with the apparent suicide of a famous mystery writer being investigated by one of the “last gentleman sleuths,” all while his heirs squabble and bicker over the promise of inheritance to come.
And as genre exercises, both are absolute knockouts on every filmmaking level. Parasite finds Bong at the top of his craft, especially in his use of the elegant house of the upper class family, with large open rooms but also one effectively shadowed door. More than that, though, there’s his typically strong control of tone, blending from comedy to drama to suspense effortlessly and without even blinking, bringing the typical lack of concern for tonal consistency that’s such a hallmark of Korean cinema. Bong has described Parasite as “a comedy without clowns and a tragedy without villains,” which is a fair description of the film – this is a very funny movie, but also one that sneaks up on you with its tragic underpinnings.
The same could be said for Knives Out, which never wavers from its commitment to telling a classic whodunit, but does so while constantly subverting expectations and toying with its audience. Johnson’s craft is as impeccable as Bong’s, with elegant constructions and another fantastic central house whose every nook and cranny is filled with personality and backstory. More than that, the house itself – and more specifically, its layout and geography – becomes so central to the story that the viewer has a reliable sense of where everyone is at any given moment, allowing them to solve the murder as best as they can. It doesn’t hurt that Johnson packs his film with great character actors, all of whom bring their A-game to their performances, turning broad caricatures into more by virtue of their acting, all while still bringing out a lot of comedy into this complex story.
So, yes, both films are incredibly well-made and wonderfully acted stories. Sure, they both pack some wonderful plot surprises – Parasite takes a wholly unexpected turn about halfway through, while Knives Out throws the audience off balance by breaking from the expected mystery structure in a drastic way – but at their cores, both are genre exercises, albeit exercises that are done to perfection. No, what pushes both films into greatness is how both bring in larger themes and ideas that are not only deeply resonant in the modern world, but ties those themes into the very genres they’re toying with, until subtext becomes text all without ever straying away from pure entertainment.
For Parasite, those larger ideas stretch into the class warfare at the heart of the film’s conflict. As our lower class family starts making a life for themselves off of the richer family’s oblivious need, we’re on their side – the cons are fun, but feel essentially harmless, and everyone seems to be coming out ahead. That is, until that aforementioned wild turn, which shifts our feelings massively, removing a lot of our easy categorization of the characters and reducing our ability to find the usual “have vs. have not” dichotomy of a class warfare film. Indeed, Parasite only gets more complex as it goes along, giving every action repercussions all while underlining the true dangers of class separation and wealth not as an evil in of themselves, but as an evil that separates us from those less fortunate than ourselves. That Bong does this while still spinning a wild thriller with strains of black comedy throughout, and delivering a couple of the most white-knuckled-tension sequences of the year (for those who’ve seen the film: “under the table” and “garden party”), is what makes Parasite so incredible – the way that it’s a great piece of entertainment, and yet also a provocative, rich depiction of a class-divided society, but one with empathy for all of the parties involved.
Meanwhile, Knives Out also taps into class conflict, but while so many of the classic “sleuth” mysteries are driven by British class sensibilities, Johnson makes use of American class divisions, emphasizing how often they’re shaped by race and politics while more often than not coming down to selfishness and greed. Yes, Knives Out is a mystery – and a beautifully plotted one, with some great shocks along the way – but it also has a way of becoming a bit of an allegory for life in 2019 America, down to conflicts along party lines, a lack of awareness about one’s own privilege, excessive pride, and a fear that mainstream culture isn’t what you think it is. Again, though, Johnson never lets the film become didactic or lets the subtext take over (even in the absolutely perfect final shot), instead letting the mystery and the performances draw us along and letting the message sink in for itself. It’s a very modern American take on a very classic British form, and that it somehow manages to be both of those things while also being beholden to nothing but itself makes it so much fun to watch. It’s the best kind of mystery – one that’s always a little ahead of you, but one that always plays fair while remembering that it’s got more on its mind than just the complex story its telling.
What both movies have in common, then, is this: both are reminders of what a pure genre exercise can truly accomplish. Yes, there are great dramas out there that can tell stories about the human condition or modern day society. But what Johnson and Bong manage to do is give audiences a piece of pure popcorn entertainment that also does so much more, giving you substance along with your candy. And if somehow that’s not enough for you, they’re both working on a phenomenal level of craft across the board, from style to framing, from performances to writing. These two films are a wonderful reminder that even when it seems like there’s nothing but franchises and sequels out there, cinema is still alive and well if you know where to look.
IMDb: Parasite | Knives Out
'Split Shot'
Knives Out Parasite Torrent
Item ID
5.100.104
Character Appearance
Tear Appearance
Collection Grid(page 1, column 1, row 6)
Unlock Method
Pick up any 2 of the following items in a single run: , , ,
Pick up any 2 of the following items in a single run: , , ,
The Parasite is an unlockable passive item.
Effects[edit | edit source]
- Tears that deal more than 1.0 damage split into two tears with half damage and half remaining range on impact with obstacles or enemies.
- Damage less than 1.0 causes the tears to simply disappear.
- The splitting can keep up as long as the tears have range remaining and the damage of the split tears stays above 0.5.
- Split tears are scaled down by 0.5x from the parent one, ignoring damage based size reduction.
Synergies[edit | edit source]
- : All tears split by the prism will burst into split tears when hitting obstacles.
- : Two further explosions appear perpendicular to the head's direction of travel when it blows up.
- : Both tear split effects happen simultaneously.
- /Spectral tears: When tears pass through solid objects, like rocks, they will split, resulting in many tears shooting out from every rock the original tear passed through.
- : Two groups of this item's four tears, creating eight additional miniature tears on every point of impact instead.
- : Bombs split into two bombs upon detonation.
- : Every time tears bounce, burst tears spawn.
- : Fed tears split into 12 tears. When tears are minimally fed and hit an obstacle, they will split into 5 Lachryphagy burst tears and Parasite burst tears.
- /: All tears in tear barrage will burst into split tears when hitting obstacles or enemies.
- : Repeatedly spawns miniature tears when on top of an enemy, greatly increasing damage.
- Piercing tears: Split tears form for each hit as the tears pass through the enemies.
- : The split tears will continue to orbit Isaac, increasing damage potential.
- : The split tears will be forced directly forward, impacting whatever caused the first tear to split. This increases damage immensely.
- If all shots connect, effective damage will be multiplied by 2 + log2(damage).
- : When beams hit obstacles, the beam will split; the split beams can split again when hitting other obstacles.
- : 2 beams will be fired perpendicular to the main beam at the closest point of intersection with an enemy or obstacle.
Interactions[edit | edit source]
- : Overrides The Parasite.
- : Brimstone splits one time when hitting the wall.
- : No effect.
- : Bombs turn orange and with no other effect.
- : Overrides The Parasite.
- : The Ipecac tear will spawn two smaller explosive tears when it collides with a solid object, but not with an enemy. These tears can spawn tears on their own as well, potentially leading to huge chain reactions. Having or is strongly recommended.
- : Drastically decreases range making it less likely for tears to split. The stone will not split.
- : Knife turns orange with no other effect.
- Knife splits into two smaller, perpendicular knives on hitting an enemy.
- : Tears only split when hitting enemies and no longer off the wall or most obstacles.
- : Without any damage increases, Soy Milk tears deal under 1.0 damage and cannot split until the situation is rectified with other items.
- : Overrides The Parasite.
- Laser splits into two perpendicular beams upon hitting an obstacle.
- : Overrides The Parasite.
In-game Footage[edit | edit source]
Knives Out Parasite Movie
Seeds[edit | edit source]
PC FR6X 2BGZ (Room adjacent to spawn)
PC ZF2M AQ7K (Room adjacent to spawn)
PS4 XX1T QXN1 (Room adjacent to spawn)
Vita NZ7X G61B (First floor Treasure Room)
Switch 7NN1 6CZS (Starting item as Eden)
Switch GB8R QPMY (First Golden Treasure Room)
Who Gets Stabbed In Parasite
The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth |
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