很多影評人稱，《寄生蟲》（Parasite）是一部“不折不扣的杰作”、“本年度最重要的電影”和“一部必看的驚悚片”。不過除了在電影節(jié)上，以及在紐約和洛杉磯的少數(shù)幾家影院里，美國很少有人看過韓國導演奉俊昊的這部廣受好評的電影。不過看過這部影片的那1%的人卻都對它贊不絕口。

所以你可能會想，不就是一部韓國電影嘛，有什么可大驚小怪的。不過但凡你對這部電影有一些了解，你就可能已經(jīng)聽說了，觀眾們在看完這部片子后，紛紛有了“拒絕劇透”的覺悟。

下面，我們就將解析一下，關于這部電影，你所應該知道的一切（沒有劇透）。這部韓國電影剛一上映，就打破了票房紀錄，很多人甚至認為它有資格角逐今年的奧斯卡獎。

《寄生蟲》有多牛？

總有一些熱門新片會被影評人和媒體冠為“必看”電影之名。但《寄生蟲》的熱度已經(jīng)遠遠超過了一般的炒作。這也給它平添了一些神秘色彩。

《寄生蟲》的一炮而紅是在今年5月的戛納電影節(jié)上，該片成功捧得金棕櫚獎，它也成為了第一部獲得金棕櫚獎的韓國電影。接著，它又在其他幾個國際電影節(jié)上大放異彩，在特魯萊德電影節(jié)和多倫多國際電影節(jié)上的放映場次場場售罄，在奇幻電影節(jié)和紐約電影節(jié)的點映也是場場爆滿。

就連其他電影導演也在推薦別人去看這部電影。比如另一部電影節(jié)獲獎熱門影片《原鉆》（Uncut Gems）（主演亞當·桑德勒）的導演約什·薩弗迪和本尼·薩弗尼便在推特上力贊這部電影：“不要問問題，不要看影評，直接去看電影。奉俊昊導演和影片的主創(chuàng)人員將把你的大腦當成‘寄主’，同時告訴你，我們生活中的隱形的規(guī)則是多么荒唐?！?/p>

《遺傳厄運》（Hereditary）和《仲夏夜驚魂》（Midsommar）的導演阿里·阿斯特也在推特上寫道：“這部電影令人震驚。奉俊昊的敘事能力是無以倫比的。這部電影極為高效，比任何東西都有趣，令人瘋狂，而且讓人感到深深的悲涼?！?/p>

奉俊昊何許人也？

此人在美國并非家喻戶曉，但卻是國際影壇上公認的大師，代表作包括《殺人回憶》（Memories of Murder，2003年）、怪獸電影《漢江怪物》（The Host，2006年），以及他的第一部英語電影、反烏托邦主題的驚悚片《雪國列車》（Snowpiercer，2013年）。

《雪國列車》耗資4000萬美元，請來了克里斯·埃文斯、宋康昊、蒂爾達·斯文頓、奧克塔維亞·斯賓塞等國際知名影星加盟，它也是迄今為止韓國制作成本最高的一部電影。在《雪國列車》后，奉俊昊又于2017年推出了一部適合全家觀看的影片《玉子》（Okja），主演為杰克·吉倫哈爾和蒂爾達·斯文頓。這部電影在戛納首映，之后上線了Netflix。不過這在當時也引起了一些爭議，因為戛納電影節(jié)表示不再允許Netflix出品的電影參選獎項。

無論是在電影發(fā)燒友中，還是和社交媒體上，奉俊昊都有一批死忠粉。粉絲們在推特上搜索#BongHive標簽，就能找到組織。

《寄生蟲》講了什么？

《寄生蟲》通過發(fā)生在一窮一富兩個韓國家庭（金家和樸家）之間的故事，對貧富差距的社會現(xiàn)象進行了辛辣諷刺。從貧窮的金家少年混進了富裕的樸家時起，權(quán)力的平衡開始以意想不到的方式發(fā)生了轉(zhuǎn)變。（再次強調(diào)，沒有劇透?。?/p>

艾薩克·費爾德伯格最近在《財富》雜志上撰文稱，《寄生蟲》是“為我們這個時代量身打造的一個家庭入侵故事。故事在眼花繚亂的鬧劇、希區(qū)柯克式的懸疑和辛辣的鬧劇之間來回切換”。

為啥不讓劇透？

在《寄生蟲》今年5月于戛納電影節(jié)首映之前，奉俊昊給媒體寫了一封公開信，懇求媒體不要泄漏除了預告片之外的任何影片中的信息。

“在你為這部電影寫影評時，請盡量不要透露兄妹二人當上家教之后的故事走向。至于兄妹二人當家教這一點，已經(jīng)在電影的預告片中有所體現(xiàn)。”

以往的一些劇情片，比如《哭泣游戲》（The Crying Game）、《逃出絕命城》（Get Out）、《靈異第六感》（The Sixth Sense）等，到影片末尾都有一個大反轉(zhuǎn)，所以看這些片子之前一定不能被劇透?！都纳x》詭異而神秘的結(jié)局，也激起了人們觀影的欲望。

《寄生蟲》創(chuàng)造了哪些票房紀錄？

自本片在10月1日登陸紐約和洛杉磯的部分影院以來，僅僅從三家影院便收獲了376264美元的票房，平均每家影院貢獻了125421美元，為今年以來的最高水平。它也是自《愛樂之城》（La La Land）以來，單家影院票房收入最高的一部國際電影。

該片在紐約國際金融中心搞了幾場周末點映，有幾場奉俊昊和主演宋康昊、樸素丹還親自亮相點映，與觀眾進行了問答互動。這些場次的票在開售當天就賣光了。

紐約和洛杉磯以外的美國觀眾到哪去看《寄生蟲》？

《寄生蟲》將逐漸在全美各地上映，本周將登陸舊金山、波士頓、芝加哥、華盛頓特區(qū)等7大城市，下周還將登陸15個大城市。

《寄生蟲》的發(fā)行商Neon公司的院線發(fā)行主管埃莉薩·費德洛夫在接受《Deadline》采訪時表示，她預計到10月底，《寄生蟲》將在美國前25大城市的85到100家影院上映。

費德洛夫表示：“到那時，我們會采取一定的‘觀望’策略。我希望它可以在盡可能多的影院上映。我們希望到11月中旬，會有一個很強勁的上映銀幕數(shù)。”

Neon本季發(fā)行的都是拿獎的熱門影片，包括幾大電影節(jié)的熱門《燃燒女人的肖像》（Portrait of a Lady on Fire），備受好評的紀錄片《阿波羅11號》（Apollo 11）、《蜂蜜之地》（Honeyland）和《最大的小小農(nóng)場》（The Biggest Little Farm）等。

2018年，這家公司還將《我，花樣女王》（I, Tonya）帶到了奧斯卡。這部片子獲得了好幾項提名，最終，艾莉森·詹尼憑借此片贏得了奧斯卡最佳女配角獎。但這家獨立發(fā)行公司還從未獲得過最佳影片獎的提名。

《寄生蟲》雖然是影評人的寵兒，但出了紐約和洛杉磯等沿海的“文化之都”，它在美國其他地方還能拿到這么高的票房嗎？

Awardswatch是一家專門預測娛樂圈獎項得主的網(wǎng)站，該網(wǎng)站的創(chuàng)始人埃里克·安德森認為：“真正的挑戰(zhàn)是，隨著這部電影開始在越來越多的地方排片，這些地方能否復制洛杉磯和紐約的強勢票房表現(xiàn)？”

《寄生蟲》有機會競爭奧斯卡最佳影片獎嗎？

簡單說來，是的。而且還遠遠不止于此。

目前，大家廣泛認為《寄生蟲》最有望獲得下屆奧斯卡的最佳國際故事片獎（也就是以前的“最佳外語片獎”），同時還有可能角逐最佳攝影獎、最佳導演獎和其他幾個奧斯卡獎項。

由于該片獲得了影評界的一致好評（截至發(fā)稿時，爛番茄網(wǎng)站上的好評率達到了99%），專家們都認為該片有望獲得最佳影片獎提名，這也是韓國電影史上開天辟地的頭一遭。去年，韓國導演李滄東的心理懸疑片《燃燒》（Burning）也入圍了奧斯卡最佳外語片的9部電影大名單，但最終未能獲得提名。

在預測網(wǎng)站Gold Derby上，一半以上的專家都將《寄生蟲》放在了自己對奧斯卡最佳影片獎的預測名單里。埃里克·安德森也在他最近一期的《周五領跑者》報告中，將該片的獲獎機率拔高到了第二位。

從先例看，《寄生蟲》獲得最佳影片獎提名的機率并不算大。迄今為止，只有11部外語片曾獲得最佳影片獎提名，包括去年的《羅馬》（Roma）、大家一致喜愛的《美麗人生》（Life is Beautiful），以及讓·雷諾的《大幻影》（La Grande Illusion）、英格瑪·伯格曼的《呼喊與細語》（Cries and Whispers）等經(jīng)典影片。

如果《寄生蟲》打破了先例，真把最佳影片獎收入囊中，它將成為第一部獲得奧斯卡最佳影片獎的非英語電影。這部電影適時審視了貧富差距和階級仇恨的問題，并以一種取悅大眾的方式表現(xiàn)了出來，或?qū)⒆屗蔀閵W斯卡頒獎典禮上值得關注的一匹黑馬。(財富中文網(wǎng)）

譯者：樸成奎

Critics have called Parasite a “flat-out masterpiece,” “the most important film of the year,” and “a must-see thriller.” Outside of film festivals and a few theaters in New York and Los Angeles, relatively few people have had the chance to see Bong Joon-ho’s acclaimed film. But the 1% who has can’t stop raving about it.

So you might be wondering what all the fuss is about, though if you know anything about the film, you’ve probably heard that audiences aren’t supposed to reveal too much after seeing it.

Below we break down everything you need to know (without spoilers!) about the cinematic South Korean sensation that’s breaking box office records in its initial limited release and generating early Oscar buzz.

What’s the big deal about “Parasite”?

There’s always a hot new film that film critics and journalists dub a “must-see.” But the excitement surrounding Parasite far surpasses the usual hype. The film’s mystique has taken on mythical proportions.

The buzz surrounding Parasite began back in May when it won the prestigious Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival, becoming the first South Korean film to do so. It then blazed through the international festival circuit, selling out screenings at Telluride and the Toronto International Film Festival, and flooring audiences at Fantastic Fest and the New York Film Festival.

It’s such a sensation that even other film directors are urging people to go see the movie. Josh and Benny Safdie, directors of another possible awards contender Uncut Gems, starring Adam Sandler, tweeted about Parasite, writing “Don’t ask questions, don’t read about it, just see it. Director Bong and his incredible cast will use your mind as a host as they show you how absurd our invisible rules are.”

Director Ari Aster (Hereditary, Midsommar) tweeted, “This film is astounding. Bong Joon-Ho is peerless right now in genre storytelling. Dizzyingly efficient, funnier than anything, totally bananas, and deeply deeply sad.”

Who’s Bong Joon-ho?

Although he may not be a household name in the U.S. (though that could easily change), Bong is an international auteur and genre master whose films include the crime drama Memories of Murder (2003), the monster movie The Host (2006), and his first English-language film, the dystopian thriller Snowpiercer (2013).

With a $40 million budget, and an international cast including Chris Evans, Song Kang-ho, Tilda Swinton, and Octavia Spencer, Snowpiercer remains the most expensive Korean production ever. Bong followed that up with Okja (2017) a family-friendly adventure film starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Tilda Swinton that premiered (to controversy) in Cannes before streaming on Netflix (Cannes no longer permits Netflix’s films in competition).

Bong enjoys somewhat of a cult following among cineastes and on Twitter, where the hashtag #BongHive unites his fans.

What’s “Parasite” about?

Parasite is a biting social satire about economic inequality seen through the symbiotic relationship between a destitute South Korean family, the Kims, and a wealthy family, the Parks. When the Kim children infiltrate the Park Family household, the power balance shifts is unexpected ways. (Again, no spoilers!)

Writing for Fortune recently, Isaac Feldberg calls Parasite “a home-invasion story tailor-made for our times” that “toggles between giddy farce, Hitchcockian suspense, and mordant slapstick.”

Why is there a spoiler alert?

Before Parasite premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in May, Bong wrote an open letter to the press in which he pleaded with them to not reveal anything about the film that wasn’t in the film’s trailer.

“When you write a review for this film, please refrain as much as possible from revealing how the story unfolds after the brother and sister start working as private tutors, an event which is disclosed in the film’s trailers,” Bong wrote.

As with past films such as The Crying Game, Get Out, The Sixth Sense, and others, there’s a big twist that’s better experienced firsthand. The intrigue over the film’s cryptic—and secret—ending is fueling demand to see it.

What box office records has “Parasite” set?

During its Oct. 11 opening weekend in New York and Los Angeles theaters, Parasite raked in an estimated $376,264 from just three theaters, posting a per-location average of $125,421—the highest of the year and the largest ever for an international film in the U.S. the best per-screen haul since La La Land.

Every weekend screening of the film at the IFC Center in New York, some featuring Q&As with Bong and cast members Song Kang-Ho and Park So-dam, sold out on opening day.

When can audiences outside N.Y. and L.A. see “Parasite”?

Parasite will slowly make its way around the country, hitting seven markets—including San Francisco, Boston, Chicago and Washington D.C. this week and 15 markets the following week.

Elissa Federoff, head of theatrical distribution for Neon, the film distributor behind Parasite, told Deadline that she expects the film to be screening in 85 to 100 screens in the top 25 markets by the end of October.

“From there, it’s going to be a bit more of a ‘watch and see’ strategy,” says Federoff. “I would like it to be on as many screens as we can possibly be. We hope to be on a robust number of screens by mid-November.”

Neon will have a busy awards season, given it is also distributing other awards contenders, including festival favorite Portrait of a Lady on Fire and acclaimed documentaries Apollo 11, Honeyland, and The Biggest Little Farm.

The company brought I, Tonya to the Oscars in 2018, where it was nominated for several awards and earned Allison Janney an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress. But the indie distributor has yet to land a Best Picture nomination.

Can this critics’ darling continue its box office boom as it expands beyond coastal culture capitals?

“The true test will be seeing if those rabid Los Angeles and New York box office numbers translate to equally strong ones once it expands,” says Erik Anderson, founder of Awardswatch, a website devoted to entertainment awards predictions.

Does “Parasite” have a shot at a Best Picture Academy Award?

In a word, yes. But there’s a lot more to it.

Parasite is widely considered the frontrunner to win best international feature film (formerly “best foreign-language film) and will likely be in the running for Best Cinematography, Best Director, and other Oscar categories.

Given the critical acclaim surrounding it (at press time, it’s 99% on Rotten Tomatoes), awards experts are saying it has a shot at a Best Picture nomination, which would be a first for South Korea. Last year, Lee Chang-dong’s psychological drama Burning became the first Korean film to make it to the final nine-film shortlist for Best Foreign Language Film, but it fell short of a nomination.

More than half of the awards experts on Gold Derby include it on their list of Best Picture predictions. Anderson bumped it up to the number two spot in his latest Frontrunner Friday report.

Based on historical precedent, the odds of Parasite being nominated for a Best Picture aren’t in its favor. Only 11 foreign language films have ever been nominated for Best Picture, including last year’s Roma, the crowd-pleasing Life is Beautiful, and classics such as Jean Renoir’s La Grande Illusion and Ingmar Bergman’s Cries and Whispers.

If Parasite defies conventional wisdom and manages to take home Best Picture, it would be the first non-English language film to nab an Oscar in that category. The film’s timely examination of income inequality and class rage, delivered in a crowd-pleasing fashion, could make it the underdog to watch come awards time.