'Parasite' is leaving Max soon — stream this award-winning thriller before it's gone

Each month, great movies come to the best streaming services. But, sadly, each month we also lose great movies when they leave these platforms. This month we're losing Parasite from Max, and given it's one of the best movies of the past 10 years (at least), it's a must-watch before it disappears.

For those who aren't familiar with this Korean-language black comedy thriller, it centers around the Kim family, a poor family in Seoul who work their way into infiltrating the wealthy Park family and rise out of the slums for good. It's definitely not a feel-good story, but it was a feel-good story when writer/director Bong Joon-ho won Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best International Feature Film at the 92nd Academy Awards. That made "Parasite" the first South Korean film to win an Academy Award and the first foreign-language film to win Best Picture after it already broke ground as the first Korean film to win the Palme d'Or at Cannes.

Suffice to say, this is almost universally considered an incredible movie. Having seen "Parasite" myself when it came out in 2019, I'd also agree that it was incredible, and while not my pick for the best movie of the year, it was very worthy of its Oscar wins. So if you haven't seen "Parasite" before, here's what you need to know about the movie and why it's a must-watch before it leaves Max.

What is 'Parasite' about?

"Parasite" centers around the Kim family, who live in a destitute neighborhood in Seoul, South Korea. They all struggle to make ends meet but finally catch a lucky break when Kim Ki-woo's (Choi Woo-shik) friend Min-hyuk (Park Seo-joon) suggests that Ki-woo take over his job as an English tutor for Park Da-hye (Jung Ji-so), the daughter of the wealthy but naive Park family.

Armed with a plan, Ki-woo's sister Ki-jung (Park So-dam) helps him fake a certificate from Yonsei University, which helps him get the job with the Park family. Once he's there, the Kim family realizes they can all probably get on the Park family payroll, and slowly start getting hired by the Parks, with Ki-jung being hired as an art therapist for the Park's son Da-song (Jung Hyeon-jun) and the Kim parents Ki-taek (Song Kang-ho) and Chung-sook (Jang Hye-jin) brought on as the Park's chauffeur and housekeeper, respectively. Everything goes well, until one fateful night the Kim's let their guard down and everything starts to go horribly wrong.

'Parasite' is a must-watch before it leaves Max

It's tough to knock this movie for anything. I guess if you don't like subtitles then maybe this isn't the movie for you,. Otherwise, I'd recommend "Parasite" to everyone and anyone. The movie is brilliantly paced and the perfect example of the ideal thriller. You're first kept on the edge of your seat watching the Kim family infiltrate the Park family and then when the first twist happens, you're rocked by it. That's not the only shocking moment of the movie though. The ending is stunning and will leave you in disbelief.

But "Parasite" is more than just a thriller. It's also an insightful examination of the class struggle that persists in capitalist societies and you distinctly find yourself rooting for the Kim family as they infiltrate the spoiled, wealthy Park family, even though you can certainly make the argument that the Kims are not good people.

So watch "Parasite" for yourself now before it leaves Max at the end of the month. January 31 is the last day to watch, so start streaming now.

Stream "Parasite" now on Max

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