Bhathiya Barukanda
An independent Korean film with a budget of $11 million has been voted the best film of the 21st century, beating the best films from Nolan, Spielberg and others.
Earlier this week, The New York Times released its list of the 100 best films of the 21st century. The publication enlisted more than 500 influential directors, actors and other notable names from Hollywood and around the world, who voted for the films in a lengthy process. The end result was a ranked list of 100, released periodically. The top 10 were unveiled in late June. To everyone’s surprise, an independent Korean film beat Hollywood favourites and acclaimed films from people as varied as Christopher Nolan, David Fincher and the Coen Brothers.
New York Times’ Best Film of 21st Century
Bong Joon Ho’s Oscar-winning 2019 film Parasite was voted the best film of the 21st century on the New York Times’ Best 100 list. The film also topped a readers’ poll on the publication. For the unversed, Parasite is a Korean black comedy, which is based on a poor family infiltrating the lives of a wealthy family. Its Palme d’Or win at Cannes helped it gain a global release. Made with just $11 million, the film earned $258 million worldwide.
The Korean film received widespread praise and was the first foreign picture to win in a major category at the Golden Globes, BAFTAs, and Screen Actors Guild Awards. Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best International Feature Film were the four Oscars that Parasite took home from the 92nd Academy Awards. It became the first non-English film to win Best Picture at the Oscars.
Parasite’s victory over these films
There Will Be Blood by Paul Thomas Anderson finished third, while Parasite defeated David Lynch’s 2001 thriller Mulholland Drive, which had to compete for second place. Along with well-known international films In the Mood for Love (4) and Spirited Away (9), the top 10 also features critically acclaimed Hollywood productions like Moonlight (5), No Country for Old Men (6), Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (7), Get Out (8), and The Social Network (10). The majority of these movies were also listed among the top 10 by readers.
Interestingly, Christopher Nolan’s film Interstellar ranked 5th in the readers’ poll, but slipped to 89th place in the Best 100 list.
