Two movies that tap the zeitgeist. The superior Korean film, maybe the movie of the year, is a dark comedy about social class differences, disdain and self-respect. The American one is about crazy losers versus normal winners, a notable conceptual distinction. None of them explain why there are those differences to begin with and why society is a pressure cooker. They just stop with the possible consequences for an upper class that doesn't care enough about its underlyings. This is the bane of the reactor, the path to reactionary movements and fascism.
Despite this lack of connection between class consciousness and the motives behind its existence, Joon-ho Bong manages to execute a tight and brutal comedy with matter-of-fact mirror images of wealth and squalor. Actions are justified. There are no minutes lost in "Parasite".
"Joker" is another matter. It lives in 1970s movies, especifically Scorsese's, and often just looks to shook the viewer. The music is overbearing, similar to Nolan productions; the unnecesary slow motion scream "evocative student film", and the rest is a copy of the "Unbreakable" aesthetic, a far better film. Still, Phoenix is excellent on it, and it is the riskier production we can expect from a decadent Hollywood industry.
If you need to chose one, go for "Parasite" straight away. If you can do both, then "Joker is an interesting curiosity that will be heralded by the always hungry fans of anything, living in the desertic landscape of American big screen entertainment.
