3 Act Story Structure with Save the Cat's Beat Sheet — Parasite Movie Explained in 15 Beats

story structure the hero's journey the story circle save the cat they're not arbitrary constructs they're based on patterns found in thousands of years of storytelling [Music] no matter the genre language or era these patterns have created expectations i was not expecting that storytelling is most successful when it meets these expectations but also challenges them so what are these expectations and how does a movie like bong joong ho's parasite follow the patterns while creating its own path let's find out [Music] before we descend into story structure make sure to subscribe and ring that bell and we'll deliver the next video straight to your door parasite is a social satire about a poor family conning their way into lives of luxury by working for a wealthy family led by their son gi woo the kim family attempts to lift themselves out of poverty while bong and jin script gives each character an important role to play giwu is the driving force let's track his journey from a place of idealism into utter ruin [Music] [Applause] parasite subverts the 15 story beats in the save the cap beat sheet to deliver a groundbreaking story with the script imported into studio binder let's see how parasite saves the cat while dooming everyone else let's begin with the first beat the opening image [Music] this beat establishes a snapshot of the world as the story begins and oftentimes it mirrors the final shot or scene of the film parasite opens with this shot take note of it it'll be important in the end [Music] this is a really effective shot and scene in a single minute we understand the family's lot in life and their motivation to rise out of the gutter so to speak next comes the theme stated beat this is the guiding principle for the film and often leads the hero through their journey in this scene we get the perfect visualization of the kim family situation giwu's plan is to work hard enough to lift his family out of poverty and the theme is possible and as we'll see giwu will follow this belief no matter the consequences [Music] with the theme established now we set up the main story pieces in these scenes we get to know our hero or heroes in this case the status quo of their lives and why we should root for them take this scene when a woman from the pizza shop tries to dock the family's [Music] pay [Music] foreign it also conveys his smarts which will come into play shortly despite his attempts to get someone fired we empathize with giwu at this point we know what he wants and what he's willing to do to get it there are similar scenes that help set up the other members of the kim family their past their unique skills and perspectives all of these scenes lead us to the next beat with the setup complete the plot needs the catalyst with the catalyst a person place or thing sets the plot in motion in this case giwu's friend min offers giwu the opportunity he's been looking for a well-paying job tutoring a member of the affluent park family we can see how establishing cleverness in the previous beat sets us up perfectly for this catalyst after the catalyst comes the debate it's the moment when the hero falls into doubt giwu doesn't think he's good enough to tutor the girl or whether he can fake being a college student but he ultimately accepts it and it's not long until he takes on an even more active role this is the opportunity to earn money and status kiwi's been looking for if the debate was the question this is the answer the break into two this is where the hero takes their first steps to achieving their goal right before we break into act two [Music] [Music] not only does giwu land the tutoring job except for he accelerates his plan by bringing his sister into the con [Music] it becomes endgame is to get everyone in his family employed this helps him with his want which is to earn money but what does he need that's what we'll get into with the b story the b story is the helper story whether it's a love interest a mentor or a guide this character helps the hero test the theme and shows them what they need in parasite the closest thing we have to a mentor is gitech giwu's father we learn about various business ventures gitech has had over the years and how they failed if the theme of parasite is the belief that upward mobility is possible gitech's career failures suggest that this premise is false you can work hard and still end up in poverty this is what giwu needs to understand before it's too late and we move into the next beat fun and games this beat is a sequence of scenes where the heroes explore the new world in this case we see the kim's con their way into the park family's good graces [Music] [Music] next they need to bring in the kim matriarch jungsuk the family fools the parks that the current housekeeper moon guang has tuberculosis moon is let go and jung-suk steps in during the fun and games beat we see the kims at their most deceitful and their most successful after all it's all fun and games for now which leads us directly to the midpoint this is the point of no return in the plot [Music] the parasite script is 141 pages long and everything changes on page 71. literally at the midpoint as the kim's enjoy the perks of a successful con their new lives are looking good they've reached easy street food but then the doorbell rings with their positions assumed to be secure everything is flipped on its head this is the moment that parasite takes a sharp turn from the path we expected into completely foreign territory in this beat our heroes troubles are just getting started now the bad guys close in oil the bad guys will test just how tenacious our heroes truly are but a simple slip-up allows and her husband to blackmail the kim's once they learn the truth foreign both lower class families were pulling off their own schemes to feed off the rich which one will emerge victorious [Music] on to our next beat when all is lost at this point the hero's chances for success are at their lowest during a violent struggle the parks make a surprise return home [Music] and her husband are locked in the basement while the kims are forced to hide [Applause] gitech endures humiliation as the parks describe his smell a metaphor tied directly to the thematic premise begins to believe that despite their efforts to ascend their social rank he'll never be able to wash away the stink of poverty now i'm broiled in a potential murder plot the kim family's lies have caught up with them and everything they've worked for may be all for naught the next beat is the dreaded dark knight of the soul with hope at its lowest the heroes must reflect on whether they can actually achieve their goal the kim's escape only to find everything they own destroyed they now have less than when they began which allows the a and b stories to collide and the theme to be discussed after everything that has happened is upward mobility truly possible if so at what cost gitech the mentor shares his answer a pessimistic outlook meant to dissuade his son however giwu rejects this notion and literally clutches his dream even tighter he proceeds with renewed purpose to attain a better life with newfound understanding the hero is now ready to break into three this beat establishes the hero has hatched a new plan he's ready to go all the way in many scripts this is when things begin to turn around for the hero but with parasite things are about to get so much worse the parks host a beautiful party for their son while giwu looks on with detached envy and then a plan is born he knows what must be done this is his last chance to fulfill the thematic premise by eliminating the obstacles in his path and we head into the finale where the hero finishes what they started a riveting finale is broken up into five distinct sub beats first to gather the team then execute the plan followed by a high tower surprise where the plan fails forcing the protagonist to dig deep down and finally execute a new plan the finale not only gives the hero a chance to finish the quest but also to demonstrate their transformation but parasite is a dark film there is no transformation there is no team to gather giwu's obsession has gone far past his families so he must act alone giwu enters the basement to do the unthinkable his hightower surprise is here suffering an ironic and devastating counter-attack as goons say turns the table all is lost again [Applause] is his sister is stabbed to death gitech commits his own murder [Music] foreign [Music] a month later recovers but with severe brain damage [Music] one day he sees this a glimmer of hope his father is still alive this is when gewu digs deep by executing a new plan he will give up scheming he will work hard and rise up the social ladder and ultimately he will buy the park family's home you don't want to and set his father free at last in his mind the finale is meant to resolve the thematic premise of the movie while many scripts end with positive resolution parasite ends on a rather sour note gewu's naive optimism is just as strong in the end as it was in the beginning blinding him from the impossibility of actually executing this plan we've reached the end the final beat is the final image this is often a reversal of the opening image and a glimpse at the hero's future the parasite ending shot matches the opening a perfect bookend except this time the bright sunny apartment is dark and down tried to give his family a better life and failed his belief that upward mobility is possible cost him everything [Music] parasite has a lot on its mind with regards to wealth inequality and social status giwu's character arc is circular he begins and ends the film believing that change is possible the lesson he never learned is that upward social mobility will forever be out of his reach nobody promised it would be a happy ending but even a film like parasite a film with dueling tones and unexpected twists and turns fits within the beat sheet check out save the cat's story structure app to plan everything out really easily and when you're ready to write your script studio binder screen writing software is all you need hatching a plan for your next film studio binder will be here waiting see you on the next one [Music] you

Channel: StudioBinder

Views: 212,456

Keywords: Parasite, parasite explained, parasite movie, parasite movie explained, video essay, parasite scene, bong joon ho, parasite ending, how to write a screenplay, story structure, parasite video essay, parasite ending explained, story beats, parasite 2019, bong joon ho parasite, parasite meaning, parasite essay, 15 beat plot structure, screenwriting techniques, screenwriting story structure, parasite script, script, screenwriting, screenplay, foundflix, insider, save the cat

Id: 2kil95fwMVo

Length: 20min 44sec (1244 seconds)

Published: Mon Apr 12 2021

Reddit Comments

[u/EleanortheKat]

Great analysis of a movie I loved! Made me appreciate it even more.