10 Greatest Ever Oscar Shocks
6. Parasite!
The first foreign language film to scoop best picture, the first winner of Canne’s prestigious Palme D’or to do so since 1965 - the 2020 Oscars were good to South Korean cinema and for Bong Joon-ho. Trumping more traditional Oscar fare like 1917, Parasite was the shock of the night, and the best decision the academy has made in many a year.
The acerbic class comedy was, admittedly, second favourite to take the prize, but the coronation of 1917 seemed nailed on. While it’s not traditional Oscar bait, it boasts many academy friendly qualities - it’s based on true events, has an acclaimed director, is somewhat worthy. Parasite, meanwhile, is an oddball of a film, uproariously entertaining but with a dark and cynical edge. It asks uncomfortable questions about our class systems, and offers none of the easy answers the academy voters tend to gobble up.
Most notably, though, it’s not in English, which shouldn’t be - but until now always has been - the great stumbling block for Oscar voters. Whether this opens the floodgates or just speeds up the inevitable US remake remains to be seen, but it can only be a good thing when the best picture actually wins Best Picture.