A Glean movie guide
Beyond Parasite
Social commentary with a dark edge
Masterful thrillers and biting satires that explore class, tension, and the unexpected.
Handpicked for this guide
The movie list
- 01
Snowpiercer
Bong Joon-ho’s high-stakes vision of a train-bound society divided strictly by class.
In a future where a failed global-warming experiment kills off most life on the planet, a class system evolves aboard the Snowpiercer; a train that travels around the globe via a perpetual-motion engine.
- 02
The Handmaiden
A visually stunning, twist-filled masterpiece of deception and power dynamics.
1930s Korea, in the period of Japanese occupation, a new girl, Sook-hee, is hired as a handmaiden to a Japanese heiress, Hideko, who lives a secluded life on a large countryside estate with her domineering Uncle Kouzuki. But the maid has a secret. She is a pickpocket recruited by a swindler posing as a Japanese Count to help him seduce the Lady to steal her fortune.
- 03
The Menu
A sharp, darkly comedic satire that skewers the excesses of the ultra-wealthy.
A young couple travels to a remote island to eat at an exclusive restaurant where the chef has prepared a lavish menu, with some shocking surprises.
- 04
Burning
A slow-burn psychological thriller that masterfully builds tension through class resentment.
Deliveryman Jong-su is out on a job when he runs into Hae-mi, a girl who once lived in his neighborhood. She asks if he'd mind looking after her cat while she's away on a trip to Africa. On her return, she introduces to Jong-su an enigmatic young man named Ben, who she met during her trip. One day Ben tells Jong-su about his most unusual hobby.
- 05
Knives Out
A clever, twist-heavy whodunit that uses a dysfunctional family to satirize privilege.
When renowned crime novelist Harlan Thrombey is found dead at his estate just after his 85th birthday, the inquisitive and debonair Detective Benoit Blanc is mysteriously enlisted to investigate. From Harlan's dysfunctional family to his devoted staff, Blanc sifts through a web of red herrings and self-serving lies to uncover the truth behind Harlan's untimely death.
- 06
Shoplifters
A deeply humanistic look at a marginalized family surviving on the fringes of society.
In the outskirts of Tokyo, a poor but close-knit group living on the fringes of society survives through shoplifting and odd jobs. When Osamu and his son take in a neglected young girl, their already fragile existence begins to unravel. As the family grows attached to her, buried secrets surface, forcing them to confront the true meaning of love, belonging, and what makes a family.
- 07
Triangle of Sadness
An escalating, chaotic satire where a luxury cruise disaster upends the social order.
A celebrity model couple are invited on a luxury cruise for the uber-rich, helmed by an unhinged, alcoholic captain. What first appears Instagrammable ends catastrophically, leaving the survivors stranded on a desert island in a struggle of hierarchy.
- 08
Oldboy
A visceral, genre-defining thriller featuring one of cinema's most shocking narrative twists.
With no clue how he came to be imprisoned, drugged and tortured for 15 years, a desperate man seeks revenge on his captors.