A psychological horror exercise from the unique mind of director Yorgos Lanthimos, "The Killing of a Sacred Deer" is a cold, clinical, and undeniably bleak film that leaves you with a deeply uncomfortable feeling. In the film, we meet surgeon Steven (Colin Farrell), who, after finishing an open-heart surgery, encounters enigmatic teenager Martin (Barry Keoghan). When it is uncovered that Martin has a connection to Steven's past, his family starts to fall mysteriously ill, and Steven is faced with the most harrowing "Sophie's Choice" imaginable in order to save them.
The title of "Parasite" is reflective of what the film is about; one of the definitions of the word is "an animal or plant that lives in or on another animal or plant and gets food or protection from it" (via Merriam-Webster). In the film, this manifests in the Kim family, essentially feeding off the wealth of the Park family. Parasites, by definition, can also lead to infection and disease, and in "The Killing of a Sacred Deer," Martin can be seen as the disease, slowly infiltrating and infecting the family, with horrifying consequences.
While the subject matter of "The Killing of a Sacred Deer" is deeply disturbing, Lanthimos laces it with some deliciously dark comedy, as well. They may be very different films in many ways, but there is a fascinating crossover in terms of what horrors could transpire when a parasitic individual gets their hooks in.
