Thirst · reception & legacy
2009 · Park Chan-wook
How Thirst has been received, argued over, and remembered.
The arc
It won the Jury Prize at Cannes in 2009 but landed as the 'divisive one' in Park's run — praised as audacious, knocked for its length and tonal whiplash. It's since climbed steadily, with Song Kang-ho's post-Parasite global fame sending a new wave of viewers back to call it one of Park's best.
What's debated
The perennial fight is where it ranks in Park Chan-wook's filmography — a vocal camp insists it's his most underrated film, better than its reputation next to Oldboy and The Handmaiden.
Its footprint
It's a fixture of the 'vampire movies for people who hate vampire movies' conversation — the arthouse counter-programming people cite from the Twilight era, usually in the same breath as Let the Right One In.
Where it stands
A canon climber: once the deep cut in Park's filmography, now a Letterboxd favourite that fans hand to anyone who's finished the Vengeance trilogy.