When my friends told me they recently watched the movie, Parasite in theaters, I was shocked because I had watched Parasite in Korea over the summer after its first release in Korean theaters on May 30th. Parasite picked up global acknowledgment by winning international prizes: 4 wins in the 92nd Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Director, Palme d’Or prize in Paris, British Independent Film Award for Best International Independent Film, Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film, and many more. Parasite, the 2019 South Korean black comedy thriller film directed by Bong Joon-Ho, discusses the greed and class discrimination threatening the new symbolic relationship between the wealthy Park family and the destitute Kim clan.
My first reaction on that cool summer night, was a feeling of unexpectancy; I did not know what to think when chills began crawling through my skin. I kept wondering how the director came up with all these horrible yet incredible ideas. The messages of this movie carried so much depth behind every scene. Here are some strong takeaways that made me think twice. First of all, the title itself could be interpreted in many ways. Who portrayed the real parasite in this movie? Most people might conclude that the poor Kim family were indeed the parasites since they lived off of the rich family. However, I think the rich family was portrayed as the actual parasites with the mother who could do nothing without the maid, and the daughter who could do nothing without expensive private lessons. Unlike the poor Kim clan, who tried everything on their own to earn money for their family, the rich Park family could not live without the luxuries they were given in life. Just like a parasite, these wealthy people depended on other people working for their comfort. The next contradictory question Parasite raised was: “Does money bring happiness?” The Kim family lived in the worst conditions possible. They had little to no access to internet and hardly survived with the money they earned each day. There was no doubt that they were born into the very bottom of the social classes. However, they looked happier than the rich family. Every family member cared about each other, and they worked together to survive the financial crisis they were put through. None of the family members wished to be rich alone. While the Park family is conflicted over the smallest things, such as favoritism within the family and cared more about how others saw them, the Kim family laughed and appreciated small things. When Mr. Kim made a remark to Mr. Park, “...because you love your wife,” Mr. Park instantly became utterly annoyed. Whenever the word “love” was mentioned, Mr. Park grew anxious and angry. Based on his reaction, we can assume that the love in his family was not real, and was barely held together with the fake reassurance money brought to them. My favorite quote from Mrs. Kim was “‘Not rich, but still nice.’ She’s nice because she’s rich. Hell, if I had all this money, I’d be nice, too!,” contains a lot of meaning. The rich Parks may seem giving and kind, but really they were only generous to people who were close to them, with the hidden intention to show off. Although society expects the rich to be giving to the poor, the rich class often separates themselves from the lower class. Parasite criticizes the greed of people. For those people who misinterpret this movie, coming to a simple conclusion that, “South Korea has class division problems,” I want to say that the social class difference is a universal problem. No matter where we go, we see homeless and jobless people on the streets. It’s just that we never fully know their stories. Thus I think films need to take more responsibility in showing the neglected part of the community, so people can see the problems themselves. On a different note, I’m proud that the Korean movie industry is continuing to grow, and Asians are better represented through this film and many more to come. In his Golden Globe Award speech, Bong said, “Once you overcome the 1-inch-tall barrier of subtitles, you will be introduced to so many more amazing films. I think we use only one language: the cinema.” |