The Korean thriller that tells a universal story
Director Bong Joon-ho’s surprising, shocking new film PARASITE is set in his native Korea — but its rich-versuspoor message transcends borders
AFTER NEARLY A decade working in Hollywood with Snowpiercer and Okja, Bong Joon-ho came back to his native South Korea for Parasite, his seventh film. A darkly funny thriller about a poor family who con their way into a rich family’s house (with unexpected consequences), its themes are both very Korean and extremely relatable to pretty much anyone. This, Bong says, is deliberate.
“I think this is a very universal story about the era of capitalism that we live in today,” the director, who originally wrote the script as a play, tells Empire.
“There are elements in the film that are specific to
Korea — for example, the house the protagonists live in is a very eerie and unique residential structure we have in
Korea. But international audiences can grasp how the space works.” It may be his first entirely Korean film since 2009’s Mother, but it’s not made solely for Koreans. “I never set a specific target for my audience,” he says.
Parasite is by no means a message movie. But among the high-stakes twists and turns lies a serious message about wealth inequality, which feels relevant wherever you’re from. “In Cannes, I had reporters from the UK telling me that you could adapt it as a British film — just bring the story as it is. There wouldn’t even be a need to localise it.”
Part of its crossover appeal, too, is Bong’s deft use of genres, flitting between comedic con caper, violent thriller, domestic drama and heartbreaking tragedy. “I never really think about intentionally mixing genres when I create a film,” says Bong. “I think all tragedies have certain comedic elements. The opposite holds true as well.” And despite the wild stings in the tail, Bong took care to keep things feeling grounded and realistic. “Parasite doesn’t really feature any villains,” he notes. “Of course, the protagonists do bad things, but they just become intertwined in situations that gradually become more complicated. I think that really resembles our actual lives.”
The appeal has certainly proved universal so far, with almost entirely positive reviews (99 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes), one of the best per-cinema average box-office results of 2019 in the US, a surprise Palme d’or win at Cannes — and now serious Oscar buzz, including the Best Picture and Best Director categories. Bong, for his part, is still flummoxed by the Cannes win — “It still feels like something that happened to someone else,’’ he says — and fairly relaxed by Oscar prospects. “The campaign is fascinating,” he says. “But I don’t consider it my main job.” Telling stories that find the universal in the specific, really, is Bong’s main job.