Framing the class divide
‘Parasite’ director Bong Joon Ho wants viewers to feel the story’s power ‘in their hearts and their skin’ — like it’s a horror film. (And it kind of is.)
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ong Joon Ho’s celebrated satirical thriller “Parasite” centers on the Kims, a low-income South Korean family that manipulates its way into employment positions in the household of a wealthy family. It all starts with the Kims’ collegeage son, Ki-woo, getting a tip about a tutoring gig for the youngest daughter of the well-to-do Parks. Soon his sister, mother and father are working as an art tutor, maid and driver for the Parks, who are somehow oblivious to the shared connections of their new employees. The story is completely original, but Bong says he had some inspiration from his college years.
“I tutored for a middle school boy in a rich family,” Bong recalls. “He secretly took me to the second floor and he showed off his private sauna at the house. I remember feeling very shocked to see a sauna in a house.”
With six Oscar nominations, including picture and director, the film has earned massive praise, and not just because Bong and his colleagues fashioned an entertaining story that works for audiences in any language. The picture has something to say about the growing global crisis of class disparity, a theme that has been present in a number of his other films, most notably 2013’s “Snowpiercer.”
“I remember first really talking about this project to other people in the production company during postproduction of ‘Snowpiercer,’ ” Bong says through a translator. “And because that film is also about the rich and poor, I think I was very wrapped up with those thoughts. It all began when I realized that I wanted to tell the same story, not through sci-fi or action, but with people who are around us in our daily lives. People who feel like our family members. And in Korea, it’s very common to have tutors and do tutoring jobs.”
Unlike a number of Bong’s previous films, such as 2006’s “The Host” and 2017’s “Okja,” “Parasite” is one of his less overtly fantastical efforts.
But the fact that it’s more grounded doesn’t mean it’s a more personal film than any other picture on his résumé. The everhumble Bong notes, “I think the most personal film that I made is actually my first feature, ‘Barking Dogs Never Bite.’ Not a lot of people have seen it. It wasn’t theatrically released [in the United States], and I am very relieved of that.”
Laughing, Bong adds, “Please don’t watch that movie. It’s a very stupid black comedy.”
As Bong sees it, “Parasite” may not inherently be a “giant blockbuster” (although it’s already taken in $160 million worldwide), but the dramatic arc of its story line makes it so compelling.
“[The movie] is very funny. Sometimes it’s scary, like a horror film.
“But I think there’s a much deeper emotion that underlies the entire film,” Bong says. “I really want to leave the audience with this emotional lump at the end after they leave the theater. Something that they feel in their hearts and their skin.”
That issue of universal economic inequality is prevalent on every continent and has certainly connected with awards voters.
The Neon release is the first South Korean film to be nominated for best picture (and even for international film), it won best original script from the Writers Guild of America and made history at the SAG Awards last month as the first foreign-language film to win the top prize — outstanding performance by a cast in a motion picture.
“This is pretty pessimistic and scary to imagine, but I think five or 10 years later on this film might feel even more current,” Bong says.
“And I think the ending really reflects that. It’s been so long since the rich and poor have been divided. There’s this anxiety and fear that it will only grow even wider, and of course it would be great if that’s not the case, but I do have that feeling.
“I don’t think this issue can be resolved in our generation. I think it will be passed onto our children, to our children’s children, and we have no idea when the system can really change.”
Bong exudes a genuine warmth and sense of humor that is almost too self-deprecating at times.
His answer to what he loves most about the filmmaking process frames that trait perfectly.
“My favorite part is the sound mixing stage at the very end. Before then, my eyes have suffered so much and at that point I can really focus on my ears,” Bong says.
“Throughout my seven features, I’ve worked with the same partner in sound design and mixing [Tae-young Choi]. So, when we sit together in the mixing room and go through each scene, one by one, I feel very comfortable. I also am very happy that I can really focus on my ears, and also I feel very relieved knowing that it’s going to be over soon.”