21st Century Haves, Haves-not: Bong Joon-Ho's Commentary on Contemporary Class Divide in Parasite Anonymous College

Bong Joon-Ho’s most recent venture, Parasite(or Gisaengchung), rose to widespread critical acclaim following its premier at the Cannes Film Festival, where it also won the coveted Palm d’Or. There have been countless films and works of literature that have wrestled with, and explored the undyingly pertinent vein of social divisions and economic disparity, yet, no attempts in recent times have translated into an experience that gained the degree of global scrutiny and discourse that Parasite has enjoyed. Joon-Ho’s story culminates into a finale that provides a literal representation of the idea of class warfare by pitting two families into a struggle for control over a house that doesn’t belong to them, while the owners parade in luxuries that shield them from sensing the brewing skirmish below their feet. Joon-Ho’s Parasite provides a layered and thoughtful mediation on contemporary class divide, realized through his contemptuous treatment of wealth and the wealthy, while affording its indigent subjects greater leniency in this hypercritical exercise.

Perhaps the most blatant display of an acute disapproval for the wealthy family that owns the lavish estate around which the plot of Parasite centers, and vicariously, the...