21st Century Haves, Haves-not: Bong Joon-Ho's Commentary on Contemporary Class Divide in Parasite Wikipedia Entries for Parasite Introduction Plot Cast Production Themes and interpretations Through the analysis of the audio-visual language of the movie, this article starts with the storytelling of Parasite, enumerates and analyses the elements that appear in the movie to reflect the gap between the rich and poor. The family lives in a garden unit where they struggle finding a Wi-Fi signal to sneak into in order to get . As mentioned, the film contains a huge, exciting twist that drives the plot ahead at full speed, so do yourself a favour and DONT spoil it for yourself! Ki-jung gets the job after impressing Mrs. Park with some pseudo insights about psychology, and Mrs. Park hires her as both a tutor and an art therapist. Moon-kwang herself is a suspicious character; she must definitely be unhappy with Mrs Kim for being her replacement (although shes unaware that it was due to the Kims meddling that got her fired), but why did she have to visit the house on, of all nights, the night that it was raining cats and dogs? Parasite concludes where it begins, in the semi-basement apartment. The Kim family is destroyed; Ki-jung is killed, Ki-woo is left brain-damaged, and Ki-taek is forced into hiding after he snaps and acts out a classism-driven murder in the chaos of the birthday party. The local pizza shop informs the Kims that one in four of the pizza boxes they folded were faulty and could not be used. Kim Ki-woos life changes when a friend offers to recommend him as an English tutor for a girl hes been working with as the friend has to go out of the country for a while. Surprisingly, Ki-Woo turns out skilled in his artifice: as Ki-Woo explains, "I dont consider this a crime. He works as a list writer for Valnet, Inc. covering Screen Rant. Grabbing the knife Geun-se wielded, Ki-taek stabs Mr. Park and runs away. After struggling to make ends meet folding pizza boxes for a local pizza restaurant, the Kims are visited by one of Ki-woo's wealthier friends, Min-hyuk, who offers to refer him to a job tutoring for a wealthy family, the Parks. The original housekeeper, Moon-gwang (Lee Jung Eun), displaced by the scheme, turns up at the home while the Parks are away and begs the Kims to allow her husband, Geun-se (Park Myeong-hoon), to continue living there after they discover him. In our Parasite movie analysis, we found that although the tone and style change, the themes at play remain consistent from the first half to the second half, and continue to be developed further as the film progresses. But, before we dig deeper into the social commentary, lets take a look at how the film managed to break through to an unmatched audience size. A knocked-out Moon-kwang soon gains consciousness and tries to flee up the basement stairs just as Mrs Park arrives back home, but Mrs Kim deals a deft kick to Moon-kwangs chest, sending her tumbling down the stairs and landing in the basement with a sick thud of her head against the concrete wall. He has always been fascinated by pop culture and film. At the start of the film, we are introduced to the Kims, a family struggling to live under impoverished conditions. An American DIY Film Movement, When is Golden Hour? The most interesting part of this dynamic film is the variety of characters. Lee Jeong-eun, who plays Moon-Gwang the housekeeper, also provided the vocalization for Okja the super pig in Bong Joon-hos previous film. Mr Kim is visibly affected, even sniffing his own shirt. What is the movie Parasite about? has many answers. Moon-kwangs constant wails of Husband! The young man changes his name to Kevin and begins tutoring Park Da-hye (Jung Ziso), who immediately falls for him, of course. moon-gwang's husband. Alongside actor Choi Woo-sik, he explains the significance of production design elements from the beginning of the film, such as the cultural context of scholars stones in South Korea and the idea of distant hope conveyed by the semi-basement window. The script for Parasite will get a ton of attention as its one of those clever twisting and turning tales for which the screenwriter gets the most credit (Bong and Han Jin-won, in this case), but this is very much an exercise in visual language that reaffirms Bong as a master. But theres this: In a screenplay, characters exist for a reason. Kevin has a much deeper plan. After hearing about the peach allergy of the housekeeper, Moon-gwang, Ki-jung and Ki-woo trigger an allergic reaction and make it look like she has tuberculosis. The Park family is also blissfully unaware that the Kims are all related, but the observant young Park son, Da-song (Jung Hyun-joon) notices that all the new hires smell the same. Mr Park runs over to Moon-kwangs husband and pushes his body aside to retrieve the car key, but not before he wrinkles his nose at the smell that Moon-kwangs husband exudes. The Park daughter is not entirely faultless; she seduces Ki-woo and her previous English tutor as well (Ki-woos friend), with Ki-woo even proclaiming the same pledge made by his friend that he would officially date her once she enters university. GradeSaver "Parasite Characters". It is the only way Ki-Jung relieves her stress from the reality. Maybe its the crazy eyes, the receding hairline, the fact that he manually presses buttons on the bunker wall to turn on individual lights on the entrance staircase into the house (to show his gratitude towards Mr Park for providing for him, but giving the Parks the impression that the lights at the staircase were always sensor lights), or just plainly the fact that hes a fucking mole person hiding out in someones house. "Parasite"is so perfectly calibrated that theres joy to be had in just experiencing every confident frame of it, but then thats tempered by thinking about what Bong is unpacking here and saying about society, especially with the perfect, absolutely hauntingfinal scenes. Ki-Jung's family was much better off in her childhood when her father owned a cake shop. He notices the flickering light and deciphers a coded message from his father. It wasnt just awards records that Parasite broke in 2019. Thats all for my in-depth analysis! It is his success in passing as a competent English tutor that allows him to invite Ki-jeong into the home and so on. His thoughtless comments were slowly building up resentment in Mr Kim, and further amplified the divide between the two families. I would LOVE to hear from other viewers on their theories on the film, so please feel free to share them with me. The smell won't go away unless we leave this place.". He has held a bunch of different jobs, working as a valet and at a bakery, but struggles to provide for his family. Living in a musty semi-basement in the slums of Seoul, South Korea. Guen-sae may not be the brightest of the bunch, but he's not entirely an idiot either. Yes, he receives help from Ki-jeong and Ki-woo with the peaches, but he is the one who must do the talking afterward. Yeon-Kyo enjoys a calm and relaxing life in the mansion. Each family has a symbiotic relationship with one another; the Parks need their employees to keep their house and family up and running, and the Kims and Moon-kwangs family leech off the wealth of the Parks. Although it does not seem likely, Ki-Woo claims he will get admission into an elite university and marry Da-Hye. Their quest for upward mobility is futile. The flooding sequence, as depicted on the poster, also illustrates how the wealthy are unaffected by many of the debilitating circumstances that affect the lower classes as they are, quite literally, above the trouble. The first half of Parasite plays out largely as a comedy-drama with a compelling narrative and thought-provoking themes. Subscribe for more filmmaking videos like this. The article breaks down how to identify and breakdown set elements in a screenplay. as Ki-woo ( Ki-taek's son ), Park So-dam Parasite study guide contains a biography of Bong Joon-ho, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. Parasite director Bong Joon-ho became the first South Korean filmmaker to win best director at the academy awards. Characters are the players in our stories. The cinematography was also amazing. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of Parasite by Bong Joon-ho. The thought that the panties were placed their intentionally to sabotage the chauffeur did not even cross Mr Parks mind. Guen-sae manages to get the jump on Ki-woo after he fails to murderGuen-sae with the rock given by Min. Writing Exercise: Think about each character. This is especially impressive given how ethnocentric the Academy Awards often unfold, prioritizing English-language films over foreign-language films much of the time. Her charismatic personality makes her excellent at fooling the Parks. Has also tied the record with Walt Disney for most Oscars awarded to an individual at a single ceremony. Challenge getting through his family's bad luck. He stands in the woods near the Parks' house, which has been bought by Germans, and observes that the censor light is turning on and off in a patternMorse Code. This article was published more than3 years ago, Note: This story, as one might assume from its headline, contains major spoilers for Parasite.. After expressing some doubt at the lies he would have to sell to land the tutoring gig, Ki-woo enlists the help of the artistic Ki-jeong to forge university papers for him in order to land the job. Moon-kwangs husband escapes up the basement and into the house. Grew up as an art student at a middle-class family. Parallels are drawn between the two families to show that poverty and social status can sometimes really just be a matter of circumstance. I had my doubts over who the one would be, but it seems to be Mr Kim. For some Parasite movie analysis straight from the auteur himself, check out this scene breakdown from Bong Joon-ho. Both parties have dark secrets, and both threaten to expose the other to the Park family, who remain above all the drama, currently unaware. She is very nice, but not especially deep or compassionate. Parasite Character Analysis (Avoiding Spoilers) Living in Park family's beautiful mansion in the wealthy neighborhoods of Seoul, South Korea. Read the script for the award-winning foreign film and analyze all week. Be sure to watch our video essay on the scene for more detail and deeper Parasite analysis. There are plenty of examples of subtle foreshadowing all throughout this opening act that circle back around by the end of the film. The social commentary of "Parasite" leads tochaos, but it never feels like a didactic message movie. While attending a birthday party for the Parks young son, Da-song (Jung Hyeon Jun), Ki-woo heads to the bunker carrying a heavy scholar stone he once received as a gift intended to bring his family material wealth. The film centers on two families, one poor and one rich and the interactions between them that end explosively. Parasite is a South Korean movie from 2019 filled with numerous themes, all being the fault of a patriarchal and hierarchical society we have created. He writes his own letter back, in which he dreams about buying the house for himself and reuniting his family. This is where director Bong Joon-Hos commentary on social status and the wealth divides becomes even more prominent, pitting the Kims against Moon-kwang and her husband as they each threaten to reveal the truth about each other to the Parks. Min-hyuk offers Ki-woo his tutoring job while he's away noting that the family of the girl he tutors is not necessarily the best judge of character. Dong-Ik has a housekeeper to keep his mansion comfortable and a chauffeur to drive him from the busy workplace to his peaceful home. She is easily deceived by Ki-jeong's framing of the Park family chauffeur as explained by Dong-ik. Interests scouting. Mr Park yells for Mr Kim to throw him the car keys, which unfortunately get stuck under Moon-kwangs husbands body as he falls. Living in a small, musty semi-basement in the slums of Seoul, South Korea. At some points, it seemed that the music didnt match the situation, such as instilling fear or anxiety in the listener when there was really nothing to worry about at the moment, but the sense of foreboding always pays off later in the film. When Moon-gwang tries to ascend the stairs and reveal herself, Chung-sook kicks her down, concussing and killing her. Acting on impulse, Ki-woo heads to a mountain near the house the Parks have since vacated, and which now belongs to a rich German family. But that he doesn't press Yeon-gyo for replacing Moon-gwang, who has been with the family for quite some time is really when his fate is sealed. Mr Kim manages to trap Moon-kwang and her husband in the basement and quickly returns to join his family hiding in the living room. Ki-woo visits the Parks in their gigantic home, where he is introduced to the spacey and out-of-touch Mrs. Park. The topic of class is one that Bong Joon-ho has a clear fascination with. Personality cool and cynical. On to the in-depth analysis! Moon-gwang is pretty remarkable in that she has not only managed to ward off people from taking her job up until the Kim family, but she has also managed to keep her husband hidden in the Park family basement for alongtime. As Ki-woo first arrives at the Park house, were treated to an awe-inspiring view of the front lawn an immaculately manicured space with trimmed hedges and trees surrounding the perimeter. As with every film, everyone is entitled to their own opinion, so my interpretation here may be different from yours. Parasite dominated the Academy Award, including a Best Picture win. Chung-sook takes over as the housekeeper. The rest of the family hides as Chung-sook lets her in and Moon-gwang reveals a bunker in the basement of the house, a lair that was installed by the architect who built it, and which even the Parks have no knowledge of. As silly an instruction this is, the Kim family respects his wishes and starts to comedically choke and cough as the fumes fill up their apartment, with only Mr Kim indifferent to the toxic fumes. Just trust me on this one. Now he leads a pleasant life in the mansion with his wife Yeon-Kyo and two children. The argument between the two families becomes violent, with the Kims temporarily coming out on top. Get entertainment recommendations for your unique personality and find out which of 5,500+ Their credentials were just as questionable as hers were. What an astute observation for a young child, and this was such a key detail to throw in. What they dont realise is the effects their actions have. Parasite Genre Shift Subscribe on YouTube At every point, the viewer understands whose perspective were supposed to follow due to the tracking shots as we move with each character. son of kim family, smart and ambitious, feels held back by poverty, has good intentions even if he has to be dishonest, wants to create a better life for his family. Master the art of visual storytelling with our FREE video series on directing and filmmaking techniques. They take on odd jobs for cash like folding pizza boxes, and they rely on unprotected wi-fi networks and street-cleaning pesticides to keep their home insect-free. The films score here perfectly uses the technique of moving up musical keys in non-linear, minor and discordant chords to instill fear and anxiety in the viewer as Moon-kwang and Mrs Kim descend down endless flights of concrete stairs, turning left and right at every corner to finally reach the bunker below. For Part 1, to read the Scene-By-Scene Breakdown discussion, go here. Suffice to say, the wealthy in any country survive on the labor of the poor, whether its the housekeepers, tutors, and drivers they employ, or something much darker. Living in a musty semi-basement in the slums of Seoul, South Korea. The film starts with the Kim family, a South Korean family struggling with poverty in a poor neighborhood in an unnamed city. I could sense my fellow audience members discomfort after the movie ended, and I even made eye contact with my neighbour as both our mouths were agape. They get Ki-taek a job as Mr. Park's driver, after Ki-jung leaves her underwear in the car to make it look like his previous driver was having a sexual relationship in the car. Its here where we can finally analyse who is the parasite in the film, and who are the antagonists? Chung-sook is framed as deceiving the family by hiding a dangerous illness. Lets shift gears from a Parasite summary to a Parasite movie analysis. The record-setting trend continued for the Parasite film. 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