In this blog post, we explore how director Bong Joon-ho’s film Parasite exposes the class conflicts and issues revealed within capitalist society.
Watching director Bong Joon-ho’s films, one senses a grand metaphor. His films transcend mere entertainment, serving as mirrors that reflect social messages. In Snowpiercer, the journey from the tail car to the head car symbolizes the rebellion of the lower classes and the immense sacrifices it entails. Through this, audiences perceive not just a struggle within a train, but the power structures of modern society and the voices of the oppressed. In The Host, the monster serves as a device to expose the raw reality of Korean society. It can be interpreted that the government’s incompetence and people’s selfishness brought about the monster’s emergence.
Today’s film, Parasite, depicts the implicitly divided class lines within a capitalist society through the Kim family and the Park family. Director Bong Joon-ho meticulously analyzes the hierarchical structure of modern society through these two families, sharply portraying the hidden conflicts and inequalities within it. The various devices and settings in the film go beyond simple narrative progression, compelling audiences to deeply contemplate this social structure.
While watching Parasite, one can interpret the relationship between the Ki-taek family and the Mr. Park family from a micro perspective, marveling at director Bong Joon-ho’s direction, or view their relationship from a macro perspective, superimposing it onto capitalist society. Therefore, it is clear that this is a film worth watching multiple times.
Parasite is particularly striking from its very setting. The stark contrast between the luxurious mansion of the Park family, the film’s primary stage, and the semi-basement home where the Ki-taek family resides is powerful in itself. The mansion is a modern, pristine space symbolizing stable life, while the semi-basement home is dark and damp, reflecting the reality of life for society’s underclass.
This setting allows the audience to clearly feel the social distance between the two families, making the film’s message even more powerful. Director Bong Joon-ho’s direction stands out in all his films. In this film, I believe his direction is aligned with ‘lines’. As you watch the film, he uses props (such as pillars in the house or windows in the company) to create lines within the frame.
Furthermore, he directs the Ki-taek family to be unable to cross these lines. This direction naturally leads the viewer to perceive a clear division of class. In a capitalist society, capital equates to power. Just as in the past class-based society, the child of a yangban became a yangban, and the child of a slave became a slave, this power is passed down through generations.
Each member of the Ki-taek family carries specific symbolism. Ki-taek, as the head of the household, is bound by his unstable economic status and social position; his life is stuck in a kind of stagnation. Ki-woo and Ki-jeong represent youth and potential, but in a reality where social opportunities are limited, their potential also hits a wall. In contrast, Mr. Park is a figure with stable economic status; his life is stable and predictable. In Mr. Park’s life, anxiety is almost nonexistent, demonstrating his place among the upper echelons of capitalist society.
Consider a simple example: the money earned by sitting idle and receiving interest from a bank account holding 300 million won is generally more than what one would earn working 10 hours a day, every single day for a month, at a convenience store for 9,700 won an hour. In short, people in the same economic situation as the Ki-taek family often find themselves unable to cross the invisible line drawn by those called the wealthy, no matter how hard they try. This line is drawn by economic difference, but watching the film, it becomes clear that this line encompasses not just capital, but also moral and ethical values.
So, the question “Is crossing this line wrong?” arose while watching this film. In the scene where Dr. Park reacts unpleasantly to Ki-taek’s words, the question clearly arises: if someone of similar economic status to Dr. Park had said the same thing, would the reaction have been the same? Secondly, the director emphasizes the element of smell. Despite the limitations of audiovisual media in conveying the sense of smell through text and images, the director consistently highlights the device of smell throughout the film. In the film, Dr. Park reacts sensitively to Ki-taek’s smell, while his wife doesn’t notice it until he mentions it, then becomes conscious of the odor. I believe this shows how people easily form prejudices through smell, already perceiving others as belonging to a lower class than themselves, and reacting more sensitively than the actual scent itself.
The natural vertical division created through these elements of smell and lines was striking. While Snowpiercer stood out for its horizontal class division through the long train cars, where the lower class moves forward to incite revolution or rebellion against the upper class, Parasite contrasted by using vertical division to prevent the lower class from overtaking the upper class. Finally, this film made me realize that within the capitalist structure, anyone can become both a victim and a perpetrator. One is trapped within the confines of their economic status, and moving either above or below this line inevitably leads to a situation where someone is harmed or where one is harmed by someone else.
Beyond simply depicting class conflict, the film Parasite reveals the complex realities each individual faces in modern society. Through the story of one family, this film exposes the structural problems of capitalist society, leaving a deep impression on audiences. Simultaneously, the director’s meticulous direction and symbolic devices ensure viewers experience new interpretations and emotions throughout the film, making it feel like more than just a movie. In this sense, Parasite is not merely a single story; it is a work worthy of repeated reflection and exploration.
