Parasite, Bong Joon-ho's Movie Revisited: 'Han' Culture as the Spirit of Nationality
Abstract
Bong Joon-ho directed the film Parasite, which won the Palme d’Or at the 72nd Cannes Film Festival and the Best Director Award at the 92nd Academy Awards. Set in contemporary Korean society, the movie is a stark expose of the problem of class division and the difficult life of the underclass, which arouses deep thoughts among the audience. Deconstructed from the viewpoint of fate, the movie is delicately designed with the interlocking pull of predestination, reflecting the traditional East Asian concept of destiny, which is in contrast to many Western movies. In addition, the inner portrayal of the characters deeply reflects the self-internalization that characterizes the Korean “Han” culture. The intertwining of fate and hate becomes a thread of the protagonist’s changing state of mind, which is visualized by the director through the spatial narrative.
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