If an American movie fan can name only one Korean film, there is a good chance it is Parasite.
Bong Joon-ho’s 2019 film did something few Korean movies had done before: it broke through the subtitle barrier and became part of mainstream American movie culture.
But what exactly is Parasite about, and why did it become such a phenomenon?
What Is Parasite About?
Parasite follows the Kim family, who live in a cramped semi-basement apartment in Seoul and struggle to make ends meet.
Their lives begin to change when the son, Ki-woo, gets a job tutoring the daughter of the wealthy Park family.
Soon, one Kim family member after another finds a way into the Park household.
Saying much more would spoil the fun.
Parasite begins almost like a clever comedy, then gradually transforms into something darker, stranger and far more uncomfortable.
That unpredictability is one reason it works even for viewers who normally do not watch Korean films.
Why Is the House So Important?
The two families live in completely different worlds.
The Parks occupy a beautiful modern home high above the city.
The Kims live partly underground.
That difference is not accidental.
Throughout the movie, people constantly travel up and down — stairs, hills and hidden spaces visually separate those with money from those without it.
Even something as ordinary as rain means completely different things to the two families.
For one family, it clears the air.
For another, it can destroy their home.
You do not need to understand Korean society to recognize that inequality.
That helped Parasite travel far beyond Korea.
Why Did Parasite Become So Famous in America?
Parasite was already an international sensation after becoming the first Korean film to win the Palme d’Or at Cannes.
Then came Hollywood.
At the 2020 Academy Awards, Parasite won four Oscars:
Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best International Feature Film.
Its Best Picture victory was historic.
A Korean-language movie had reached the top of Hollywood’s biggest awards ceremony.
But awards alone do not explain why people kept talking about it.
Parasite is also funny, tense, violent and surprisingly entertaining.
You can watch it as a thriller.
You can watch it as a dark comedy.
Or you can spend hours arguing about what it says about wealth and class.
And viewers still do.
Who Is the Real “Parasite”?
That may be the movie’s smartest trick.
The title seems simple until you finish watching.
Is the poor Kim family parasitic because they deceive the Parks?
Are the wealthy Parks dependent on poorer people to cook, clean, drive and care for their children?
Or is the real parasite the social system that forces both families into these roles?
Bong Joon-ho did not create a simple story about good poor people versus evil rich people.
That ambiguity is exactly why the film continues to generate arguments years later.
And two questions refuse to disappear:
Was Mr. Park actually a bad person?
And if the answer is complicated…
Why did Mr. Kim kill him?
Those may be the two questions that reveal what Parasite is really about.