Bong Joon Ho and his film ‘Parasite’ are coming for you

New York — Even when airing in American theaters, Bong Bong Ho's "parasites" are already major winners and hits.

The "parasite" opened in some markets on Friday and in theaters in Houston on October 25, earning $ 790 million in full-fledged South Korea. In May, “The Parasite” was the first Palme d & # 39; Won the Or. Alejandro Iñarritu, chairman of the jury, said the decision was unanimous. In a time of endless divinity, everyone can seemingly agree, "parasites" are great.

A 49-year-old director said in an interview by telephone in Seoul, “I woke up, Palme d & # 39; "It's very interesting and strange to see the Or Trophy."

But most of the time, there was nothing strange about Bong's victory. The "parasite" was recognized as a masterpiece of class satires for two families, one stealing the poor Hustler and Wi-Fi living in the basement, and the other residing in a wealthy, stylish and modern mansion. The pinnacle of Bong's already well-known career as a sincere filmmaker with a playful genre, stylistic bold and warm heart.

This may sound almost contradictory, but it's a kind of head-turning fusion like the one in the Bong Joon-ho movie. They-especially "parasites"-balance humor and fear, satire and sincerity with the ease of magic. You will not come anything. You might giggle at his cunning. It will laugh as he swallows you.

“I try to be like a parasite. I try to dig and dig into the audience. ” “I like the feeling of sneaking into the audience. Instead of showing off breaking the rules of the genre, I want to come in quietly without bleeding and realize that I am in it. ”

The audience's mastery, combined with children's wonder and eclectic imagination (formerly film "Okja", glorious "super pig"), made Bong one of the few filmmakers who live up to the label of "Spielbergian". His ardent supporters include Tilda Swinton, Jake Gyllenhaal and Quentin Tarantino who attended the Cannes Film Festival “The Parasite”. His devoted fans adopted the proud name of “Bong Hive”.

Time is good for Bon Hive. “Parasites” are rare, foreign films that can attract a lot of people in theaters and compete in the Academy Awards. Korea has already submitted foreign language films, which are expected to be mixed in categories including the best photos and the best directors.

Neon's founder and chief executive, Tom Quinn, who distributes the American "parasites," said, "I have a big ambition for the film."

Such a release can give Bong a moment when he was not dismissed by American film audiences but has now been distracted and often undermined.

His English debut “Snowpiercer” eventually appeared as an art house hit, but suffered from the confusion of producer Harvey Weinstein. Bong could eventually reject Weinstein's efforts to cut 20 minutes and add a monologue, but it damaged the release of the film, and eventually failed to cut it off with the Quinn & # 39; s Radius label.

Bong's biggest budget film, $ 58 million, "Okja" (2017), became a controversial issue with Cannes' Netflix film, which later became a festival that banned the film without revealing it in the main competition. Besides, rods are the most experienced on the big screen.

Quinn says, “He is a man of fantastic vision, but he is also a humanist. “Magic is magic. You keep your hand on the hat and another rabbit comes out. It's continuing to develop in unexpected ways. ”

Since the groundbreaking “host” in 2006 (an entertaining hybrid of monster movies and family dramas), Bong has received a lot of attention for his long-time regular layoffs in Hollywood. He wrote all seven films directed by him.

“Especially with the previous agency, after“ The Host, ”there were a lot of suggestions for this kind of movie, superhero movie. “Don't go wrong with me. There are many great superhero movies. I respect them. But I think it's paranoid. Superheroes always wear clinging spandex. I can't stand wearing tight clothes. Looking at them I think I can't direct myself because I choke too. ”

Eventually, Bong went home and created a “parasite” in his native country, Korea, with the greatest success in the world. He first discovered the premise of the film in 2013 and imagined it as a play that divided the two films into stages. He drew some of his experience as a college student teaching private lessons for middle school boys in wealthy families. In the film, the poor dusty Kim family first penetrates into the wealthy Park clan when a son (Choi Woo Shik) is hired to lead Parks' daughter. (Unlike his personality, Bong did not have to participate in extracurricular jobs, but lasted only three months.)

It is also Bong's personal film because he is connected to Bong's successor mentors and Kim Ki-young. Kim was a kind of godfather to the film director of Korean films in the 2000s. His 1960 film “House Made”, considered one of Korea's greatest films, covered classes and centered on a two-story house. (Bong also quoted his favorite criminal film Claude Chabrol's "The Ceremony" and the 1963 British classic "The Servant" as "Parasite" inspiration.

The "parasite" completes a sort of accidental trilogy of the capitalist satire. “Snowpiercer” was a high-speed science fiction novel about a subclass section of the train that carried all human rebellion against the upper class of the train. "Okja" portrayed a dual global food company. In the "parasite", I wanted to think of the distinction between what rods do not have more intimate at home and what they have.

“If you want to buy a creative mind, it's natural to make art about the time you live. "We deny that capitalism is a big part of our time."