The Story Punk Podcast

Episode 045:

In this episode of Story Punk, we put Parasite under the microscope, the 2019 South Korean film directed by Bong Joon Ho. Winner of Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best International Feature Film at the 2020 Academy Awards, Parasite follows the struggling Kim family as they infiltrate the wealthy Park household by posing as unrelated skilled workers.

The episode explores why the film remains one of the most acclaimed movies of the 21st century. We discuss Bong Joon Ho’s direction, the film’s class commentary, its shifting tone, the shocking basement reveal, the use of smell as a marker of poverty and class separation, the Park family house, the Kim family’s flooded apartment, and the movie’s unforgettable third act.

The conversation also covers Song Kang Ho, South Korean cinema, Memories of Murder, Snowpiercer, The Host, the film’s production design, its Oscar wins, the Criterion edition, the black-and-white version, and why Parasite works as a thriller, comedy, tragedy, social satire, and class-war horror story all at once.

For fans of movie podcasts, film analysis, Bong Joon Ho films, Korean cinema, international movies, Best Picture winners, social thrillers, class satire, and conversations about why stories matter, this Story Punk episode is for you.

Listen now to Story Punk, where story matters.