Bong Joon-ho has explained the reason behind the title of his 2019 film, revealing that “Parasite” has a dual meaning in this case.
In a Q&A session on Parasite’s home entertainment release, Joon-ho addressed some of the decisions that were made behind-the-scenes of Parasite, as he admitted that the title of the Oscar-nominated film could have been a “risky” choice for them.
[ignvideo url=”https://www.ign.com/videos/2019/12/20/igns-best-movie-of-2019″]
“[It] was considered almost a little risky and dangerous,” he said. “Particularly the marketing team was pretty hesitant because, in Korea, the word ‘parasite’ has a very realistic and negative connotation.”
Joon-ho went on to explain that the title could be perceived in a couple of different ways, as it has a metaphorical double-meaning that could refer to either of the two central families in the South Korean dark-comedy thriller.
“Because the story is about the poor family infiltrating and creeping into the rich house, it seems very obvious that Parasite refers to the poor family, and I think that’s why the marketing team was a little hesitant,” he explained. “But if you look at it the other way, you can say that rich family, they’re also parasites in terms of labor. They can’t even wash dishes, they can’t drive themselves, so they leech off the poor family’s labor. So both are parasites.”
[widget path=”global/article/imagegallery” parameters=”albumSlug=oscars-2020-igns-reviews-of-the-best-picture-nominees&captions=true”]
Joon-ho’s Parasite was recently nominated in six Oscar categories, including Best Director, Original Screenplay, Production Design, and Film Editing. It is also the first-ever Korean film to have been nominated for Best Picture, as well as the first from the country to receive a nomination in the International Feature Film category, per the LA Times.
In our review of Parasite, we commended Joon-ho for crafting “a stellar dark comedy about class warfare”, saying he is “a virtuoso director at the very top of his game.” IGN also named it the best movie of 2019 and one of the best movies of the past decade. The story is set to transition to the small screen in the near future, as Joon-ho is turning Parasite into an HBO limited series.
Originally reported by Yahoo Movies.
[poilib element=”accentDivider”]
Adele Ankers is a Freelance Entertainment Journalist. You can reach her on Twitter.
Source: IGN.com Parasite: Bong Joon-ho Reveals Meaning Behind Title of the 2019 Film