WEBVTT - Parasite with Grace Jung 0:00:00.520 --> 0:00:03.480 On the Doll Cast, the questions asked if movies have 0:00:03.640 --> 0:00:07.520 women in them, are all their discussions just boyfriends and husbands, 0:00:07.560 --> 0:00:12.639 or do they have individualism? The patriarchy? Zef invest start 0:00:12.760 --> 0:00:17.160 changing it with the beck Del Cast. Hey, Caitlin, Yes, 0:00:17.239 --> 0:00:21.799 Jamie starting to think capitalism might be dot dot dot 0:00:22.160 --> 0:00:27.280 not so great with Wait what? Um? Well, that was 0:00:27.320 --> 0:00:30.319 what I got for an opening love? You know, I 0:00:30.400 --> 0:00:33.800 just I feel like I've really like my my opening 0:00:33.920 --> 0:00:35.879 game has really diminished lately. And I don't know if 0:00:35.920 --> 0:00:39.120 it's just because like my it's nine trillion degrees in 0:00:39.200 --> 0:00:42.400 my brain is just boiling inside of my skull, or 0:00:43.200 --> 0:00:45.440 or if it's all finally getting to me, you know. 0:00:45.720 --> 0:00:51.120 Personal apologies for that real lukewarm opening. I could have 0:00:51.159 --> 0:00:53.720 done better, and I will strive to do better. Jamie, 0:00:53.840 --> 0:00:57.360 don't apologize. I mean this is a this is a 0:00:57.360 --> 0:01:00.280 difficult time. Well, welcome to the Bectel Cast. Name is 0:01:00.320 --> 0:01:03.400 Jamie Loftus, my name is Caitlin Darante, and this is 0:01:03.400 --> 0:01:07.479 our our little podcast where we talk about some incredible 0:01:07.520 --> 0:01:11.720 movies and some not incredible movies using an intersectional feminist 0:01:11.880 --> 0:01:17.640 lens for discussion. That's right, and we use the Bechdel Tests, 0:01:17.680 --> 0:01:20.760 often known as the Bechtel Wallace Test, as a way 0:01:20.800 --> 0:01:26.039 to just inspire a larger conversation in That is a 0:01:26.160 --> 0:01:30.200 media metric created by queer cartoonist Alison Bechtel, and it 0:01:30.319 --> 0:01:34.280 requires that, for our purposes are sort of modified version 0:01:34.360 --> 0:01:40.399 of the test. Two people from a marginalized gender must 0:01:40.600 --> 0:01:43.679 have names, they must speak to each other, and they 0:01:44.120 --> 0:01:49.880 must not talk about a man. Many movies don't do it, 0:01:49.920 --> 0:01:52.800 but but but some movies do. But sometimes it happens. 0:01:53.040 --> 0:01:55.360 That's just the nature. It's kind of a past failed test. 0:01:55.400 --> 0:01:58.680 There's not really un middling, although sometimes there's those fun 0:01:58.720 --> 0:02:00.480 ones like like the one we have to have a 0:02:00.480 --> 0:02:04.400 whole conversation about it. Sometimes two women with with names, 0:02:04.480 --> 0:02:07.840 or just apologizing over nothing like like I was doing, 0:02:08.040 --> 0:02:10.880 you know, just two minutes ago. So um, you know 0:02:10.960 --> 0:02:13.640 there there are shades of gray there as well. But 0:02:13.720 --> 0:02:17.880 I'm really really really excited to talk about today's movie 0:02:18.160 --> 0:02:22.360 popular request and uh and one of my face yes, 0:02:22.560 --> 0:02:26.600 And we have a terrific guest joining us today. She 0:02:26.960 --> 0:02:30.600 is a comedian. She is a PhD candidate in Cinema 0:02:30.639 --> 0:02:34.960 and Media studies, and her academic publications have covered such 0:02:35.040 --> 0:02:40.080 things as television studies, Korean media, Asian American history, gender 0:02:40.120 --> 0:02:46.799 and sexuality. It's Grace Young. Hello, Hi, welcome, Thank you 0:02:47.000 --> 0:02:49.880 so happy to be here. We're happy to have you 0:02:50.440 --> 0:02:55.640 so Grace. Tell us about your general relationship with the 0:02:55.680 --> 0:02:59.919 film Parasite. Oh yeah, we did. Also we're covering Parasite. 0:03:00.200 --> 0:03:03.040 We were like, we were like, um, a popular request, 0:03:03.600 --> 0:03:06.600 but leave your guessing as to what movie. I know. 0:03:06.639 --> 0:03:10.880 I was like, why am I here? Who are these people? Yeah? Yeah, 0:03:11.000 --> 0:03:15.560 I I love this movie Parasite. Um. I've been I've 0:03:15.600 --> 0:03:19.480 been following the filmmaker poem Jun host career for a 0:03:19.520 --> 0:03:22.799 long time, and I would say that he's like the 0:03:22.840 --> 0:03:28.600 first Korean filmmaker to really make it into the mainstream 0:03:28.720 --> 0:03:32.960 zeitgeist in the United States and other parts of the world. Yeah, 0:03:33.000 --> 0:03:37.560 and I really love his filmmaking. Um. Interesting side note 0:03:37.760 --> 0:03:41.680 on Punch. You know, he studied sociology in college, so 0:03:41.800 --> 0:03:46.000 he actually did not study filmmaking per se. But yeah, 0:03:46.400 --> 0:03:50.320 I would say because of his educational background, a lot 0:03:50.400 --> 0:03:54.400 of his movies cover sort of that, like the sociological 0:03:54.480 --> 0:03:58.320 kind of critique of Korean society and capitalism a lot. 0:03:59.280 --> 0:04:02.520 And uh yeah, I mean I I was very excited 0:04:02.520 --> 0:04:05.320 to see the movie because I saw in the trades 0:04:05.360 --> 0:04:08.680 that he had won the Palm door for his latest movie, Parasite, 0:04:09.120 --> 0:04:11.480 and I was like, Okay, that's a big deal because 0:04:11.520 --> 0:04:13.400 you know, like a Korean filmmaker, to win a palm 0:04:13.400 --> 0:04:16.480 door I can is a big deal. And then um, 0:04:16.520 --> 0:04:19.080 I went to see it in theaters with a friend, 0:04:19.160 --> 0:04:22.000 another creative American friend. It was her birthday. I went 0:04:22.080 --> 0:04:25.080 to see it. I thought the movie was so astounding, 0:04:25.200 --> 0:04:27.880 like such a such an amazing movie. You know, like 0:04:28.000 --> 0:04:30.400 I watch a lot of films because you know, I 0:04:30.440 --> 0:04:32.919 work in film and write about film, but like I 0:04:32.960 --> 0:04:36.120 hadn't seen a movie that made me feel that like 0:04:36.400 --> 0:04:40.560 elated and so long and um. Yeah. Right after the 0:04:40.560 --> 0:04:43.080 movie ended, as we were leaving, my friend immediately wanted 0:04:43.080 --> 0:04:44.240 to talk to me about and I was like, you 0:04:44.240 --> 0:04:47.400 have to stop talking right now. I just I just 0:04:47.440 --> 0:04:52.080 need to go home and process this alone. And so 0:04:52.200 --> 0:04:55.400 I just I just went home processed it, and then 0:04:55.440 --> 0:04:59.279 I texted like like two other creative American friends of mine, 0:04:59.720 --> 0:05:02.880 and I just like Parasite, you have to see it. 0:05:03.560 --> 0:05:06.560 We have to see it together, and like they want 0:05:06.640 --> 0:05:09.880 to see it by themselves. And then we went as 0:05:09.880 --> 0:05:12.560 a group together to go and see it again, and 0:05:12.760 --> 0:05:16.040 um yeah, it's like a film that I could keep 0:05:16.120 --> 0:05:20.000 returning to. I think it's really well done for sure. 0:05:20.120 --> 0:05:24.440 Hell yeah, Jimmie, what about you? This was one of 0:05:24.600 --> 0:05:26.960 I mean, this is in no way a hot take. 0:05:27.040 --> 0:05:29.400 It was one of my favorite movies I saw last year. 0:05:30.120 --> 0:05:34.440 I saw it a couple of different times in theaters 0:05:34.600 --> 0:05:39.720 and this was kind of embarrassingly my first movie from 0:05:39.760 --> 0:05:44.160 from this director. I hadn't seen anything else because before 0:05:44.200 --> 0:05:47.040 this podcast started, I didn't watch a ton of movies. Um. 0:05:47.080 --> 0:05:51.640 But after seeing Parasite, I went back into his film 0:05:51.680 --> 0:05:54.120 catalog and now I've seen the majority and I haven't 0:05:54.120 --> 0:05:58.200 seen um I think two of his films. But um yeah, 0:05:58.200 --> 0:06:02.000 I just kind of uh swiveled into becoming a stand 0:06:02.160 --> 0:06:04.599 and I love this movie. I hadn't seen it in 0:06:04.600 --> 0:06:07.680 a couple of months, and it was really fun to 0:06:07.720 --> 0:06:10.640 go back to after not having been watching it like 0:06:10.839 --> 0:06:14.599 once a week towards the beginning of the year. Um yeah, 0:06:14.600 --> 0:06:17.400 but I really love it. Yeah, Caitlin, what is your 0:06:17.400 --> 0:06:21.200 experience with this movie? Pretty similar? Um? I had seen 0:06:21.600 --> 0:06:24.760 a few of his films in the past, uh, And 0:06:24.839 --> 0:06:29.520 I went into Parasite not knowing anything about it, and 0:06:29.600 --> 0:06:32.880 because I had seen the host and because the movie 0:06:32.960 --> 0:06:35.320 is called Parasite, I thought it was also going to 0:06:35.400 --> 0:06:39.440 be like a monster movie. I was like, oh no, 0:06:39.720 --> 0:06:42.560 just kidding, it's not that at all. Um. I'd also 0:06:42.600 --> 0:06:45.720 seen snow Piercer, and I was like, Okay, it's more 0:06:45.760 --> 0:06:52.680 aligned thematically with snow Piercer because of like the class commentary. Um, 0:06:52.760 --> 0:06:56.200 but I hadn't seen Oakcha, which I saw. I watched 0:06:56.240 --> 0:06:59.880 over the weekend, and I have never I've just saw 0:07:00.080 --> 0:07:02.360 being at the end of like the kind of sobbing 0:07:02.560 --> 0:07:09.000 where you're just you can't breathe because you're crying so hard. Anyways, Caitlin, 0:07:10.640 --> 0:07:14.200 did you need an out Did you need outlet? I 0:07:14.200 --> 0:07:18.760 mean it's very sad, but the animals, those super piglets 0:07:18.840 --> 0:07:23.240 and anyway, Um, I was traumatized. In any case, I 0:07:23.600 --> 0:07:27.560 I do really enjoy his filmography and I love to Parasite. 0:07:27.560 --> 0:07:29.680 I only saw it once in theaters, but I've seen 0:07:29.720 --> 0:07:33.240 it a number of times since then because it came 0:07:33.280 --> 0:07:39.000 out on Hulu, so I was very thankful. Feminist icon Hulu, 0:07:42.000 --> 0:07:49.840 owned by Fox was like Disney Capitalist. Have you seen 0:07:49.920 --> 0:07:57.080 those Disney reboots for sure. They're feminists cash grab at all. Okay, So, 0:07:57.360 --> 0:08:00.560 um uh should I just dive into of the recap 0:08:00.560 --> 0:08:02.760 and we'll go from there. Yeah, let's do it. I 0:08:02.840 --> 0:08:05.440 like how we asked that question every single episode. O, 0:08:05.520 --> 0:08:09.600 thank you for asking for consent before starting to recap. Well, 0:08:09.640 --> 0:08:11.440 you know, I just want to make sure we're all 0:08:11.480 --> 0:08:16.960 on the same page. Alright. So we meet the Kim family. 0:08:17.560 --> 0:08:22.480 It's a mother, father, son, and daughter. I believe the 0:08:22.640 --> 0:08:26.920 son and daughter are in their late teens, maybe early twenties. 0:08:27.760 --> 0:08:32.520 Not entirely sure early because at the end you find 0:08:32.559 --> 0:08:35.920 out how old the daughter was because it says she 0:08:36.000 --> 0:08:41.440 was born. Got it, I missed that detail. Good to 0:08:41.480 --> 0:08:44.640 know in any case. Um, they come from a low 0:08:44.760 --> 0:08:49.880 socio economic background. They live in this like semi basement 0:08:50.280 --> 0:08:53.520 level apartment. Their phones have been shut off, they don't 0:08:53.600 --> 0:08:57.280 have access to WiFi anymore. They do kind of odd 0:08:57.360 --> 0:09:02.760 jobs like folding pizza boxes for work for money. Then 0:09:02.880 --> 0:09:06.080 one day and apologies in advance for all of the 0:09:06.240 --> 0:09:10.880 horrible pronunciations I'm going to do of these Korean characters names. 0:09:10.920 --> 0:09:16.080 But k the Sun gets a visit from his friend Min, 0:09:16.480 --> 0:09:19.520 who brings the family this stone that is meant to 0:09:19.559 --> 0:09:22.679 bring like wealth and prosperity to the family, and he 0:09:22.760 --> 0:09:25.720 is also leaving to study abroad. It's fun when the 0:09:25.760 --> 0:09:28.040 when the stone comes in, You're like, oh, it's a 0:09:28.040 --> 0:09:31.040 metaphor stone. I wonder what the metaphor will be, but 0:09:31.200 --> 0:09:33.120 it just even when I don't know, you know, you 0:09:33.160 --> 0:09:35.160 can sometimes tell it's a metaphor just by the way 0:09:35.160 --> 0:09:38.040 it's framed. You're like, well, it's fun because like it's 0:09:38.040 --> 0:09:40.839 but it's also like plant and payoff, so it's like 0:09:40.880 --> 0:09:44.200 it has a narrative purpose, it has a symbolic purpose. 0:09:44.679 --> 0:09:51.640 Even Ques is like, this is metaphorical. Um, just making 0:09:51.679 --> 0:09:54.280 fun of people watching the movie in the all time. 0:09:54.320 --> 0:09:58.160 It's great. Um. So anyway, so Min is leaving to 0:09:58.240 --> 0:10:04.160 study abroad and he wants to recommend Q for his 0:10:04.200 --> 0:10:09.000 old job tutoring a girl from a rich family. Q's 0:10:09.040 --> 0:10:14.440 sister helps him forge a college degree I think um 0:10:14.520 --> 0:10:17.400 or some kind of official academic document, and he goes 0:10:17.440 --> 0:10:21.079 in for an interview and he meets Mrs Park, who 0:10:21.280 --> 0:10:26.000 is naive and gullible. She interviews him and gives him 0:10:26.000 --> 0:10:29.400 the job. He also meets the teen girl that he'll 0:10:29.400 --> 0:10:33.000 be tutoring, and the young son, we also would think. 0:10:33.000 --> 0:10:37.320 At this point meet the Park's housekeeper, so Mrs Park 0:10:37.480 --> 0:10:42.800 then also tells him that her son, let me check 0:10:42.800 --> 0:10:48.520 the pronunciation here, her son Dosson, needs an art teacher, 0:10:49.120 --> 0:10:51.640 and Q is like, I know of someone who might 0:10:51.640 --> 0:10:55.600 be a good fit this classmate of my cousin, and 0:10:55.640 --> 0:11:00.920 who he really means is his sister Key young and 0:11:01.360 --> 0:11:06.120 Um Illinois, Chicago. Yes, yes, And so Mrs Park gives 0:11:06.160 --> 0:11:10.880 them English names, Kevin and Jessica, which I might default 0:11:10.920 --> 0:11:13.880 to using for the sake of again not continuing to 0:11:13.960 --> 0:11:17.959 embarrass myself every time I fail and pronounce pronounced them 0:11:18.000 --> 0:11:21.839 just fine so far, Okay, thank you so much. I'm 0:11:21.920 --> 0:11:26.640 very self conscious about it, but you're welcome. You're so welcome. 0:11:27.480 --> 0:11:31.400 I just don't want to be disrespectful. Okay. So Jessica, 0:11:31.600 --> 0:11:37.160 pretending to have the necessary credentials and experience, gets the 0:11:37.320 --> 0:11:41.160 job doing art therapy for the young son Um. And 0:11:41.160 --> 0:11:43.760 then we also meet the father of the rich family, 0:11:44.000 --> 0:11:48.439 Mr Park, and his driver takes Jessica home and she 0:11:48.520 --> 0:11:53.040 leaves her underwear in the car, planting it as incriminating evidence, 0:11:53.120 --> 0:11:56.319 knowing that it will probably get him fired, which it does. 0:11:56.880 --> 0:12:01.240 So now that driver position is open for Mr. Kim 0:12:01.280 --> 0:12:05.800 to be able to get that job. Now, the only 0:12:05.880 --> 0:12:08.160 thing they have left to do is to get rid 0:12:08.320 --> 0:12:12.320 of the Park family's housekeeper, um so that their mom, 0:12:12.760 --> 0:12:17.320 Mrs Kim, can have that job. Enter the Peach. Yes, 0:12:17.600 --> 0:12:20.959 this one's a little trickier because the housekeeper has been 0:12:21.000 --> 0:12:23.959 working in this home for years and years, but they 0:12:24.080 --> 0:12:27.880 use her peach allergy against her, and they're able to 0:12:27.920 --> 0:12:31.800 get her fired by convincing Mrs Park that the housekeeper 0:12:31.840 --> 0:12:36.960 has tuberculosis. Just like one of the funniest secrets in 0:12:37.000 --> 0:12:40.000 the movie that the whole sequence is just so fucking funny. 0:12:40.080 --> 0:12:42.920 It's like when they're like shaving the little peach fuzz 0:12:43.000 --> 0:12:45.319 off the peaches and collecting it in like a tiny 0:12:45.360 --> 0:12:49.480 little vial the house at the end. It's just great. Yeah. 0:12:49.520 --> 0:12:52.880 So then Mrs Kim gets tired as the Park family housekeeper, 0:12:53.600 --> 0:12:57.160 and now they're all working for this rich family and 0:12:57.360 --> 0:13:00.160 one day the Parks go on a camping trip up 0:13:00.559 --> 0:13:02.280 the Kims are like, well, let's see what it's like 0:13:02.400 --> 0:13:06.600 to live lavishly in this upscale home. So they're eating, 0:13:06.640 --> 0:13:10.240 they're drinking, they're carrying on. But then someone shows up 0:13:10.280 --> 0:13:13.360 at the door and it's the old housekeeper who says 0:13:13.520 --> 0:13:18.200 she left something behind, so Mrs Kim reluctantly lets her 0:13:18.280 --> 0:13:21.880 in the house. She goes down into the basement and 0:13:21.880 --> 0:13:24.440 it turns out there is a secret bunker down there. 0:13:24.520 --> 0:13:28.040 This is what we would call the midpoint of the film. Um, 0:13:28.200 --> 0:13:33.640 and it's not as though I have a screenwriting master's 0:13:33.640 --> 0:13:36.720 degree or anything like that. I'm the least educated person 0:13:36.800 --> 0:13:43.760 in the chat and killing me, Okay. So they go 0:13:43.960 --> 0:13:49.000 down into this secret bunker where the former housekeeper's husband 0:13:49.040 --> 0:13:51.840 has been living for the past four years because he 0:13:51.960 --> 0:13:56.040 is hiding from debt collectors. Now Mrs Kim threatens to 0:13:56.160 --> 0:14:00.640 call the police on the former housekeeper and her husband, 0:14:00.760 --> 0:14:04.480 but just then her family, who had been eavesdropping on 0:14:04.559 --> 0:14:08.640 this whole interaction like like tumble down the stairs, uh 0:14:08.679 --> 0:14:14.120 and accidentally reveal themselves, and the old housekeeper, who recognizes 0:14:14.200 --> 0:14:17.800 all of them and realizes that they have been lying 0:14:17.840 --> 0:14:21.880 about who they are, threatens to expose them to the 0:14:21.880 --> 0:14:26.120 Park family. A big fight breaks out between them, and 0:14:26.160 --> 0:14:30.640 then the Park family calls to be like, hey, it's raining. 0:14:31.000 --> 0:14:33.680 The camping trip has been cut short. We're on our 0:14:33.680 --> 0:14:36.160 way home. We're we'll be there in eight minutes, so 0:14:36.200 --> 0:14:39.800 everyone has to scramble. The Kim's drag the housekeeper and 0:14:39.840 --> 0:14:43.560 her husband back down into the basement. There's violence, and 0:14:43.600 --> 0:14:47.160 then the Park family arrives back home and the meal 0:14:47.320 --> 0:14:51.920 is made. It looked so good. The Kim family hides 0:14:52.400 --> 0:14:54.960 in the living room under the coffee table. Uh. They 0:14:54.960 --> 0:14:58.120 try to escape, but get delayed because Mr and Mrs 0:14:58.160 --> 0:15:01.480 Park are right there jerking each other off on the 0:15:01.560 --> 0:15:07.400 couch in matching pajamas. Too. It is just never not 0:15:07.560 --> 0:15:10.720 disturbing to watch. And I'm like, I know, you're like, 0:15:11.000 --> 0:15:13.320 I don't know, I'm do do your thing, but in 0:15:13.400 --> 0:15:17.440 matching pajamas the realist portrayal of a married couple of 0:15:17.520 --> 0:15:24.080 sex life. Yeah, imagining gray pajamas jerking each other off, joylessly, 0:15:24.320 --> 0:15:26.600 each other off like their their son is an a 0:15:26.720 --> 0:15:35.200 tent mirror yards away, like alright, gang, do you? So 0:15:35.240 --> 0:15:38.320 they're right there and Mr Park thinks that he can 0:15:38.360 --> 0:15:42.560 smell Mr Kim's smell because he has commented on how 0:15:43.240 --> 0:15:46.040 different members of the family have commented on how the 0:15:46.280 --> 0:15:51.040 Kim family has a distinct kind of foul smell about them. 0:15:51.080 --> 0:15:56.240 So eventually the Kim family are able to escape, so Kevin, Jessica, 0:15:56.360 --> 0:15:59.960 and Mr Kim return home, but their basement level apartment 0:16:00.200 --> 0:16:04.880 has been flooded with sewage water because of this storm 0:16:04.920 --> 0:16:07.080 that's happening. And then they're trying to figure out what 0:16:07.080 --> 0:16:10.240 to do about this situation with the previous housekeeper and 0:16:10.320 --> 0:16:14.200 her husband. Then the next day, the Park's throw an 0:16:14.240 --> 0:16:19.080 impromptu birthday party for the Sun and they invite Kevin 0:16:19.080 --> 0:16:23.360 and Jessica and Mr and Mrs Kim are there working 0:16:23.520 --> 0:16:26.960 and helping out with the party. And then during the party, 0:16:27.200 --> 0:16:31.760 Kevin goes down to the basement. He discovers the old 0:16:31.800 --> 0:16:35.960 housekeeper who has died from her head injury, and the 0:16:35.960 --> 0:16:40.280 housekeeper's husband bashes Kevin on the head, and then he 0:16:40.320 --> 0:16:43.400 goes out into the party. Also she's she's told her 0:16:43.480 --> 0:16:47.280 husband to like vow to kill Mrs Kim or at 0:16:47.320 --> 0:16:51.000 least attempt to kill Mrs Kim right yes, And then 0:16:51.040 --> 0:16:55.360 the housekeeper's husband goes out into the party and stabs Jessica. 0:16:55.680 --> 0:16:59.360 All hell breaks loose. Then Mr Kim sees Mr Park 0:16:59.560 --> 0:17:04.040 being disgusted by the smell that he smells on like 0:17:04.119 --> 0:17:07.960 the housekeeper's husband. So Mr Kim stabs Mr Park and 0:17:08.000 --> 0:17:10.439 then runs off and no one knows where he is 0:17:11.040 --> 0:17:15.080 at first, but then some time passes, Q has survived 0:17:15.160 --> 0:17:18.800 his head injury. He figures out that his dad is 0:17:18.960 --> 0:17:22.719 in the bunker, and he forms a plan to become 0:17:23.320 --> 0:17:25.639 rich enough that he can buy the house that his 0:17:25.760 --> 0:17:28.520 dad is hiding in and then they can all reunite. 0:17:28.560 --> 0:17:30.919 And we see this play out as a kind of 0:17:30.920 --> 0:17:34.720 flash forward, but it cuts back to the present. He 0:17:35.160 --> 0:17:40.120 is still in like the basement level apartment, implying that 0:17:40.119 --> 0:17:45.080 that's probably never going to happen. The end. That the end, 0:17:45.119 --> 0:17:50.960 it's a very uplifting film. Yeah, just brings joy. Um, 0:17:51.000 --> 0:17:52.840 So that's the story. Let's take a quick break and 0:17:52.880 --> 0:18:03.400 then we'll come right back to discuss and we're back. Um. 0:18:03.520 --> 0:18:07.639 Something that I wasn't totally aware of before I started 0:18:07.640 --> 0:18:11.760 researching for this episode was I mean, I know that 0:18:11.800 --> 0:18:15.600 this movie really resonated with American audiences, but I didn't 0:18:15.600 --> 0:18:20.879 know that much about the socioeconomics of uh, South Korea. 0:18:21.640 --> 0:18:25.160 I am kind of running on like a basic subpar 0:18:25.320 --> 0:18:30.040 American history education as it is. So I prior to 0:18:30.160 --> 0:18:33.760 preparing for this episode, only new kind of the basics 0:18:33.840 --> 0:18:38.080 on South Korean history like next to nothing, And so 0:18:38.720 --> 0:18:40.520 for those of you that are in the same boat 0:18:40.560 --> 0:18:43.240 as me on that. Uh. Here are a couple of 0:18:43.320 --> 0:18:47.840 quick facts. This is from uh literally socialist dot net, 0:18:47.880 --> 0:18:51.920 if you can believe feminist icon socialist it's a little 0:18:51.960 --> 0:18:55.760 website called socialist dot net. But just to contextualize the 0:18:55.920 --> 0:18:59.080 class disparity in South Korea. So this is from a 0:18:59.080 --> 0:19:02.959 piece by Andy south work about parasite. Quote. Korea had 0:19:02.960 --> 0:19:06.240 barely developed under the yoke of Japanese imperialism at the 0:19:06.320 --> 0:19:08.639 end of the Korean War in nineteen fifty three. The 0:19:08.680 --> 0:19:11.640 South remained a largely rural economy with a very low 0:19:11.640 --> 0:19:14.480 standard of living. In the period immediately following the war, 0:19:14.560 --> 0:19:17.080 the South was totally dependent on the US. It followed 0:19:17.080 --> 0:19:19.760 the guidance of their American masters by relying on the 0:19:19.880 --> 0:19:24.600 quote unquote free market to provide development. This growth was 0:19:24.680 --> 0:19:28.480 driven by the rise of state sponsored conglomerates called I 0:19:28.520 --> 0:19:30.879 don't know if I'm seeing this correctly UM shy balls 0:19:31.680 --> 0:19:36.159 uh C, H A, E, B O, L S, Shabou, 0:19:36.440 --> 0:19:40.000 which came to totally dominate the economy. The shade balls 0:19:40.040 --> 0:19:43.400 were run by the country's elite families, who use corruption 0:19:43.480 --> 0:19:47.000 and their state contacts to a mass humongous fortunes. They 0:19:47.040 --> 0:19:48.840 of course made sure that their wealth was passed on 0:19:48.880 --> 0:19:52.040 to their children. On the basis of this development, a 0:19:52.080 --> 0:19:54.199 new working class was formed in the cities and a 0:19:54.240 --> 0:19:58.399 massive wealth divide opened up with skyrocketing inequality. After the 0:19:59.480 --> 0:20:02.840 Asia find aancial crisis, several shape balls went bankrupt, and 0:20:02.920 --> 0:20:07.399 Korea entered a period of mass unemployment. Parasite hints that 0:20:07.440 --> 0:20:09.520 this is the background to both the Park's wealth and 0:20:09.560 --> 0:20:13.680 the Kim's poverty unquote. So that was just I wasn't 0:20:13.680 --> 0:20:18.040 aware of the context of I mean, I guess that 0:20:18.160 --> 0:20:22.439 this story certainly reads to any audience that has a 0:20:22.520 --> 0:20:26.560 background of mass you know, income inequality. But yeah, I 0:20:26.600 --> 0:20:29.400 just didn't know that for listeners that don't know, Yeah, 0:20:29.520 --> 0:20:34.360 tip is the word, not shape boat, but yeah, tip 0:20:34.760 --> 0:20:38.439 is a it's a it's a huge problem in South Korea, Like, 0:20:38.520 --> 0:20:43.080 for instance, Samsung is a chip boy corporate conglomerate, Samsung, 0:20:43.160 --> 0:20:46.119 you could kind of imagine it to be like a 0:20:46.240 --> 0:20:50.280 massive it's like, you know, you have Apple iPhones and tablets, 0:20:50.280 --> 0:20:53.159 you have Samsung mobile phones and tablets. In fact, I 0:20:53.160 --> 0:20:57.280 saw a Samsung cell phone that blew my mind. It's 0:20:58.040 --> 0:21:01.000 it's a it's just it's a glass, you know, typical, 0:21:01.080 --> 0:21:05.320 but it folds. My god, oh I've yeah, I've heard 0:21:05.359 --> 0:21:07.760 about these or like say no, no, no, no, you 0:21:07.800 --> 0:21:10.679 have to see it. You have to see it with 0:21:10.800 --> 0:21:16.000 your own eyeballs. It's like watching it is still mind blowing. 0:21:16.160 --> 0:21:18.920 Like I would see this in Korean dramas a lot 0:21:19.040 --> 0:21:22.760 because that's you know, embedded marketing. And when I saw that, 0:21:22.840 --> 0:21:25.480 I was just like, I want that phone so badly, 0:21:26.640 --> 0:21:29.919 you know, funck Apple, I don't care anymore. Samsung, you 0:21:29.920 --> 0:21:33.040 have outdone yourself. But yeah, others are a huge problem. 0:21:33.119 --> 0:21:37.400 For instance, some this film was executive produced by Mickey Lee. 0:21:37.920 --> 0:21:42.760 Mickey Lee is the daughter of Samsung. Corporate conglomerate because 0:21:42.960 --> 0:21:48.280 Samsung is associated with c J and c J well 0:21:48.359 --> 0:21:51.840 it's actually a food conglomerate, but c J has a 0:21:51.880 --> 0:21:58.159 subdivision called c J Entertainment, which handles filmmaking, TV and 0:21:58.240 --> 0:22:00.840 some music, so they have a lot of cable channels. 0:22:00.840 --> 0:22:04.720 They own a newspaper, so it's a huge corporate conglomerate. 0:22:05.160 --> 0:22:08.879 Damn um. So yeah, these tippos are a problem, and 0:22:08.920 --> 0:22:11.320 there are a problem because it's again it's like a 0:22:11.359 --> 0:22:14.480 family based thing, right, So Nepotism is a big issue. 0:22:14.720 --> 0:22:17.960 Corruption is a big issue. Cronyism is a big issue. 0:22:18.400 --> 0:22:22.440 And so Mickey Lee, what's ironic about this film winning 0:22:22.480 --> 0:22:25.600 an oscar and some I saw some people on social 0:22:25.600 --> 0:22:28.160 media talk about this too, is that Mickey Lee is 0:22:28.240 --> 0:22:33.040 like this daughter of this huge tipo establishment and yet 0:22:33.119 --> 0:22:36.360 she's the one that's executive producing a film that has 0:22:36.400 --> 0:22:41.199 a very sharp social critique of capitalism, right, And that 0:22:41.240 --> 0:22:44.760 goes to asking like, well, how, like what's what parallels 0:22:44.760 --> 0:22:47.320 do we have in the United States? Like you know, 0:22:47.520 --> 0:22:49.960 I mean Fox is now owned by Disney, but before that, 0:22:50.000 --> 0:22:52.840 like you know, when when you have The Simpsons or 0:22:52.920 --> 0:22:56.200 Family Guy on on Fox, which always has a critique 0:22:56.240 --> 0:23:01.240 of these mega corporations, right, it's like, how how impactful 0:23:01.440 --> 0:23:05.160 is that critique when it is owned under the umbrella 0:23:05.359 --> 0:23:09.639 of a huge corporate conglomerate. Right. Yeah. The irony, the 0:23:10.080 --> 0:23:16.560 like perhaps hypocrisy of it all is yeah, But then 0:23:16.560 --> 0:23:21.119 it comes into that whole discussion of like it feels 0:23:21.160 --> 0:23:24.680 fucking impossible to make to get anything funded without some 0:23:24.760 --> 0:23:28.840 sort of corporate underlying It is possible, but it's like 0:23:29.000 --> 0:23:33.240 the hill is infinitely higher, and like, you know, imagine 0:23:34.040 --> 0:23:36.200 how much harder it would have been for this movie 0:23:36.200 --> 0:23:39.520 to get funded without the corporate underwriting. And I mean 0:23:39.520 --> 0:23:41.800 it just goes back to like the no no ethical 0:23:41.840 --> 0:23:46.840 consumption argument. Yeah it's I mean, even even if a 0:23:46.960 --> 0:23:49.960 person does make a film without any of those corporate ties, 0:23:50.200 --> 0:23:53.800 the goal is still to sell it, you know, to 0:23:53.840 --> 0:23:57.399 have it distributed. And if that film, let's say, a 0:23:57.480 --> 0:24:02.520 pure little film grassroots right, somehow made it big. The 0:24:02.600 --> 0:24:05.080 first person that's going to be on the phone contacting 0:24:05.080 --> 0:24:08.720 the filmmaker is somebody who is going to compromise all 0:24:08.760 --> 0:24:11.600 of those things for that person. And will that person 0:24:11.840 --> 0:24:15.200 say no? Most likely no, they will say yes all right, 0:24:15.200 --> 0:24:17.240 if you want to if you want to be successful 0:24:17.320 --> 0:24:19.120 as an artist, if you want to pay off your 0:24:19.520 --> 0:24:21.680 your three credit cards that you maxed out in order 0:24:21.720 --> 0:24:25.480 to make that film, you're gonna say yes. And um yeah, 0:24:25.560 --> 0:24:28.640 I don't blame Punju at all for for doing that. 0:24:28.680 --> 0:24:31.919 You know, it is like how much awareness do you 0:24:31.960 --> 0:24:34.000 have of that? Like do you make these things with 0:24:34.040 --> 0:24:37.480 that full awareness? You know? Um, knowing that all of us, 0:24:37.600 --> 0:24:41.040 all of us are are tied to that. We're still 0:24:41.080 --> 0:24:44.160 bound to that, um whether we like it or not. 0:24:44.680 --> 0:24:48.920 I mean, we're on iHeart radio right now, Like exactly, 0:24:48.960 --> 0:24:53.840 I noticed there is quite honestly no escaping it, right, 0:24:53.880 --> 0:24:56.399 And how do you like without that funding, Like it 0:24:56.400 --> 0:24:59.240 would have been as difficult to make as it would 0:24:59.240 --> 0:25:02.919 have been for Q to like earn enough money to 0:25:03.000 --> 0:25:06.240 buy the that Park house and like rescue his dad. 0:25:06.320 --> 0:25:11.400 Like it's just it's not in the socio economic structures 0:25:11.400 --> 0:25:15.760 that many countries operate under. It's simply not possible social 0:25:15.840 --> 0:25:20.960 mobile like upboard mobility, damn near impossible. Yeah, And I 0:25:21.000 --> 0:25:24.080 think that's so important to highlight. Like, first of all, 0:25:24.359 --> 0:25:27.959 what that shows, or what this discussion shows, is that 0:25:28.080 --> 0:25:31.680 capitalism is actually a lot more complex, right, It's more 0:25:31.720 --> 0:25:34.639 complex than us just saying capitalism is the evil of all. 0:25:34.760 --> 0:25:37.200 It's like, yeah, okay, that's true, but we're still working 0:25:37.200 --> 0:25:41.520 within this framework of capitalism. What what can we do? 0:25:41.800 --> 0:25:44.119 You know? And then what you just said about social 0:25:44.160 --> 0:25:47.600 mobility is like I think it's so it's key to 0:25:47.840 --> 0:25:50.720 this film. It's like a key marker of this film, 0:25:50.760 --> 0:25:54.880