History YMMV / Parasite2019

** [[IncrediblyLamePun Bong d'Or]] [[note]]Coined by film critic Justin Chang of the ''Los Angeles Times'', it's a portmanteau of Bong's name and the Palme d'Or.[[/note]]

* HarsherInHindsight: Mr. Park [[AmbiguousSituation potentially enabling his wife's drug addiction]] became a bitter pill to swallow when in late 2023 his actor, Lee Sun-kyun, was accused of abusing drugs himself, eventually killing himself in the middle of an investigation.

** This movie won UsefulNotes/PalmeDOr almost a year after Hirokazu Kore-Eda, who's a good acquaintance with Bong and from the neighboring country of Japan, won the same award for ''Film/{{Shoplifters}}'', which shares the same premise of a family of petty criminals trying to survive in poverty. This led many critics and journalists to consider the former as SpiritualSuccessor/[[SpiritualAntithesis Antithesis]] of the latter.
*** It goes even futher with Kore-Eda worked with Song Kang-ho, cinematographer Hong Kyung-pyo, and composter Jung Jae-il to make his first Korean-language movie ''Broker'' and his follow-up to that movie, ''Monster'', shares the similar title with Bong's ''Film/TheHost2006'' (Gwoemul - which means "monster" in Korean).
** This overlaps with HeartwarmingInHindsight. Bong Joon-ho [[TakeThat dismissed]] the Oscars for being “very local”, meaning they only award American movies and forget foreign ones, especially those made by people of color. While many have agreed with his criticism toward the Oscars' (and the American film industry's) Anglocentrism, none of them expected him to win Best Director award '''and''' Best Picture at the Oscars. Bong referenced this during the awards, saying he wanted to have a big drink after winning Best International Film (the only award that ''Parasite'' was considered a lock on), and then as he won Best Director, joking about how he did not expect to be up on the stage again and that he will drink "until next morning". You can see the overwhelming joy on his face each time his film won huge come Oscar night.

** Park So-Dam[[note]]last-name-first naming convention[[/note]] plays Kim Ki-Jeong, who cons a family named Park!
** Jang Hye-jin (Chung-sook) and Park Myung-hoon (Geun-se)'s roles as antagonistic, struggling poor South Koreans in this film, because later that year [[http://koalasplayground.com/2020/01/08/brilliant-character-actor-costars-jang-hye-jin-and-park-myung-hoon-from-parasite-reunite-hilariously-in-crash-landing-on-you/ they would play]] bickering but loving siblings and members of North Korean high society in the internationally popular drama ''Series/CrashLandingOnYou''.

* MalignantPlotTumor: Early in the movie the fact that the Kim family all shares the same smell due to their living conditions is treated as a footnote. Overhearing a conversation between the Parks about his smell causes Ki-taek to become increasingly conscious of their reactions to his smell, largely forgetting other issues like [[spoiler:the couple in the bunker]]. It eventually reaches the point that [[spoiler:Ki-taek murders Mr. Park over a StinkSnub in the middle of the climactic scene with Guen-se]].

** [[IncrediblyLamePun Bong d'Or]] [[note]]Coined by film critic Justin Chang of Los Angeles Times, it's a portmanteau of Bong's name and Palme d'Or.[[/note]]

** The image of Bong Joon-ho making two of his Oscars [[https://www.gq.com/story/oscars-2020-bong-joon-ho-recap kiss each other.]]

** There's an argument Mr. Park's reaction to Mr. Kim's smell is not as big a KickTheDog moment as people think. Mr. Kim and his entire family are ''smokers''. The subway smell he may be complaining about may well be nicotine given he and his family seem health-conscious and non-smokers. (Crossing over to DeathOfTheAuthor, though, really, because it would negate the entire point of the movie, as well as make the fact that the camera focuses on Mr. Park's StinkSnub pointless.)
*** Might not negate the point of the movie, it's been written that many impoverished people have diets and habits that wouldn't be considered healthy, mostly due to lack of access to [[https://www.refinery29.com/en-gb/clean-eating-class-issue healthy food]], [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diseases_of_poverty health care]], and [[https://www.amazon.com/Against-Health-Became-Morality-Biopolitics/dp/0814795935 information about food or to indulge in something that makes them feel good even for a little]] ([[https://www.intelligenteconomist.com/lipstick-effect/ "the Lipstick Effect"]], named after there was a huge demand for lipsticks during TheGreatDepression because it made women feel good even if they didn't know they would pay the rent on time or have something in their bellies).
*** Aside from that, it's worth noting that the most obvious StinkSnub which triggered [[spoiler:Ki-taek's murderous rage]] is likely unrelated to the "lower class" smell. [[spoiler:Geun-sae has likely developed an incredibly bad smell due to his poor nutrition and health. This would only be made worse by spending several hours thrashing around in a blind panic and then splashing himself with large amounts of plum extract]].
*** Not only that, but [[spoiler:at this point Geun-sae had just been stabbed in the side. Park was rolling him over trying to get the keys. Geun-sae probably didn't smell great to begin with, but add in the above and all the blood, the possible leaking of fecal matter, and the horror of the entire situation, and it's no wonder Park is disgusted in that moment]].

* TheWoobie: Da-song can be one with [[spoiler:Geun-sae traumatizing him and putting him in a bad seizure on his birthday, ''twice', with his doting father dying on the second one.]]

** The underground home the Kims are living is called "반지하" (''Banjiha'') in Korean, which literally means "semi-underground". This is translated in English subtitles as "semi-basement". The same happens in the Japanese translation, and in fact, [[TheForeignSubtitle the Japanese subtitle of the film]] is named ''Banchika no Kazoku'' ("Semi-basement-dwelling family").

** ''Jjapaguri'' (짜파구리), a Korean comfort food that combines two instant noodle packages (Jjpaghetti + Neogurri) into one stoner-inspired meal served with a strip of sirloin, is translated "ram-don", a portmanteau of ''ramen'' and ''udon''.

** Alternatively, if you find the Kims unsympathetic thanks to how they get two innocent people fired so they aren't starving, manipulate their employers without batting an eyelid, repeatedly exploit a woman's deathly allergy, and [[spoiler:threaten to call the police on and then (unintentionally) murder Moon-gwang who has been sheltering her husband in the basement of the house]], watching their plans all crumble around them towards the end can be quite satisfying.

* TheWoobie: Da-song can be one with [[spoiler:Geun-sae traumatizing him and putting him in a bad seizure on his birthday, ''twice''.]]

** Say it with us now: "Jessica, only child, Illinois, Chicago, classmate Kim Jin-mo, he's your cousin."[[note]]제시카 , 외동딸, 일리노이, 시카고, 과 선배는 김진모, 그는 네 사촌 (Jessica, oedongttal, Illinois, Chicago, gwa seonbaeneun Kim Jin-mo, euneun ne sachon)[[/note]]
** "RESPECT!"

** It's very common to come across people who also liked ''Film/{{Shoplifters}}'' for sharing the similar premise with this movie.

** This movie won UsefulNotes/PalmeDOr almost a year after Hirokazu Koreeda, who's a good acquaintance with Bong and from the neighboring country of Japan, won the same award for ''Film/{{Shoplifters}}'', which shares the same premise of a family of petty criminals trying to survive in poverty. This led many critics and journalists to consider the former as SpiritualSuccessor/[[SpiritualAntithesis Antithesis]] of the latter.

** Ki-woo returns to the bunker with scholar's rock in hand, but his reason for doing so has been debated. He tells his father he will take responsibility, but in what way? Did he go down there to murder the bunker couple or did he go there to offer the rock as a peace offering? His actor Choi Woo-shik [[https://www.vulture.com/2019/10/parasite-movie-choi-woo-shik-bong-joon-ho-ending.html asked Bong]] if it was the former, to which Bong replied "No, maybe it was a gift. Maybe he wanted to say sorry." Woo-shik himself also believes Ki-woo would not kill. However, the interpretation that Ki-woo attempted murder on Moon-gwang and Geun-se at the end is prevalent even on this very wiki.

** Some also feel Yang Jin-mo should have won Best Editing, as the sleek editing contributes majorly to the smooth flow of the film as a whole. The montage showing how the Kims got the housekeeper fired has been particularly cited as one of the most well-edited sequences of the past few years. The award ended up going to ''Film/FordvFerrari''.

** It's already beloved in its home country, but it became an instant SacredCow with France's Cannes Film Festival awarding the movie their top prize but also the Oscar giving it their Best Picture award, making it the first Best Picture Oscar winner in a non-English language in history.

** [[https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/check-your-basement Check Your Basement]] [[note]]Based on its infamous twist where [[spoiler: a housekeeper's poor husband lived in the Park family's house bunker for years]], people use this as a response to rich people tweeting about their first world problem or sharing photographs of their expensive homes and flaunting their wealth. Similar catchphrase to "Check your privilege."[[/note]]

** "Once you overcome the one-inch tall barrier of subtitles, you will be introduced to so many more amazing films."[[note]]From Bong's acceptance speech (translated by his interpreter Sharon Choi) for receiving the Golden Globe for Best International Film. Many internet denizens interpreted this as a TakeThat to the American public's disdain for subtitled international movies. Oddly enough, it become a popular thing to quote around since Americans tend to [[CulturalCringe cringe]] at [[ForeignRemake Hollywood remakes]] of non-American movies. Likewise, it has been used by anime fans to justify their instance on the SubbingVsDubbing debate.[[/note]]

--> [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BhEgGxaeCqM&lc=Ugx3PKKnlol3tBgeBCh4AaABAg YouTube comment]]: So....am i the only person who read this movie as a parody/subversion of K-dramas (Korean soap operas)? Like, the vast vast majority of k-dramas are about class differences but usually peddle a fantasy about the elite — that they're powerful, smart, and ultimately good at heart. A young woman (and sometimes a young man) will meet a rich and handsome person who will reveal their heart of gold by lifting them out of poverty. Parasite shows a more realistic scenario (in some ways) of how the wealthy and poor actually interact. I'd say it also specifically takes a lot of the visual styling from k-dramas ESPECIALLY in how the son is filmed at the end of the movie when he [[spoiler:fantasizes about buying the house]]. Plus, the plot of the movie ([[spoiler:a housekeeper whose family is secretly living in their client's basement]]) is the same as the drama [[https://mydramalist.com/90-stars-falling-from-the-sky Stars falling from the skies]]. The actress who plays the sister is also a pretty well-known k-drama actress (I'm not sure how big the korean film industry is and how much cross-pollination there is, that could just be a coincidence).

** Park So-Dam[[note]]last-name-first naming convention[[/note]] plays Kim Ki-Jeong, who cons a family [[NamesTheSame named Park]]!

* WhatDoYouMeanItsNotPolitical: CapitalismIsBad and economic inequality are major themes of the film, but they're not the only themes. A lot of the HypeBacklash has been because some people go into it expecting it to be a didactic political commentary, when it's actually a BlackComedy[=/=]{{Thriller}} GenreMashup that's meant to be enjoyed on a cinematic level, with the capitalism-related material as a context for the story.

** [[spoiler: '''''[[DownerEnding The ending]].''''' Ki-woo realizes his father is alive and sending Morse code signals from the former Park mansion, but must stay there for arguably the rest of his life. Ki-woo sends his father a letter, stating he will one day finally have enough money from a good education to buy the house and free him from that prison. We then see a HopeSpot with Ki-woo and Chung-sook looking over the newly-bought property and reuniting with Ki-taek after he leaves the bunker, after which the film fades out...only to fade back into their small basement home, all but outright stating that this image is a simple TragicDream of Ki-woo. It's also been sadly confirmed by Bong Joon-ho that despite Ki-woo's good graces, there is realistically no way he would be able to acquire the house.]]

** [[spoiler: '''''[[DownerEnding The ending]].''''' Ki-woo realizes his father is alive and sending Morse code signals from the former Park mansion, but must stay there for arguably the rest of his life. Ki-woo sends his father a letter, stating he will one day finally have enough money from a good education to buy the house and free him from that prison, with a HopeSpot where we see Ki-woo and Chung-sook looking over the newly bought property and reuniting with Ki-taek after him leaving the bunker... only to this be a simple TragicDream by Ki-woo, still living in their small basement home. It's also been sadly confirmed by Bong Joon-ho that despite Ki-woo's good graces, there is no way he would be able to acquire the house]].