CJ EntertainmentThe Oscar nominations are officially here, and perhaps the biggest surprise of them all is a critically acclaimed movie from South Korea.
Bong Joon Ho’s Parasite has not only been nominated in six different Oscar categories, but it is also the first South Korean film to receive an Oscar nomination in 91 years.
The film has been nominated for Best International Feature Film and Best Picture, while Bong Joon Ho becomes the first South Korean filmmaker to be nominated for Best Director. Parasite has also bagged nominations for Best Editing, Best Production Design and Best Original Screenplay.
Check out the trailer for Parasite here:
However, Parasite’s success dates all way the back to Cannes Film Festival, where it was handed the Palme d’Or, making Bong Joon Ho the first ever South Korean filmmaker to win the top prize. Accepting his award, Bong said he hoped his movie would spike a worldwide interest in South Korean cinema.
As per IndieWire, Bong spoke about another director who influenced his work, saying:
In 2006 I went to see a retrospective on Kim Ki-young.
I went to the French cinema library to see that and was surprised to see French spectators really liked his films and that made a big impression on me. I got the Palme today in Cannes but I’m not the only Korean director who could receive that award.
There’s a lot of Korean talent that could win the Palme. I would like to do more retrospectives around the world featuring great Korean directors. Maybe today this will help me move forward in this direction. It’s an opportunity for people to learn more about Korean cinema around the world.
CJ EntertainmentParasite has gone on to gross more than $23 million in the US, making it one of the biggest foreign releases ever at the domestic box office, and its current global tally stands at $130 million and counting.
The synopsis for the film reads:
Greed and class discrimination threaten the newly formed symbiotic relationship between the wealthy Park family and the destitute Kim clan.
Could it become the first South Korean film to win multiple Oscars? The 92nd Academy Awards will take place Sunday, February 9.
You can see Parasite in selected UK cinemas now.
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Emma Rosemurgey is an NCTJ trained Journalist who started her career by producing The Royal Rosemurgey newspaper in 2004, which kept her family up to date with the goings on of her sleepy north east village. She graduated from the University of Central Lancashire in Preston and started her career in regional newspapers before joining Tyla (formerly Pretty 52) in 2017, and progressing onto UNILAD in 2019.