Money is the iron that smooths everything out

Parasite is a shocking allegory of class. It starkly portrays the cruel reality of the wealth gap with extreme black comedy and thrilling plotlines. The Kim family of four, living in a dark semi-basement, gradually infiltrates the sunlit mansion of the Park family like parasites. The absurd deception in the first half elicits laughter, but the latter half quickly spirals out of control, turning into a bloody tragedy. The metaphors of 'smell' and 'space' in the film are profoundly deep. That lingering scent of poverty is an indelible label for the lower class, ultimately triggering the murderous intent of the father, Kim Ki-taek, with a small gesture of Mr. Park pinching his nose. The classic line, 'Because they're rich, they're nice,' is sarcastic; the rich's tolerance and kindness are built on their ample wealth, while the poor can only tear each other apart in the darkness to fight for meager survival opportunities. The most despairing part is the ending. Ki-woo fantasizes about earning a lot of money someday to buy the mansion and save his father, but the scene shifts, and in reality, he's still sitting in the damp basement. This unfulfilled daydream cruelly shatters the pink bubble of social mobility. The movie doesn't have absolute villains, yet it depicts the most profound sense of structural societal powerlessness, leaving viewers heavy-hearted and unable to let go for a long time. Finally, I'll share a quote from Mom Chung-sook: 'It's not that they're nice even though they have money, it's that they're nice *because* they have money.'