Member-only story
Parasite’s Oscar Win Exposed a Prejudice Towards Foreign Languages
A foreign language film was the last one to make me cry
As he is learning to speak German, one of my friends came across a show called Dark. It’s on Netflix, has an IMDb rating of 8.8 after 267,000 reviews, and is one of the best shows I have seen in a long while. Why, then, had I never heard of it? I haven't seen an ounce of marketing or a single review. Without my friend’s recommendation, I never would have come across it.
It brings me back to the furor surrounding Parasite’s Best Picture win at the 2019 Oscars. Scrolling through the reactions after the ceremony, I found some puzzling comments. While many people praised the film and director Bong Joon-Hoo, many questioned his achievements. The most prolific was from US president Donald Trump. Speaking shortly after, he said:
“How bad were the Academy Awards this year? Did you see it? And the winner is… a movie from South Korea! What the hell was that all about?
We got enough problems with South Korea with trade. On top of it, they give him best movie of the year? Was it good? I don’t know. Let’s get Gone With the Wind. Can we get Gone With the Wind back, please? Sunset Boulevard. So many great movies. The winner is from South Korea. I thought it was Best Foreign Film…
