Parasite (2019), the Oscar-winning Bong Joon Ho film, does not shy away from depicting harsh truths about class differences in contemporary South Korea. Though the film is lauded for a riveting tale, it recognizes the fine, but powerful, point about global health issues, and in particular the social determinants of health and their invisible ways. “Parasite” isn’t a medical drama, but it shows how closely our health and well-being are linked to our social status.
In contrast to the Park family’s lavish, minimalist mansion, we witness it here in the poor Kim family’s half-basement slum den. One of the most important social determinants of health, housing disparities, are starkly highlighted. The Kims’ home is susceptible to flooding, which is a prevalent problem in underprivileged areas and is indicative of inadequate sanitation and heightened susceptibility to infectious diseases. Their ongoing struggle with fumigation smoke subtly entering their home raises concerns about environmental health hazards that disproportionately impact underprivileged areas.
In addition to the material state, Parasite also intrudes on the psychological effects of poverty. The Kim family’s ongoing battle for survival, humiliation, and hidden fears highlight the serious effects of ongoing financial instability on mental health. The desperate attempt to keep up a front for work is a powerful example of how social pressures can undermine mental health and result in stress, depression, and a lowered sense of self-worth.
The recurrent theme of “the smell” in Parasite is arguably the most powerful metaphor for health disparity. The rich Parks family repeated commented on the odd odor from the Kims. This smell was shown as the “poor people’s smell” that is contaminated in their clothes and even in their presence. This wasn’t just about hygiene. It was about the pervasive and inescapable nature of poverty itself shown through smell. This “smell” is the product of insufficient resources, housing and nutrition that affect well-being and also cultivate social conditions that prevent upward movement and breed stigma. The smell acts as a tacit class marker, preventing any real form of integration, and revealing the profound biases that govern access to and outcomes in health.“Parasite” is a cinematic microscope that allows us all to see the levels of social inequality that determine who’s living the good life and who’s stuck with simply getting by.
In the end, Parasite rises above its style to become a blistering indictment of the invisible forces determining human health and opportunity. The film invites us to face head on how profoundly health is tethered to class, via its nuanced depictions of housing, mental well-being, environmental exposure, and social stigma. Bong Joon Ho doesn’t just tell a story of class division; he ages it, in the earth around us, until we can feel the grit beneath our nails, smell it on our skin, see the effect it has on people we care about.
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