Seoul (AFP)

The South Korean film "Parasite", both a thriller and a corrosive satire on social inequalities, succeeded in breaking down language barriers to meet immense success around the world, up to winning three Oscars in one evening.

It is a consecration for "Parasite", the first Korean film ever awarded an Oscar. Exceptional crowning of a year 2019 marking the hundredth anniversary of Korean cinema.

Its director Bong Joon-ho first received a first statuette for the best original screenplay. Then his film was crowned best international feature film, and he received the Oscar for best director.

Bong Joon-ho's film had previously won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes film festival last year and the Golden Globe for "best foreign language film" in January, two prestigious prizes which already constituted a first for a southern film. -Korean.

"Parasite" is also the first foreign language film to receive the "Best Actor Set" award, the most popular award from the Screen Actors Guild as well as two Bafta awards for British cinema.

If this feature film has won over an international audience, it is because it tackles problems common to all societies, explains Jason Bechervaise, professor at the South Korean University of Soongsil Cyber.

"There is a lot of political anger around the world, and it is compounded by a palpable feeling of growing social inequality. The word 'parasite +' really fits that," he told AFP. .

- Poverty and wealth "inextricably linked" -

Dark comedy, "Parasite" tells how four members of a family of unemployed - who vegetate in a dark and sordid apartment invaded by cockroaches - manage to get into the daily life of a wealthy family in Seoul.

Their life begins to change radically the day when the son becomes the private tutor of English of the daughter of this wealthy family, who lives in a sumptuous contemporary villa surrounded by a magnificent garden.

The film by Bong Joon-ho, known for his thrillers camouflaging satires of South Korean society, shows "very well how poverty and wealth are inextricably linked", explains to AFP John Lie, professor of sociology at the University of California, Berkeley.

"The rich are parasites on the poor, like the poor are on the rich," he said.

The international success of this work, especially in the United States, is all the more remarkable since the English language dominates international cinema and the success of non-English-speaking films is rare.

In France, "Parasite" has become the most seen Palme d'Or in cinemas for fifteen years.

- "A universal interest" -

During the Golden Globes ceremony, Mr. Bong - who was signing his seventh film there - called out to American spectators: "Once you have overcome the subtitle barrier, you will open yourself up to so many other amazing films" .

For Bao Nguyen, a Vietnamese-American director, Mr. Bong's Oscar is "an example to follow for future Asian and American filmmakers".

"Parasite" is a film "deeply rooted in its representation of Korean society, and has in no way yielded to the expectations of a foreign audience," he told AFP.

Its success will open new horizons for other films, wants to believe Deborah Shaw, professor of cinematographic studies at the University of Portsmouth in Great Britain.

This should "make more international producers and distributors likely to invest in non-English speaking films," she said.

But in any case, it is proof that a "good story, told in an excellent way and with universal interest, can transcend" language barriers, according to her.

© 2020 AFP