Opinion | President Donald Trump’s “Parasite” comments fuel racism
“The winner is a movie from South Korea. What the hell was that all about?”
No, this is not a comment from one of the Academy of Motion Picture’s old white male members – who are a dime a dozen – in response to the South Korean film, “Parasite,” winning this year’s Oscar for Best Picture. It is instead a comment from an old, orange male at a Feb. 20 rally in Colorado. You guessed it, President Donald Trump decided he would go after the first film to ever win the Academy Award for Best Picture not filmed in English. And quite frankly, it’s disgusting.
I’ve been lucky to work in the film industry for the bulk of my time in college. From New Form Entertainment to The Hollywood Reporter, I’ve loved being at the center of entertainment, both working in it and covering the industry for different publications. I well up every time I watch a montage of the greatest films ever made and I am guaranteed to cry every time I watch “Cinema Paradiso.” My family has worked in film for decades and as such I’ve been blessed to be exposed to fantastic cinema: “Parasite” is no exception. So when I saw the video of Trump at the Feb. 20 rally trashing the latest Best Picture winner, I was ready to riot.
But to be completely honest, I wasn’t surprised by his remarks. Trump has been blatantly racist time and time again, both before and during his time in the White House. He entered the political stage by calling immigrants from Mexico “rapists,” furthered his bigoted remarks when he asked why the United States wasn’t receiving more immigrants from Sweden as opposed to “s***hole countries” in Africa, and has been callous in his remarks about anyone who isn’t wearing a MAGA hat.
Trump’s comments, I’m sure, were lost on his supporters at the rally and used to further his chaotic narrative that has dominated his administration. But when looked at critically, his remarks on “Parasite” perpetuate this idea that out of touch films like “Gone With the Wind,” – which he mentioned at the rally as a film that should have upset “Parasite,” despite it being released in 1939 – should be the standard. Trump and his supporters believe that all other countries revolve around the U.S, all other races revolve around whiteness and, in Trump’s case, insanity should dominate reason. And of course he wouldn’t have been a fan of “Parasite. It’s a film that challenges what we think about everyday life, made by a team of filmmakers in South Korea and, worst of all, a film that requires him to read subtitles.
“Parasite” deserved to win – not because it would shatter an age old language barrier in the industry, not because it would boost the progressiveness of Hollywood. It deserved to win because it was a brilliant film. That’s it.