Bong’s love for movies started early. Growing up, he was drawn to art books, comics, and films. This passion continued into his college years at Yonsei University, where he studied sociology but spent most of his time in the university’s film club that he founded, Yellow Door (Noranmoon). During these years he bought his first film camera and started making short films, including White Man (1993), which helped him gain some attention within the Korean film scene.
His debut film, Barking Dogs Never Bite (2000), didn’t make much of a splash, but Bong’s second feature, Memories of Murder (2003), was highly acclaimed and is still my personal favorite movie of his. Based on the real-life unsolved serial murders in South Korea, the film was praised for its mix of suspense, dark humor, and social commentary. In 2006, he released The Host which centered around a giant mutant creature that emerges from the Han River and begins attacking people in Seoul as we follow a dysfunctional family. It was a massive box office success that got Bong noticed internationally and set his style of filmmaking with mix of genres and themes of government corruption and other societal issues. At one point in his career, he was placed on a secret government blacklist due to such themes and a negative portrayal of the Western political class in his films. His growing fame in the sector, thankfully, could ensure him private funding for more films.
Mother (2009), a compelling and dark genre-hybrid thriller by Bong Joon-Ho, blends horror, mystery, and black comedy with his typical atmospheric tension to follow a protective mother as she sets out on a terrifying quest to prove her disabled son's innocence in a murder case. He then made Snowpiercer (2013), his first English-language film. Set on a train in a post-apocalyptic world, exploring themes of class division in a dystopian society. Following this theme, his 2017 film Okja critiqued capitalism and environmental degradation while fusing humor and genuine emotion.
Parasite (2019) struck a chord with audiences around the world because of its sharp satire on class disparity, blending different genres in a way that felt fresh and unpredictable. His ability to blend humor, action, and social commentary has made him one of the most influential filmmakers of his generation. On top of it all, he is for more international films to be watched and cared for by people. The moment that stayed with me from the Parasite Oscar sweep night was when he pointed at it in front of the Hollywood crowd: "Once you overcome the one-inch tall barrier of subtitles, you will be introduced to so many more amazing films."
Starring Robert Pattinson in the lead role, Bong Joon-Ho has returned with Mickey 17 in cinemas now.