Trump Attacks Parasite. Studio Hits Back: “Understandable, He Can’t Read”

Michael Ciaglo/Getty Images

From what I can tell, Trump rallies are basically opportunities for the racist in chief to riff and ramble to a crowd of die-hard (also racist) supporters about whatever crosses his mind. At last night’s rally in Colorado, it was the recent Oscar win of Parasite that caught his xenophobic attention.

This nonsense, among other things, got Gone With the Wind trending momentarily on twitter, with few surprised that Trump would pick one of the most racist Best Picture winners of all time as his go-to “they don’t make ’em like they used to” choice. But yeah, a movie that romanticizes slavery and rape. Very Trumpian.

Weirdly, his other choice was Sunset Boulevard. Not surprising that he’d pick a movie about a delusional star of another era, insulated from reality by money and fame, who kills the person who tries to defy and leave them. But also it’s worth noting that Sunset Boulevard never won Best Picture (the winner that year was All About Eve).

But let’s talk about Parasite, a movie I’m sure Trump couldn’t describe the plot of if his life depended on it. If he knew that the film he’s so mad about winning wasn’t just from South Korea but also brutal evisceration of class and capitalism he’d probably be even angrier that it won.

Happily, Neon films was on it when it came to responding to Trump’s jabs.

Amazing.

I assume from the way Trump talks like a gangster out of a bad Scorsese knock-off he was rooting for The Irishman or Joker to win. In the same speech, he also went after Brad Pitt with language that Marty himself might have found too over the top: “And then you have Brad Pitt, I was never a big fan of his. He got up, said a little wise guy thing. He’s a little wise guy.”

I’m sure Brad Pitt is honored to be in the company of Bong Joon-Ho and Greta Thunberg (who was booed at the rally) as the target of Trump’s ire and his followers’ disdain. At this point, it’s pretty clear that if your success pisses off the Trumpsters, you’re doing something very right.

Everything about this proves exactly why Parasite‘s win wasn’t just historic, it was important. It was a sign of a changing world, of a rise and respect for diversity that is sorely needed in a country where crowds boo the idea of a Korean film winning best picture. Trump and his supporters represent everything Parasite stands against, both in its themes and success, and these petty, small-minded people are really booing it because they’re afraid of what that means. Which they should be.

It’s sad, really, that there are still racists hanging on fondly to an America that’s Gone with the Wind …

(via The Hollywood Reporter)

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Jessica Mason

Jessica Mason (she/her) is a writer based in Portland, Oregon with a focus on fandom, queer representation, and amazing women in film and television. She's a trained lawyer and opera singer as well as a mom and author.

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