These spaces are cramped, damp and smelly due to lack of ventilation and sunlight. There were approximately 383,000 semi-basement apartments in South Korea, with 59.5 per cent of them in the capital itself. According to reports, nearly 78 per cent of those living in such apartments are from the low-income bracket. Semi-basement apartments are in fact quite common in the city of Seoul as they are affordable options for the urban population. Read 'Parasite' film review here.Īccording to a report in the Korea Herald, the Seoul City government will financially support 1,500 households living in semi-basement apartments and help them to improve their living conditions.
Filmmaker Bong Joon Ho's film effectively showed the wide gap that exists between the rich and the poor and now the film has lead to authorities in Seoul to take note of those living in the city's semi-basement apartments similar to how the poor family lived in Bong's film. Since then, the film has been a point of discussion across the world. On February 9, South Korean film 'Parasite' created history at Oscars by becoming the first non-English language film to win the coveted Best Picture award. Good cinema not only entertains, inspires but also acts as an agent of social change.
