All 8 Bong Joon-ho Movies, Ranked by How Anti-Capitalist They Are

Bong Joon-ho is an undeniably great filmmaker, and so clearly one of the best and boldest working today that you might even be a little sick of hearing about how good he (generally) is. Not every film of his is perfect, but he takes risks as a director and those risks usually pay off, with the resulting body of work being distinctly his own and thrillingly eclectic as far as genres go.

What’s retained across his films, though, is his keenness to explore stories that have social commentary built into them, and such commentary often revolves around issues of wealth and class warfare. Regardless of whether you agree with his sentiments or not, what’s clear to see is that many Bong Joon-ho films have some kind of anti-capitalist slant to them, with the ranking below being an attempt to break down all the feature films he’s made to date, listing them by how strong those anti-capitalist sentiments come across.

8

‘Barking Dogs Never Bite’ (2000)

Starring: Lee Sung-jae, Bae Doona, Kim Ho-jung

With his debut, you get a bit of a sense of what a young Bong Joon-ho is capable of, even if Barking Dogs Never Bite feels a bit like a warm-up for greater things to come. It’s not as sharply written, and doesn’t pop as much visually as some of his later films, but it’s all pretty solid… though it also sticks out for not being quite as heavy on the social commentary front, too.

The conflict revolves around one man being driven to do something desperate/terrible when he’s driven mad by the sound of a constantly barking dog, so potentially living conditions play a role in the conflict here; people only being able to afford to live on top of – or right next to – each other and all. The filmmaking would get stronger later on, as would the boldness of the commentary, but Barking Dogs Never Bite still has a little something to offer on both those fronts.

7

‘Memories of Murder’ (2003)

Starring: Song Kang-ho, Kim Sang-kyung, Kim Roi-ha

Another Bong Joon-ho film that doesn’t look at class as intensely as later films, Memories of Murder does have a somewhat satirical edge to it, and it is socially conscious in other ways. On top of just being a very compelling thriller, there is also a bit here about critiquing the police as an institution, highlighting incompetence (in darkly funny ways) and cruelty (in startlingly uncomfortable ways).

Moral issues are explored here, and the film is compellingly offbeat as far as police procedurals go, but anything about class and/or capitalism isn’t really the focus here. That’s not a knock against Memories of Murder overall, because it’s undeniably one of Bong Joon-ho’s strongest efforts as a filmmaker (and a noticeable improvement over Barking Dogs Never Bite), but its social commentary is of a slightly different flavor to other movies of his.

6

‘Mother’ (2009)

Starring: Kim Hye-ja, Won Bin, Jin Goo

Revolving around desperation a little like Barking Dogs Never Bite, and also being a quiet/unsettling crime-focused movie in a way that’s reminiscent of Memories of Murder, Mother is another striking Bong Joon-ho film that tells a compelling story and has a good deal on its mind thematically. It’s about a protective mother trying to prove her son did not commit a murder, broadly speaking, but it branches off in interesting ways that need not be spoiled here.

It’s a look at seemingly ordinary people, like Bong Joon-ho’s first feature, and critiques certain things regarding the police – as an institution – a little like his second feature film. As for strict anti-capitalist sentiments? Mother doesn’t have that kind of thing in spades, but such themes pop up far more blatantly post-2009 (so, essentially, all the feature films of Bong Joon-ho’s following Mother).

5

‘The Host’ (2006)

Starring: Song Kang-ho, Byun Hee-bong, Park Hae-il

The emergence of a monster in The Host is shown to most directly affect the working class, with a somewhat downtrodden – yet tight-knit – family being the focus of this strange but expertly made (kinda) kaiju film. It would be easier to highlight some of the critiques against the U.S. military here, as well as identify the environmentalist themes, admittedly… but The Host isn’t devoid of potentially capitalism-related commentary.

Again, it’s sympathetic to those who aren’t as privileged in society, and the careless pursuit of profits can cause institutions or corporations to damage the environment, with comparable actions here literally birthing a deadly monster. The Host is bombastic in its emotions and action sequences, but a bit harder to pin down thematically than Bong Joon-ho’s work from the 2010s and 2020s (which isn’t necessarily a knock against those; more just an observation of the filmmaker’s changing approach to storytelling and social commentary).

4

‘Okja’ (2017)

Starring: Ahn Seo-hyun, Tilda Swinton, Paul Dano

Speaking of Bong Joon-ho films that feature an unusual creature (or creatures) alongside a pro-environment/nature message, here’s Okja, which isn’t subtle in its critique of animal cruelty committed for the sake of turning a profit. The titular Okja is a giant pig-like creature that a large corporation wants to get its hands on, with a young girl – who cares for said pig – doing all she can to make sure that doesn’t happen.

You can compare it tonally to some Steven Spielberg films, while Okja – in its lack of subtlety – also feels a bit in line with James Cameron’s more environmentally conscious films, like Avatar and its sequel. Regardless of whether you think Okja is heavy-handed or unsubtle in a detrimental way, what can be said – and hopefully agreed upon – is that its pro-animal/nature and very much against corporations using or exploiting said things.

3

‘Mickey 17’ (2025)

Starring: Robert Pattinson, Naomi Ackie, Steven Yeun

Even if it’s lacking in quality and consistency, Mickey 17 sure ain’t lacking when it comes to social commentary. Regardless of what’s been said in interviews, it’s pretty clear who’s being made fun of through Mark Ruffalo’s character, with that villain taking center stage in the film’s back half. In Mickey 17’s first half, though, much of the story is focused on the indignity of sacrificing oneself for a thankless job and feeling underappreciated, all to a comical extreme.

This is because Mickey (Robert Pattinson) is employed to die again and again, resurrected multiple times to keep on perishing as part of some science experiments on a years-long voyage through space. That stuff is a bit stronger than the more broad political satire, but regardless of what half of Mickey 17 you’re looking at, the film is consistently far from subtle in what it wants to criticize.

2

‘Snowpiercer’ (2013)

Starring: Chris Evans, Song Kang-ho, Ed Harris

In Snowpiercer, the last remaining members of humanity are on board a train that’s whirling around a dystopian world, and the train is basically a microcosm of capitalism as a whole. There are various groups of people on board, with those at the back having the least and those at the front having the most. And a revolution kicks off eventually, with the depiction here streamlining the idea of a revolution because those with nothing surge forward in the hope that they’ll attain something near the front.

It’s very blunt, but it works like a treat, with Snowpiercer having in-your-face social commentary that works alongside showcasing some spectacular action scenes (it’s probably the most visceral Bong Joon-ho film to date). The message here is about as obvious as it gets, but the film’s setting and style make that lack of subtlety go down surprisingly smoothly.

1

‘Parasite’ (2019)

Starring: Song Kang-ho, Lee Sun-kyun, Cho Yeo-jeong

Parasite might not be subtle, but there is some nuance here compared to other “eat-the-rich” movies. It frames capitalism as the villain, rather than outright demonizing or making caricatures of the wealthy. Those who are poor might be more sympathetic than those who are rich here, but no one is a saint in Parasite, and everyone suffers in one way or another (some more than others, sure) because everyone lives under capitalism.

While Snowpiercer is about a revolt, Parasite instead paints a more hopeless and realistic picture. It’s a tragedy (and a sometimes oddly funny one) about an economic system that doesn’t care for the people who have to live under it. The way Parasite explores all this while being incredibly entertaining makes it an all-time great film. It’s Bong Joon-ho’s best effort to date, and also stands as his most striking on a social commentary front, too.

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