America has “Squid Game” fever. Netflix’s streaming sensation, the South Korean “Hunger Games”-style drama, dropped on Netflix Sept. 17, and is poised to overtake “Bridgerton” and “The Witcher” to become the biggest series in Netflix history.
Written and directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk, “Squid Game” is a nine-episode series following a group of people as they’re lured into a playing a mysterious game for a huge cash prize. The first match is a deadly game of “Red Light, Green Light,” where the players who are eliminated are shot dead on the spot. And yet, some players return for more from the Squid Game, so dire are their debts. The series expands beyond the arena to explore the desperate financial situations that drive these players to try their luck with these lethal playground games: medical debt, immigration issues, custody battles, legal woes. The series is dystopian and fantastical at times, but rooted in social issues and human motivations.
For some, this may be a first foray into modern South Korean cinema, and will likely inspire a desire to explore that rich cinematic landscape further. There are many, many gems to discover, so here’s a guide to sampling the best of Korean cinema from the 2000s to the present.
First, look no further than the oeuvre of auteur Bong Joon-ho, who won the best picture Oscar in 2020 for his masterpiece, “Parasite” (streaming on Hulu and Kanopy). Director Bong’s films are dark, funny, poignant, bloody and genre-blending, and his unique tonal influence is clear in “Squid Game.” Work your way through his entire body of work, but some highlights include his 2003 murder mystery investigation thriller “Memories of Murder” (streaming on Hulu and rentable elsewhere), one of the best cop films ever made. Then watch his 2006 monster movie, “The Host” (on Amazon Prime, Tubi, and elsewhere), or his incredible 2009 drama “Mother” (on Prime, Hulu, Tubi, etc.)
