Global Korean Cinema and the Apocalypse of Asset Capitalism in Concrete Utopia

Abstract: This article examines Concrete Utopia , released in and directed by Um Tae-hwa, with a focus on its scathing critique of asset capitalism. Combining textual analysis and political-economic analysis of the film, I argue that the film presents an assetized critique of asset capitalism. Set in post-apocalyptic Seoul where only one apartment building remains standing, the film depicts conflicts between homeowners and nonowners, revealing how asset ownership has become central to class position. Concrete Utopia captures the violence of South Korea’s asset-based capitalism and its vertical modernity, while also suggesting the possibility for an alternative ethics. However, Concrete Utopia ’s imbrication with the process of assetization complicates its critical message, which I examine through the film’s transmedia strategy and equity crowdfunding. I show how the scathing critique Concrete Utopia makes on the asset economy becomes diluted as the film itself is made into an asset.