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US President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally in Las Vegas on Feb. 21. (AP)

For two days now, US President Donald Trump has voicing overt displeasure over director Bong Joon-ho’s film “Parasite” winning four of this year’s Academy Awards, including best picture. His issues are not with the content or quality of the film; his carping has been purely about the fact that an American film did not win. It’s staggering to see this kind of low-grade attitude where the ridiculous “America first” standard has to be applied to film as well.

While stumping in Las Vegas on Feb. 21, Trump said, “They [the Academy Awards] announced a movie from South Korea [as best picture]. What's that all about?” He went on to say, “They [South Koreans] beat us on trade and then they win the Academy Award for a freaking movie.” A day earlier in another stump speech in Colorado Springs, he asked, “How bad were the Academy Awards this year? The winner is a movie from South Korea.” He also insisted that the award should have been won by an American film like “Gone with the Wind” or “Sunset Boulevard.”

Trump’s remarks did not mention anything about the content or quality of the film. Instead, he got his crowds worked up with a feeble argument that a South Korean film had stolen the Oscar that should rightfully have gone to an American film, and then segued from there into attacking on trade issues. It’s being claimed that this is just political rhetoric to court conservative votes, but it’s dismaying to see “America first” logic based on financial calculations being imposed even on culture and art.

The US media has been blasting the remarks as “xenophobic film criticism” and “going against press freedom and diversity.” We hope President Trump will listen to what they’re saying.

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