South Korea's 'Parasite' wins Palme d'Or top prize at Cannes

"Parasite", a black comedy about a family of clever scammers from South Korea's underclass, won the Palme d'Or top prize at Cannes on Saturday, the first time a Korean director has scooped the coveted award in the film festival's 72-year history.

Bong Joon-ho, 49, best known for daring arthouse hits including "Okja" and "Snowpiercer", won for a satire which critics said powerfully tapped into the tensions caused by the widening gap between rich and poor around the world.

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Accepting the prize from French movie legend Catherine Deneuve, Bong said winning at Cannes had been a lifelong dream.

Director Bong Joon-ho (left) accepts the Palme d'Or award for the film 'Parasite'.

"I was a little boy who was crazy about cinema since I was 12 years old," Bong said, hoisting the palm-frond statuette in the air.

"Parasite" is the second Asian film in a row to triumph at the world's biggest film festival.

It tapped into similar themes explored by last year's winner, "Shoplifters" by Hirokazu Kore-eda about a family of small-time crooks, which shone a light on Japan's hidden poor.

Despite some of his strongest reviews in years, Quentin Tarantino failed to win anything for "Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood", which brought together two of Tinseltown's most dashing leading men, Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio, for the first time.

Director Bong Joon-ho poses with the award for his film ‘Parasite’. Regis Duvignau/Reuters

The first black woman to compete for Cannes' top prize, Mati Diop, was runner-up for "Atlantics", a chilling ghost story about Senegalese migrants dying at sea.

Antonio Banderas got the best actor award for Pedro Almodovar's "Pain and Glory", a loosely autobiographical picture based on the director's colourful life.

An emotional Banderas said it was the first major prize of his 40-year career.

"I respect him, I admire him, I love him, he's my mentor and he's given me so much," he said of Almodovar, who cast the actor in eight films and helped make him a global box office draw.

"This award has to be dedicated to him," he added.