Cinephile № 872 “Minari”

Recommendation: 4/5 SHOWTIME

Plot: “A Korean family starts a farm in 1980s Arkansas.” -IMDB

Review: “Minari” feels like a deeply personal and nuanced character study. As we watch five members of a Korean family rally around the dreams of a father and husband with a wish to start a farm in rural Arkansas, it is their collision points that remain vividly imprinted on my mind. In fact, to properly review this film, we must analyze the role of each character.

Jacob (Steven Yeun) is the dreamer and the father of the family. It is his dream that fundamentally changes the direction of the family. His desire to be a provider is harmless enough, but when coupled with a wide-eyed misunderstanding of the agricultural markets, it is his decisions that will force a slow-building avalanche of pain on his family.

Monica (Yeri Han) is the mother of the family. We see much of this story through her eyes, and she has deep concerns about Jacob’s dream. Their marriage has been anything but peaceful and the burden of starting fresh in a new place could be the breaking point. Coupled with this sense of duty to care for the children and support her husband, Monica spends much of this film on the edge of oblivion. In her eyes, we see a tremendous amount of patience, but that patience is not infinite.