Minari (2021)

Directed by Lee Isaac Chung and starring Stephen Yeun, Youn Yuh-jung, Alan Kim, and Han Yen-ri, Minari tells the quiet tale of a South Korean family grasping for the American Dream in rural Arkansas.

The Korean immigrant Yi family moves to Arkansas to pursue a better life. Jacob and Monica work at sexing chickens, but Jacob dreams of owning a “big garden” to sell Korean produce to locals and better support his family. He quickly gets to work with his new land in Arkansas, but is quick to value it over his family in multiple crucial decisions; the family’s dysfunction soon becomes apparent. Ever-concerned about their young son, David, and his looming heart condition, Monica is doubtful of Jacob’s plan, sparking conflict. Soon-ja, Monica’s mother, arrives to take care of the children during the day, but her unconventional nature initially unsettles David. As tension mounts, the family’s dreams and stability come to a fiery ultimatum.

Minari is painted in the ethereal colors of childhood, the still and slow-moving cinematography perfectly underlying the subdued but ever-present drama throughout. While more than half of the film is spoken in the charming Korean-English hybrid true to many Korean-American families, the emotion carried in each scene is expressed clearly, even without subtitles.

Despite comprising familiar stories – a man struggling to be a father and husband, migrants struggling to assimilate, a family struggling to stay afloat in an unfamiliar land – it is the superb acting from actors spanning all ages and understated yet meaningful metaphors, that set Minari far apart. Beneath its distinctive Korean exterior, Minari is a grounded, touching, and a commendable snapshot of America.