Minari

What a beautiful movie. I don’t know what to praise first. The cinematography, the acting, the story. All of it deserves praise. From start to finish, Minari is visually stunning, and stylized perfectly. The actors truly understand, and live these roles onscreen as if they were the lives they were always meant to lead. The story is simple, a man wants to do right by his family, and his family has to deal with the good and the bad. Steven Yeun is the best leading man for this, flip flopping between stern, to determined, with ease. Han Ye-ri is the perfect foil as Monica, even though I felt she was the “villain” of the story, I still loved her character. I could watch 4+ hours of the adventures of David and Grandma, that was great. The only thing I wish is that we got more time with Anne. Noel Cho encapsulates what it means to be an older sibling in a not so great situation. It was spot on, having to grow up fast and care for your siblings while you yourself are a kid. I would love to see more of that story, and think maybe even just adding 10 more minutes onto the movie to provide for that side story would be worth it. The movie is slow to start, but I guess that’s how it is with crops anyways. They take some time, but are worth it in the end. One thing to note, is that this movie has a small bit of “casual racism” in the scene after the Yi families first time at church. What I loved though, is that nobody ever had any malicious intent towards them. The little girl making “Ching Chong” sounds to Anne was really racist, but came from a wanting to understand. The staring, and “flat face” question from Johnny came from a childhood sense of wonder, and formed into a nice friendship. But you might think, Arkansas in the 80’s may not have been the most welcoming to Asian families. However every interaction with the locals seems that they’re welcoming the Yi family into their community, and want them to succeed. I really liked seeing that, because as an audience member, you want the same thing. I loved this movie, and I think it’s very possible it will be the winner for Best Picture at the oscars this year.