Review: Heartfelt 'Minari' reexamines the American Dream
“Minari” is a heartfelt, semi-autobiographical drama about a Korean family in search of the American Dream – at least the longtime definition of such – yet it’s the adorable pairing of a wry grandmother and a mischievous boy that gives the film its insightful, entertaining soul.
Coming on strong this awards season like last year’s Oscar darling “Parasite,” writer/director Lee Isaac Chung’s funny, deep and well-acted movie (★★★? out of four; rated PG-13; in theaters Friday, available Feb. 26 via video on demand) in a way redefines what we all should be seeking. As the Yi family discovers, what we deem "success” can be fleeting, and should we hold it in higher regard than the loved ones who give us roots in unstable ground?
In the 1980s, Jacob Yi (Steven Yeun, best known for “The Walking Dead”) moves his clan – wife Monica (Yeri Han), daughter Anne (Noel Kate Cho) and young son David (Alan Kim) – from California to Arkansas so he can become a bona fide, land-owning farmer. Monica already wasn’t a big fan of the relocation, even before she sees her new home: a low-rent mobile house on blocks. Although the dirt is the right color, Jacob has bought land miles away from civilization that others were too scared to buy because of its reputation for making farmers go broke.
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By day they work at a local hatchery – Jacob is a super-fast, expert chicken sexer – and by night Mom and Dad get into such loud rows that Anne and David write “Don’t fight” on paper airplanes and fling them at their parents. With their relationship on the rocks and a strong trust shaken between them, they make plans to bring Monica’s mother, Soonja (Yuh-jung Youn), from Korea to look after the kids – David suffers from a concerning heart murmur and occasional bed-wetting – while they work.
“Minari” is fairly slow to get going: Much of the beginning is stubborn Jacob trying to get his crops in gear and not listening to anyone. But things pick up when Grandma arrives. While David initially doesn’t want to have anything to do with his new roommate (“Grandma smells like Korea!”), he and Soonja gradually form a close, unexpected relationship, and they bond while planting minari (a versatile Korean herb) around a nearby creek. Metaphors abound as Soonja’s crop flourishes while Jacob struggles amid an abundance of problems, natural and otherwise.
Yeun, who executive produces the film alongside Brad Pitt, impresses in a complex, understated turn. Jacob has blinders on when it comes to grasping his own brass ring as the family assimilates into their Bible Belt surroundings (plus deals with some casual racism), and Yeun gives him orneriness and later an important vulnerability in key scenes with Han as tensions come to a head between Jacob and Monica. Yeun also plays straight man to Will Patton, whose wild-eyed, staunchly devout Paul helps Jacob on the farm, blessing the fruits of their labor and even exorcising an “evil” drawer.
As serious as “Minari” gets, Chung fosters a great sense of humor, especially between the wily pair of Soonja and David. Kim is a precocious delight but Youn is the real deal: The actress known as “the Meryl Streep of South Korea” delivers a touching, electric performance that will win over many fans on these shores. Interestingly, Soonja is arguably the most American of the entire Yi bunch as she yells at the TV while watching pro wrestling, pounds Mountain Dew and swears during card games with children.
In creating the film, Chung pulled from his own childhood growing up in Arkansas, and “Minari” works because it feels so personal as you root for a fragmented family weathering resentment and heartbreak in an uplifting and very universal tale.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'MInari' review: A Korean family movingly tackles the American Dream
