Tag: Oscar Review

Two Distant Strangers: Caught in the Cycle – Netflix Oscar Review

This short film shows the worst time-loop ever.

SUMMARY (Spoiler-Free)

In New York, graphic designer Carter James (Joey Bada$$) wakes up next to Perri (Zaria Simone), a beautiful woman he met the night before. He heads home to check on his dog, Jeter, only to be suspected of pot possession by NYPD officer Merk (Andrew Howard). When James tries to resist the unlawful search, Merk arrests him and kneels on his neck, suffocating him. Carter then wakes up back in bed with Perri. It turns out that Carter is now in a time-loop which restarts every time that Merk (or another officer) kills him, and the cops kill him every single time. How exactly do you get out of a cycle like that?

His headphones are in. That’s a bad start to the interaction, but not his fault.

END SUMMARY

I want to talk about the ending of this short film, but I also really think that everyone should see this film without spoilers. It has a great ending that doesn’t exactly come out of nowhere, but also will surprise you in its execution. I give this film a lot of credit for how well it uses the Groundhog Day premise (something that a number of films have been expanding on lately, from Palm Springs to Doctor Strange to Boss Level), taking it to a point of social commentary rather than just using it as a way to explore character growth. I honestly can’t think of another film or show that’s used it in quite this way. Joey Bada$$ does a great job showing Carter as the epitome of a completely non-threatening guy while Welsh actor Andrew Howard draws on his vicious cop character from Perry Mason to give us an immediately threatening villain. Perhaps the best thing about it is that they never actually clarify whether Carter has weed, because it never should matter. You shouldn’t get killed over a misdemeanor. Really, check out the film, it’s only 29 minutes.

The same stop and frisk kills him a ton of times.

***SPOILERS***

At the end of the 99th loop, Carter, who has used the entire loop to talk to Merk and try to get him to empathize with him, finds out that Merk also is going through the loops and, despite Carter’s attempts to bond, is still fully intent on killing Carter. It turns out that Merk isn’t a cop who is fated to kill him, he’s just a guy who really, really likes killing Carter. It seems like Merk is aware that if Carter gets home to Jeter, the loops end (we have no reason to know this to be true, but it seems like the implication). At the end of the movie, Carter is still determined to get home to his dog, no matter what he has to do to get there. It’s a tough ending, but it would be difficult to end the film with Carter getting out of the loop, because the point is that the cycle doesn’t end. The movie then drives the point home by showing a long list of black Americans who have died in encounters with police, including several who were asleep at the time or were killed in their own apartments or by accident. 

Or were suffocated.

Overall, it’s a great short film, but the ending hits you really hard. Of course, when you need to make a point like this, you don’t tap the audience on the shoulder, you hit them on the head with a hammer. 

If you want to check out some more by the Joker on the Sofa, check out the 100 Greatest TV Episodes of All Time, Collection of TV Episodes, Collection of Movie Reviews, or the Joker on the Sofa Reviews.

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My Octopus Teacher: You Wouldn’t Believe You Could Love a Cephalopod – Netflix Oscar Review

Seriously, this documentary makes you emotionally connect with the most alien animal.

SUMMARY

This film depicts filmmaker Craig Foster spending a year of his life free-diving in the (apparently freezing) underwater kelp forest in False Bay, near Cape Town, South Africa. Foster began to document his dives and, eventually, discovered an octopus which was disguised as a pile of rocks. Intrigued, Foster started trying to track the octopus and win her trust. They eventually start to bond, with the octopus allowing Foster to be close to it and even touch it. As Foster watches the octopus battle for survival and move through the ocean, he describes how it impacts the way he views his relationships, learning from his relationship with one of the most unusual creatures on Earth.

Such a strange and beautiful landscape.

END SUMMARY

Octopuses are among the strangest creatures on Earth, often being the closest thing we have to an alien life form when considered from an anthropocentric viewpoint. Their body structure is completely different than any mammal, they have relatively high amounts of ammonia in almost all of their bodily fluids, and to top it all off they’ve got blue blood, three hearts, and a donut-shaped brain. They’re also among the smartest creatures on Earth, capable of navigating mazes, learning how to solve original problems, and capable of telling humans apart by sight (and thus holding grudges). There are countless stories of octopi messing with humans when kept in captivity and some species, like the mimic octopus or the common octopus shown in this film, are capable of using their surroundings for either defense, camouflage, or even offense. All of this is to say: Octopodes are freaking cool (alright, that’s all three plurals). 

There’s an octopus right in front of you.

This film starts off as a nature documentary and, at the beginning, there’s a decent amount of distance between the observer and the subject, particularly since Foster was unaware that he would find the octopus, much less continue to track it for months. However, in a surprising turn, the octopus starts to move closer to Foster, almost begging to befriend him. I cannot blame Foster for wanting to be more involved with the octopus, because, again, it’s freaking awesome. However, we also feel it when Foster is caught between his affection for the animal and his goal to stay objective, particularly when the octopus is in danger. You too will probably be feeling the extreme tension and emotional roller coasters that Foster experiences. You would not believe how much you’ll feel for the little cephalopod.

She’s so cute.

Overall, this is just a great documentary and I cannot recommend it more. Give it a watch.

If you want to check out some more by the Joker on the Sofa, check out the 100 Greatest TV Episodes of All Time, Collection of TV Episodes, Collection of Movie Reviews, or the Joker on the Sofa Reviews.

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A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon: It’s a Shear Delight – Netflix Oscar Review

The Wallace and Gromit spin-off delivers a fun comedy film.

SUMMARY

In the town of Mossingham, a UFO lands and a single creature emerges: the adorable Lu-La (Amalia Vitale). Lu-La ends up at nearby Mossy Bottom Farm, home of the mischievous Shaun the Sheep (Justin Fletcher), his overprotective sheepdog Bitzer (John Sparkes), and the Farmer who runs it. Shaun and Lu-La quickly become friends and work together to get Lu-La home while avoiding the Ministry of Alien Defense and their leader Agent Red (Kate Harbour). Also, the Farmer decides to build a theme park using sheep labor.

The sheep has fingers sometimes. Don’t ask.

END SUMMARY

I love Wallace And Gromit, but I admit that I’d only seen a handful of episodes of this spin-off show. I thought it was more kid-focused than Wallace and Gromit, and it is, but I should have known that being kid-friendly doesn’t mean that something cannot be extremely enjoyable. This film is basically just 80 minutes of fun slapstick and sight gags combined with the occasional fun reference for adults and it’s absolutely amazing. The stop-motion animation is top-notch, with incredibly detailed settings and character designs that still look cartoonish.

Look at all these trees. They’re tiny leaves glued onto sticks. So detailed.

While the plot for this movie is pretty basic (again, this is viable for small children), that’s actually part of the fun. Since you know what’s going to happen, you can focus on the jokes and the small details (my favorites include “Logan’s Running Club” and the fact that the X-Files theme is the password to the secret base). All of the characters have a lot of personality, including the sheep, despite the fact that there’s literally no dialogue in this movie. I didn’t realize that Shaun the Sheep episodes are apparently always nonverbal, because that took a minute to get used to. Once you’re used to it, it becomes something that naturally forces the audience to pay closer attention and empathize more with the characters. 

And sometimes it’s just funny to imagine what a super fluffy sheep is saying.

Possibly the most surprising thing about this film is that towards the end, it starts to hit a lot of strong emotional triggers that, while built up appropriately, still feel like they come out of nowhere. Part of it is that all of the characters are naturally kind of adorable, particularly Lu-La, so you get more hurt when they suffer than you might normally. 

Also, friendship and such.

Overall, it’s just a really well-done movie. It keeps you laughing and it’s actually rated G, so you could watch it with any kid. If you’re a parent, give it a try.

If you want to check out some more by the Joker on the Sofa, check out the 100 Greatest TV Episodes of All Time, Collection of TV Episodes, Collection of Movie Reviews, or the Joker on the Sofa Reviews.

If you enjoy these, please, like, share, tell your friends, like the Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/JokerOnTheSofa/), follow on Twitter @JokerOnTheSofa, and just generally give me a little bump. I’m not getting paid, but I like to get feedback.

The Father: A Tale of a Man Losing to Age – Amazon Oscar Review

Anthony Hopkins and Olivia Colman give us a new take on a parent with dementia.

SUMMARY (Spoiler-Free)

Anthony (Anthony Hopkins) is a retired engineer that is suffering from dementia. His daughter, Anne (Olivia Colman) hires a nurse named Laura (Imogen Poots) to take care of him. Anthony has previously been angry at any attempts to get a nurse to take care of him. Anne’s new husband, Paul (Rufus Sewell), does not like how taking care of Anthony has started to eat away at Anne’s life. As Anthony’s mental health deteriorates, he faces a world that no longer makes sense. Mark Gatiss and Olivia Williams also star.

Anthony Hopkins is at the age where your odds of dementia start climbing.

END SUMMARY

When I saw the description of this movie, I assumed that this film would be told from the daughter’s perspective as a film about dealing with the mental degradation of a parent, something that is often very fertile ground for storytelling. Imagine my surprise to find out that the story is actually told from the perspective of the father, Anthony. As such, the movie makes little to no linear sense, due to Anthony being unable to remember the events that have happened recently or even farther in the past. It can be very confusing to the viewer, but that’s pretty much the point. You’re watching the world through the eyes of someone to whom everything has stopped working right. 

A broken mind cannot stop itself from being broken. That’s why we have medication.

This film would not work if it was just anyone performing Anthony, because accurately portraying someone going through Alzheimers or other, similar, mental degradation is tough. It’s so easy to devolve into stupor or even parody without meaning to. Here, Anthony is sympathetic even when he’s being mean or aggressive, because we know his aggression and condescension all come from the fact that he’s lost and scared. It’s all the more tragic because we know that he won’t get better. He won’t even be able to stay the same. Anthony Hopkins plays the character perfectly throughout, showing believable confusion and frustration when confronted with the fact that his world may change at any moment. Olivia Colman, likewise, has to play someone who is dealing with a parent who is no longer able to behave rationally. She loves Anthony and she wants to keep him around, but she also is burdened with the knowledge that he’s not the father who she knew.

Rufus Sewell is a good choice to be an attractive a**hole.

Overall, it’s an excellent film with a great cast. It’s worth watching, even though it’s rough to watch (then again, so were many of the nominees this year).

If you want to check out some more by the Joker on the Sofa, check out the 100 Greatest TV Episodes of All Time, Collection of TV Episodes, Collection of Movie Reviews, or the Joker on the Sofa Reviews.

If you enjoy these, please, like, share, tell your friends, like the Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/JokerOnTheSofa/), follow on Twitter @JokerOnTheSofa, and just generally give me a little bump. I’m not getting paid, but I like to get feedback.

Judas and the Black Messiah: A True and Tragic Tale – Oscar HBO Max Review

Lakeith Stanfield and Daniel Kaluuya headline this story of an up-and-coming civil rights leader.

SUMMARY (Spoilers if you haven’t heard the story)

In the 1960s, Bill O’Neal (Lakeith Stanfield) is arrested for hijacking a car while pretending to be a Federal Agent. FBI Agent Roy Mitchell (Jesse Plemons) agrees to drop the charges if O’Neal infiltrates the Illinois Black Panthers and spies on their leader, Fred Hampton (Daniel Kaluuya). Hampton is one of the biggest threats on the FBI’s list because of his ability to persuade rival organizations to work together in advancing civil rights causes, a group he calls the Rainbow Coalition. Hampton is set up for taking ice cream bars to give to local kids (yes, really) and sentenced to two to five years (YES. REALLY). During this period, O’Neal rises through the ranks of the Black Panthers, eventually becoming head of security. When Hampton is released for his appeal, O’Neal is paid to drug him so that Hampton cannot fight back when the FBI and local police raid his home in order to kill Hampton in the presence of his pregnant girlfriend Deborah Johnson (Dominique Fishback). So ends the 21 year life of a man whose personality and charisma were so threatening to the establishment they had to execute him.

Daniel Kaluuya is a decade older than Fred Hampton was when he died.

END SUMMARY

I had originally declined to review this film not because it wasn’t great but because I only watched it 3 days before it left streaming and I didn’t want to go “THIS MOVIE IS AMAZING, SO WATCH IT IN THE NEXT 12 HOURS.” That said, this movie is amazing and you should watch it (at your own pace). 

I wouldn’t stab you in the back like that.

The murder of Fred Hampton is, much like the Tulsa Race Massacre, a thing that is incredibly horrible and also largely unknown to many people. Just as Watchmen and Lovecraft Country sought to bring the former event to the attention of the general public, this film and, to a lesser extent, The Trial of the Chicago 7 seek to bring attention to the fact that a man was murdered by law enforcement because he was seeking to stop racism and inequality. The fact that not a ton of (certain) people know about it is even more insane when you realize that it resulted in the largest settlement in any civil rights case and, as shown in this film, had a person literally testify on public television that he was hired by the Federal Government to help kill him.

The real Fred Hampton.

This movie, much like many retellings of the life of the Messiah, does a great job of splitting the focus between Fred Hampton as a figure capable of uniting a bunch of disparate people and O’Neal as the traitorous man who is constantly questioning what he is doing. The thing is, O’Neal always has a choice, but it’s also insane that the FBI was asking him to do this. While some of the events in the film are exaggerated or based on accusations that haven’t been confirmed, more of it is accurate than you would probably like to believe. For example, having an informant with a warrant that allowed the FBI to raid places where he hid is a horrible violation of civil rights, a tactic that actually mirrors a violation of the Geneva Convention if done in war, and also something the FBI probably did, but I don’t think we have any direct confirmation of it. 

It doesn’t help the government’s case that they literally had a spy planted.

The performances by Lakeith Stanfield and Daniel Kaluuya are phenomenal. Kaluuya makes Hampton human but also shows us the kind of charisma that a person would need to convince so many people to follow him. He’s always focused on getting people to join together rather than letting them be separated by petty differences. Lakeith Stanfield makes O’Neal into a person who clearly makes the wrong choices and doesn’t really try to change, which, if his interview is anything to go by, is probably accurate. Dominique Fishback plays Deborah Johnson as someone who is equally in love with Hampton the man and also the future he represents. 

It’s a cute moment.

Overall, fantastic movie. Really recommend it. 

If you want to check out some more by the Joker on the Sofa, check out the 100 Greatest TV Episodes of All Time, Collection of TV Episodes, Collection of Movie Reviews, or the Joker on the Sofa Reviews.

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Nomadland: Home is Where Your Van is – Oscar Hulu Review

Frances McDormand knocks it out of the park in this film of a woman living in a van.

SUMMARY

In 2011, Fern (Frances McDormand) lost her job when the Empire, Nevada gypsum plant closed, eventually causing the town to fold. Her husband having recently died, Fern sells most of her property and moves into a van to travel the country while working seasonal jobs. Her friend Linda May (Linda May) invites her to a desert rendezvous with notable nomad Bob Wells (himself). There, Fern meets fellow travelers Dave (David Strathairn) and Swankie (Charlene Swankie). We then follow Fern as she spends a year moving around the country, working, living, and meeting the strange and wonderful people who have chosen not to be burdened with living in a house or apartment.

This is where she wakes up sometimes. Do you get this view?

END SUMMARY

The first thing that you notice about this movie is that it has a different feel than most dramatic films. Aside from the fact that many of the characters are clearly playing fictionalized versions of themselves, many of the shots and the way the audio is presented are all reminiscent of documentary-style filmmaking. Writer-Director Chloe Zhao’s previous film, The Rider, similarly used relatively untrained actors and a lot of documentary techniques to present the narrative. Since the film is basically a combination of a character study of Fern and a documentary about the Rubber Tramps who travel around the country living in cars and RVs. The film takes an almost completely independent view about the lifestyle, showing both the hardships associated with it as well as the freedom that it grants. In a year, Fern sees as much of the US as many people see in their lives, but also has to clean a lot of toilets.

She’s not the only one.

Frances McDormand has to pretty much carry most of this movie on her shoulders, something that would probably not work if it wasn’t Frances McDormand. There are scenes of her staring into the distance that might be boring in most films, but somehow when we watch her, we are begging to hear what she’s thinking. It’s not like Fern is even depicted as a spectacular introspective protagonist, she’s just a normal person who is dealing with her entire life changing. In many movies, the person in her situation would be dismissed as lesser or unworthy, but here she’s just someone living her life. McDormand and Zhao don’t just pull us past our traditional image of vandwellers as “homeless drifters,” they make it clear that these are just humans living a life that, while different, is still a life worth living.

Bob Wells has done it for decades. Granted, Reindeer pull his van.

Overall, this was just a great movie. It’s a worthy nomination for Best Picture. 

If you want to check out some more by the Joker on the Sofa, check out the 100 Greatest TV Episodes of All Time, Collection of TV Episodes, Collection of Movie Reviews, or the Joker on the Sofa Reviews.

If you enjoy these, please, like, share, tell your friends, like the Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/JokerOnTheSofa/), follow on Twitter @JokerOnTheSofa, and just generally give me a little bump. I’m not getting paid, but I like to get feedback.

The Trial of the Chicago 7: Sorkin Cares Not for Truth – Oscar Netflix Review

A true story of one of the most insane trials, only not true.

SUMMARY

In August 1968, Vice President Hubert Humphrey was set to be nominated as the candidate for the Democratic Party. Eight activist leaders from various groups were in attendance when a riot broke out: Abbie Hoffman (Sacha Baron Cohen), Jerry Rubin (Jeremy Strong), Rennie Davis (Alex Sharp), David Dellinger (John Carroll Lynch), Lee Weiner (Noah Robbins), Tom Hayden (Eddie Redmayne), John Froines (Daniel Flaherty), and Bobby Seale (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II). After Richard Nixon becomes president, Attorney General John N. Mitchell (John Doman) tells prosecutors Richard Schultz (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and Tom Foran (J.C. MacKenzie) to prosecute the eight as a way to punish their protests. Aside from Seale, who is the only black Defendant and the head of the Black Panthers, the defendants are represented by ACLU lawyer William Kunstler (Mark Rylance) and Leonard Weinglass (Ben Shenkman). When the trial begins before Judge Julius Hoffman (Frank Langella), what follows is one of the most bizarre trials in US History.

Oooh, Eddie Redmayne glare.

END SUMMARY

So, the story of the Chicago 7 (or 8, depending on if you count Seale) is one of those things that’s almost too crazy to be true. Much like the Scopes Monkey Trial, the trial of the Chicago 7 was never meant to be anything like actual prosecution. It was a political move by everyone involved except, perhaps, for the judge. Many of the witnesses, questions, and even actions by the lawyers were abnormal for any trial. Part of it, and something that the film does somewhat capture, was that the people on trial were largely doing this as a way to emphasize their message. Since this was 1970 and public perception was beginning to turn against the Vietnam War and almost all of them were part of anti-Vietnam groups, this publicized event was an easy soapbox and they mostly used it just to put on a spectacle, and, by court standards, it was a hell of a spectacle.

Strolling into your Federal Trial like it’s a fun day out.

Unfortunately, apparently Aaron Sorkin didn’t think it was interesting enough, because he decided to screw around with it massively. So much of this film heavily fictionalized the events to make them more palatable, but also to try and remove some of the ambiguity from the trial. After all, we have to be rooting for the Chicago 8, regardless of the fact that they were a group of very diverse people whose only common ground was their desire to end the Vietnam War. Some of them did advocate violence as part of their mission, even though the film tries to make them all appear to be completely peaceful. The timeline of many parts of the story is completely rewritten in order to keep certain characters around longer. The most notable one is that Bobby Seale, whose dismissal from the trial resulted in the Chicago 8 becoming the Chicago 7, is kept in the trial for an additional 2 months so that there can be a scene announcing the death of Fred Hampton. In the film, Hampton is constantly at Seale’s trial, whereas in reality Fred Hampton was working on other stuff the entire period before his murder. I do think it’s interesting that two films (the other being Judas and the Black Messiah) involving the murder of Fred Hampton are nominated for Best Picture, but this one forces it it.

That said, Yahya Abdul-Mateen is great in the movie.

My dislike of heavily fictionalizing stuff like this comes from the fact that it’s done to make a story easier on the audience. Hell, they even make Richard Schultz much more affable towards the defendants than he was in real life. It’s even more annoying in court films because there is a literal transcription of this entire trial that can be used as a source. Instead, Sorkin focused on trying to make it an easily consumable morality tale in which the good guys win and everyone is now united on that page. 

Pictured: A guy who would not have stood at the end of the movie.

The performances in the film are solid, particularly Sacha Baron Cohen as Abbie Hoffman, who is both a stand-up comic narrating parts of the film and also one of the sassiest people to ever be put on trial. Frank Langella is great as the overly irritating and often infuriating Judge Hoffman, because he makes him easy to hate without falling into a stereotypical racist judge character. 

Not the worst Judge I’ve seen, though.

Overall, it’s not that it’s a bad movie, it’s that it personally irritates me by its choice to inaccurately portray these events just to make it easier to pick a side. History is complicated, and our obsession with making it more black-and-white just makes people think less when dealing with reality.

If you want to check out some more by the Joker on the Sofa, check out the 100 Greatest TV Episodes of All Time, Collection of TV Episodes, Collection of Movie Reviews, or the Joker on the Sofa Reviews.

If you enjoy these, please, like, share, tell your friends, like the Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/JokerOnTheSofa/), follow on Twitter @JokerOnTheSofa, and just generally give me a little bump. I’m not getting paid, but I like to get feedback.

Mank: Hollywood Loves Its Own Stories – Oscar Netflix Review

The story of the screenplay for the greatest American movie ever made.

SUMMARY

It’s 1940 and Herman J. “Mank” Mankiewicz (Gary Oldman) is recuperating from a broken leg when he is asked to write a screenplay for a film by Orson Welles (Tom Burke). Mank dictates the story of a newspaper magnate named Charles Foster Kane to his secretary Rita Alexander (Lily Collins). Periodically, the story cuts back to the 1930s when Mank and his brother Joe (Tom Pelphrey) were working for Louis B. Mayer (Arliss Howard) of MGM fame and Mank became an acquaintance of William Randolph Hearst (Charles Dance) and his mistress Marion Davies (Amanda Seyfried). While they start off as friends, Hearst’s actions, particularly towards Upton Sinclair (Bill Nye) and other liberal platforms, and Mank’s alcoholism lead to a slow and painful separation between the two and eventually to Mank writing a screenplay based on Hearst.

There’s a lot of suits and pointing.

END SUMMARY

Hollywood loves stories about Hollywood, particularly during one of their “golden ages.” This story is probably the peak of that, since it’s almost entirely about the inner workings of MGM during the 1930s and about the events that led to the writing of Citizen Kane, a film that consistently ranks as being among the best ever made. I’m going to be frank, I think that it’s only because of this self-obsession Hollywood has that this movie was nominated for Best Picture. Even in a year with relatively few releases like 2020, this still should not have been considered in competition for the best movie of the year. Particularly when things like Hamilton and Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom and even Soul were not given such an honor. 

I think people liked the Sorkin-esque walk-and-talks.

That’s not to say this isn’t a bad movie, but most of it feels like it’s based on gimmicks. The film is shot in black-and-white and the sound is edited so that it seems like it was made in 1940, just like Citizen Kane. A lot of people have the fake “Mid-Atlantic” accent that was so popular at the time for actors, even when they’re not acting. The flashbacks in the film are structured similarly to the film Citizen Kane, a thing which even the movie acknowledges can be hard to follow. They try to make up for it by having a number of titles on-screen which describe the time period and location, but I actually think that addition is an admission that they couldn’t figure out how to convey the passage of time without them. 

No, being the period where “everyone wore hats” does not clarify it.

The performances, though, are amazing. Naturally, Gary Oldman does a great job portraying Herman Mankiewicz, a man frequently stated to be one of the funniest men in the motion picture industry in the 1930s. He’s witty at all times, but deeply flawed, mostly by his alcoholism and his mistreatment of his wife. Amanda Seyfried gives a lot of depth to Marion Davies by making her more observant and smarter than she lets on, something that is probably more accurate than most of her portrayals as a drunk and a golddigger. Charles Dance, who can play a bad guy better than almost any living actor, really just lets the historical Hearst’s dickishness and pettiness seep through and do a lot of the heavy lifting until the third act, in which he takes it up a level. 

Remember when she was the ditz in Mean Girls? God, Amanda Seyfried is talented.

Overall, it’s a well-performed movie, but I think it would be considered mediocre if it weren’t for Hollywood’s lust for its own history.

If you want to check out some more by the Joker on the Sofa, check out the 100 Greatest TV Episodes of All Time, Collection of TV Episodes, Collection of Movie Reviews, or the Joker on the Sofa Reviews.

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Minari: The American Dream… in Korean – Oscar Amazon Review

A story of a family coming to rural Arkansas in the 80s trying to chase a dream.

SUMMARY

The Korean immigrant Yi family moves from California to a plot of land in Arkansas in order to let the patriarch, Jacob (Steven Yeun), fulfill his plans to get wealthy growing Korean vegetables. He’s assisted by an eccentric local man named Paul (Will Patton). Jacob’s wife, Monica (Han Ye-ri), is not particularly enthusiastic, but the pair take jobs as chicken sexers (people who sort chickens by gender) to make ends meet. In order to have someone to look over their young children David and Anne (Alan Kim and Noel Kate Cho), they bring Monica’s mother Soon-ja (Youn Yuh-jung) from South Korea. She takes the children to plant some Minari (Japanese Parsley), but despite the extra help, Jacob and Monica’s marriage starts to pay the price for his actions. 

It’s set in Arkansas… but they filmed in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

END SUMMARY

This movie’s plot is not particularly original, to say the least. It’s a story you’ve seen a thousand times, a family moving for a new opportunity and having to adjust to the surroundings and the stress that it puts on them, but the plot is not the point of the film. The movie is an intimate picture of a family that is going through this time and with the added alienation that comes from being immigrants (particularly Korean immigrants with a number of Korean War veterans still being active in the area). The reason why this one stands out is because it’s so well-performed and well-written that you almost completely lose yourself in their lives. None of these people seem like caricatures or stock characters and almost all of the dialogue feels natural (albeit most of it is in Korean). What’s amazing is that so many of the characters are so outlandish, particularly Soon-ja and Paul, but if you’ve lived in a rural community you will absolutely have met these people at some point. 

You’ve met this old lady if you lived in a farm town. She’s hilarious and doesn’t give a f*ck what you think.

I suppose there’s always going to be a discussion about what constitutes “the American Dream,” but I think most people agree that it’s generally considered to be moving yourself upwards socioeconomically through your own hard work. This film is a fairly accurate picture of the reality of trying to do something like that. While Jacob has definitely found a niche market that he can take advantage of, it’s not as easy as he envisioned it and it requires sacrifice not only on his part but also on the part of his loved ones, a sacrifice that they did not want to make to begin with. It is also pretty interesting that, in order to pursue his dream of no longer being a chicken sexer, he has to… be a chicken sexer for less money while also farming. That’s why this part often gets skipped over in the success stories.

The part where digging a hole is hellish work, for example.

The actual minari in the story is probably the least subtle metaphor imaginable. Minari is strong, resilient, and prosperous, as long as you plant it in the right place. Fortunately, despite being the title, the film actually mercifully devotes very little time to it. This is an example of how well-crafted the movie is. Every element gets the attention it needs, but isn’t over saturated. It’s like farming: You need to water the crops and at the right time, but too much and everything dies. 

Behold a metaphor.

Overall, this movie is beautiful, touching, and deserves all of the acclaim it gets. It’s not a movie with a huge agenda other than to tell a story that feels true (because it’s based on the writer’s childhood), but it definitely gets some points across.

If you want to check out some more by the Joker on the Sofa, check out the 100 Greatest TV Episodes of All Time, Collection of TV Episodes, Collection of Movie Reviews, or the Joker on the Sofa Reviews.

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