Minari (2020)

 This was a simple, quiet yet brilliant film.

The Yi family moves to Arkansas because while Jacob (Steven Yeun) is quiet and keeps his head down, he has dreams as big as the moon: he wishes to be a successful farmer. His wife, Monica (Han Ye-Ri) is less optimistic, fretting that she's not good at her job (separating baby chicks by gender) and worried about her son, David (Alan Kim) who has a heart condition. 

And the struggles are real: the homemade well runs dry, the gusty and unconventional Grandam (the Oscar-winning Youn Yuh-jung) suffers a wretched stroke which leaves half of her body paralyzed and then, just when things get better, the barn full of crops burns down. 

While the plot may be simple, the acting is great, with multiple dimensional characters, with flaws that you both sympathize with and scold them for the actions at the same time, such as Jacob adores his son, but still threatens him with a stick. And David starts out with hating his grandma, then likes her and after the stroke, starts to hate her again. The children want desperately to fit in while there is thinly veiled racism all around them. And Monica and Jacob are a real couple as they love each other but want different things; however they can't live without each other. When the barn burns, Monica is the one who sobs even though it is Jacob's dream going up in smoke. It's something subtle that other screen plays lack. And though the film isn't perfect (do the kids ever go to school?), it is brilliant nevertheless. Grade: A-

Side Notes:

-Will Patton is great as Paul, the oddly religious farmhand who carries a cross as his church.

-The Grandma, Soonja, is hilarious, and certainly not the traditional, cookie cutter grandmother as she doesn't bake cookies and fees David some weird tea so he won't wet the bed anymore. 

-Soonja also steals from the offering dish at the church, yet she believes that a spirit resides in her dresser. 

-Sexing chickens has got to be one of the worst jobs. And apparently, the male chickens are burned because they are useless, which is just so sad. 

-Minari is a plant that Soonja plants in the creek so everyone can have access to it.

-While the ending might be up in the air, I hope the Yis get every happiness they deserve.