Minari feels like an Indie before the 2000s. There's oddness there without bringing attention to itself that doesn't become relevant at the end. The children in the movie don't have adult-quirky bratty dialog, they actually behave like kids. The conflict feels very real.
I also REALLY want to know what happens later on... I wasn't ready for this movie to end.
This is the one film that I'm most excited for this year. The few times it's popped up on digital film festivals this month it's been in conflict with other happenings for us, but I desperately want Steven Yeun to break through. The fact that he didn't receive the industry award nominations for Burning is still frustrating to me.
Even if it's going to invoke more of past first-generation Asian American struggles than current-day concerns, I want this to do so well. Excited that you found it meaningful...
The Boat People - 9
The Power of the Dog - 7.5
The King of Pigs - 7
I’m seeing this on Thursday, very excited.
This was alright. The storytelling was a little too meager for me (at times, I felt like a few scenes were missing). I did really enjoy Yeri Han as Monica, the mother who will unfortunately have to put up with this husband and his risky choices for her family. It does feel extremely indie but its the kind of movie thats gonna please most.
"Thoughtfully observed" is the general mode here, and even if it lacks some directorial flow that will cohere all these observations into a cinematic whole that transcends the film's scattered framework (I'm thinking of maybe Koreeda), the assimilation story's specificity in details and delicately balanced tough/tender ratio are enough to keep this plenty involving and affecting. All around fantastic cast too. One serious dint for me is the climax, which coming right after a raw, organically emerged confrontation makes it feel all the more contrived and too melodramatically conceived in comparison as the story's emotional highpoint. Lovely final shot though. 7/10
Midnight Run (1988) - 9
The Smiling Lieutenant (1931) - 8.5
The Adventures of Robinhood (1938) - 8
Sisters (1973) - 6.5
Shin Godzilla (2016) - 7.5
Quiet drama with a couple of superb scenes and characters (like the Korean vet) that doesn't really go anywhere in the end. It's an OK indie film with higher production values than those usually have, but I found its pace too languid and its few dramatic points too inert.