With a Korean partner I have taken deep dives with The Berlin File, Burning, Veteran, I Saw The Devil, OldBoy and one of my favorite Korean films-Ode To My Father which is about the Korean experience in West Germany in the 50's.
Minari does lack depth once you point out how clean and neat the clothes are and the weird white guy. But I have seen that versions of that white guy growing up.
Minari was necessary. Hopefully many more Korean American stories will be told. More importantly maybe the American audience will accept them.
It's like being black and falling in and out of love with Spike Lee films, speaking of which his remake of Korean film OldBoy with the biggest actors in the world flopped because it didn't translate well. Some stories require cultural nuances. Some elements of that story could only be told from a Korean perspective and Hollywood couldn't change that.
I like the characters in Minari, but got more culture nuance by watching a few episodes of Kim's Convenience.
I also have never watched any film with Tyler Perry's name on it and don't feel guilty about it.
You can't compare Tyler Perry to Minari tho, John! Ha. It's interesting cause I learned that the type of films you listed are not actually very popular in Korea. Which makes sense, they're not very mainstream. Except maybe movies like Ode to My Father, a historical tearjerker that are easy to like. It's not so much that that kind of white guy doesn't exist, it's just there was nothing about him, he was just there. It happens in "white" movies when characters of color who exist just to be there and that's kind of boring to me. The Old Boy remake should have never been made. Thanks for reading and commenting!
I guess reggaeton is a bigger Latino cultural thing cause it's not like 100% Puerto Rican right? Maybe that would be like me not liking rice. Or maybe not.
I, too, didn't feel all the emotions that everyone else seemingly had in the lead-up and post launch release. There was very little about the family on screen that related to mine other than being, well, Korean. You and June already pointed out the more obvious things, so I won't retread.
Feeling guilty about not loving it? I felt that pang of 'what's wrong with me?' but as quick as it came, it went away just as quickly.
But, I admittedly cried during a few scenes, like when the mom was cleaning out the kid's ears. It still makes me tear up thinking about it because it reminds me of when my mom cleaned my ears in the same way. Or the grandma teaching the kids how to play 화투. It was the little moments like that that have stuck with me.
I actually loved the ending with seemingly no resolution to the family strife that preceded it or any inkling of what's to come.
Minari was a beautiful indie short that gave non-KorAm audiences a sliver of a more realistic immigrant story in America. How and why it grew to be bigger than that is a mystery. Maybe it's A24 and Parasite fanboys and girls looking for the next hawt Korean thing or it just came at time when identity and race in this country are the flavor of the month.
But not having a boner over it? You are not alone!
Yeah and I think there's a bit of self-centeredness or self-servingness with wanting or demanding that works of art be relatable. Like I loved Nomadland but I had no expectations of being able to relate to it. Sometimes I think we tend to project our desires on to some works depending who made it and in that sense it's not fair on the artist because as we know no one piece can speak for everyone, someone is going to be left out. But outside of that I just didn't care about what happened to the characters outside of me being unable to relate to that.
The parts that made you cry, what was it about them? It reminded you of good times from your past?
Yeah, I think maybe there was this expectation in the back of people's minds that this would be the one that everyone can relate to because we rarely see "our" stories being told in America for an "American" audience of which we are included in. That it was a Korean immigrant in America story was and is a big deal, IMO.
But I don't need to see my experience(s) being told. I just want to see more of the diaspora's collective stories and experiences. I feel like that's all most of us want. Funny or sad. Fucked up or uplifting. Good or bad. Stupid or genius. We just want to see others that look like us...yadda yadda yadda.
It could also be something deeper for others. Like a bridge to a culture that some of us experienced in varying degrees. Searching for identity.
Or maybe I am just projecting and getting weird!
Seeing things like the mom cleaning the kid's ears like that was some type of validation of being seen, I guess. Because who else does that? It's something I pointed out to my gf as an actual experience I had growing up that I'd never seen on screen before.
If nothing else, we're talking about it. We're connecting over it in a way that only Korean Americans can? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I pretty much agree with you. I neither liked nor disliked the movie - it didn't do anything for me. I knew from seeing the trailers that it wasn't a story I would be able to largely relate to, but a good story should pull you in. So why is it largely your fault if you couldn't relate to it? I grew up in an upper-middle class suburb and the only thing I had in common with the Minari family is that my grandmother lived with us. I didn't really feel anything for the characters in this movie. I think you're right, they could've gone deeper.
And my sister-in-law said the same thing about them not looking like the ajummas and ajushis we grew up with. Only the store owner at the end did. Anyway, just came here to say you're not alone in this opinion, and I've enjoyed reading your words. Oh and yes, Burning was great!
Hi June! And yeah this makes me feel better. Not sure if it felt like it was my fault but more when trying to figure out if I wasn't seeing something that so many others saw. Oh yeah the store owner, good call. I think my expectations were too high in general and it's always best to go into things with an open mind. A few days later we watched Nomadland, directed by an Asian (American?) woman, and it had so much of what I wanted Minari to have. Thanks for reading June! You've always been so supportive since I was a teen! Hope you're great.
I read your earlier post, before i got to this one. About how you like to dispute what the majority likes. (more or less) Do you think you since everyone liked it so much it triggered you to not like is as much? Usually, people get super excited about things everyone likes, but you have this thing in you to where you like to be “different one.” I wonder if your view would have changed if it wasn’t hyped up.
All good Tinara. I know you've been living the off-season life. Pizza and sun! Yeah you bring up a good point. It's all about managing expectations for everything for yourself. Just because one person loved something doesn't mean that another person will even like it right? But of course we are influenced by a variety of things. It's so hard but it's often better to go into things with no expectations.
I get what you mean.
With a Korean partner I have taken deep dives with The Berlin File, Burning, Veteran, I Saw The Devil, OldBoy and one of my favorite Korean films-Ode To My Father which is about the Korean experience in West Germany in the 50's.
Minari does lack depth once you point out how clean and neat the clothes are and the weird white guy. But I have seen that versions of that white guy growing up.
Minari was necessary. Hopefully many more Korean American stories will be told. More importantly maybe the American audience will accept them.
It's like being black and falling in and out of love with Spike Lee films, speaking of which his remake of Korean film OldBoy with the biggest actors in the world flopped because it didn't translate well. Some stories require cultural nuances. Some elements of that story could only be told from a Korean perspective and Hollywood couldn't change that.
I like the characters in Minari, but got more culture nuance by watching a few episodes of Kim's Convenience.
I also have never watched any film with Tyler Perry's name on it and don't feel guilty about it.
You can't compare Tyler Perry to Minari tho, John! Ha. It's interesting cause I learned that the type of films you listed are not actually very popular in Korea. Which makes sense, they're not very mainstream. Except maybe movies like Ode to My Father, a historical tearjerker that are easy to like. It's not so much that that kind of white guy doesn't exist, it's just there was nothing about him, he was just there. It happens in "white" movies when characters of color who exist just to be there and that's kind of boring to me. The Old Boy remake should have never been made. Thanks for reading and commenting!
The cultural nuances, yes! That's what I was trying to get at earlier.
Reminds me of all the ridicule I've received over the years for not fucking with reggaeton or not liking to eat pasteles as a Puerto Rican.
I guess reggaeton is a bigger Latino cultural thing cause it's not like 100% Puerto Rican right? Maybe that would be like me not liking rice. Or maybe not.
I, too, didn't feel all the emotions that everyone else seemingly had in the lead-up and post launch release. There was very little about the family on screen that related to mine other than being, well, Korean. You and June already pointed out the more obvious things, so I won't retread.
Feeling guilty about not loving it? I felt that pang of 'what's wrong with me?' but as quick as it came, it went away just as quickly.
But, I admittedly cried during a few scenes, like when the mom was cleaning out the kid's ears. It still makes me tear up thinking about it because it reminds me of when my mom cleaned my ears in the same way. Or the grandma teaching the kids how to play 화투. It was the little moments like that that have stuck with me.
I actually loved the ending with seemingly no resolution to the family strife that preceded it or any inkling of what's to come.
Minari was a beautiful indie short that gave non-KorAm audiences a sliver of a more realistic immigrant story in America. How and why it grew to be bigger than that is a mystery. Maybe it's A24 and Parasite fanboys and girls looking for the next hawt Korean thing or it just came at time when identity and race in this country are the flavor of the month.
But not having a boner over it? You are not alone!
Yeah and I think there's a bit of self-centeredness or self-servingness with wanting or demanding that works of art be relatable. Like I loved Nomadland but I had no expectations of being able to relate to it. Sometimes I think we tend to project our desires on to some works depending who made it and in that sense it's not fair on the artist because as we know no one piece can speak for everyone, someone is going to be left out. But outside of that I just didn't care about what happened to the characters outside of me being unable to relate to that.
The parts that made you cry, what was it about them? It reminded you of good times from your past?
As for the end, I hope she left him.
Yeah, I think maybe there was this expectation in the back of people's minds that this would be the one that everyone can relate to because we rarely see "our" stories being told in America for an "American" audience of which we are included in. That it was a Korean immigrant in America story was and is a big deal, IMO.
But I don't need to see my experience(s) being told. I just want to see more of the diaspora's collective stories and experiences. I feel like that's all most of us want. Funny or sad. Fucked up or uplifting. Good or bad. Stupid or genius. We just want to see others that look like us...yadda yadda yadda.
It could also be something deeper for others. Like a bridge to a culture that some of us experienced in varying degrees. Searching for identity.
Or maybe I am just projecting and getting weird!
Seeing things like the mom cleaning the kid's ears like that was some type of validation of being seen, I guess. Because who else does that? It's something I pointed out to my gf as an actual experience I had growing up that I'd never seen on screen before.
If nothing else, we're talking about it. We're connecting over it in a way that only Korean Americans can? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I pretty much agree with you. I neither liked nor disliked the movie - it didn't do anything for me. I knew from seeing the trailers that it wasn't a story I would be able to largely relate to, but a good story should pull you in. So why is it largely your fault if you couldn't relate to it? I grew up in an upper-middle class suburb and the only thing I had in common with the Minari family is that my grandmother lived with us. I didn't really feel anything for the characters in this movie. I think you're right, they could've gone deeper.
And my sister-in-law said the same thing about them not looking like the ajummas and ajushis we grew up with. Only the store owner at the end did. Anyway, just came here to say you're not alone in this opinion, and I've enjoyed reading your words. Oh and yes, Burning was great!
Hi June! And yeah this makes me feel better. Not sure if it felt like it was my fault but more when trying to figure out if I wasn't seeing something that so many others saw. Oh yeah the store owner, good call. I think my expectations were too high in general and it's always best to go into things with an open mind. A few days later we watched Nomadland, directed by an Asian (American?) woman, and it had so much of what I wanted Minari to have. Thanks for reading June! You've always been so supportive since I was a teen! Hope you're great.
“you didn’t watch it yet” is way worse.
I read your earlier post, before i got to this one. About how you like to dispute what the majority likes. (more or less) Do you think you since everyone liked it so much it triggered you to not like is as much? Usually, people get super excited about things everyone likes, but you have this thing in you to where you like to be “different one.” I wonder if your view would have changed if it wasn’t hyped up.
All good Tinara. I know you've been living the off-season life. Pizza and sun! Yeah you bring up a good point. It's all about managing expectations for everything for yourself. Just because one person loved something doesn't mean that another person will even like it right? But of course we are influenced by a variety of things. It's so hard but it's often better to go into things with no expectations.