Minari

Jacob (Yeun) and Monica Yi (Ye-ri) are first-generation Korean Americans trying to carve a place of their own in a country that often feels like the farthest place from home. Led by little more than his need to build beyond their sparse belongings and back-breaking jobs in California, Jacob pours his family’s savings into a plot of land in rural Arkansas and promises his wife and children, David (Kim) and Anne (Cho), that this farming venture will mark the beginning of their new life. What unfolds is a tale of the immigrant experience, marked by failures that test the loyalty and patience of a marriage and challenge the strength of the kids caught in the middle of it. As the family desperately tries to hold itself together, Monica’s eccentric mother, Soonja (Youn), comes at her request from Korea, her presence reminding the Yis that there is still presence and calm to be prioritized on their road to the American dream.

Director: Lee Isaac Chung. Stars: Steven Yeun, Ye-ri Han, Yuh-jung Youn, Alan S. Kim, Noel Kate Cho. 2020. 115 mins. Drama.

The Nest

Rory O’Hara (Law) is an investment banker fixated on providing a luxurious life for his family. Often omitting the details of the true nature of their wealth to his wife, Allison (Coon), he has moved his family throughout the United States with vague explanations that she had rarely bothered to question. This time, however, Rory has made the decision to move Allison and their children, Samantha (Roche) and Benjamin (Shotwell), to an old, unkept manor in England; a far cry from the upstate, apparently squeaky-clean life they had known up to that point. As time passes, facades begin to crack and Allison comes to realize a series of twisted truths about her husband.

Director: Sean Durkin. Stars: Jude Law, Carrie Coon, Oona Roche, Charlie Shotwell. 2020. 107 mins. Thriller.

Hunted

Rebellious Ève’s (Debay) night begins innocently enough: she meets a couple of handsome men at a nightclub and agrees to go for a car ride with them. Immediately, she is violently tied up and thrown into the trunk of their vehicle. Managing to escape after they wreck the car, she finds herself deep in the dark woods with her assailants trailing closely behind.

Director: Vincent Paronnaud. Stars: Lucie Debay, Ryan Brodie, Christian Bronchart, Ciaran O’Brien. 2020. 87 mins. Thriller.