장민구 (Minku Chang)

I, being an immigrant with my family to the US, in 2000’s though, loved this film. It was touching and I was crying from a point almost unawarely. The most beautiful thing of this movie was its description of the dynamic of a typical Korean family, whether it is an immigrant one or not. Father-mother, and children-parents relations are depicted so realistically that it touched my heart, a father of a Korean family. A typical father in a Korean family, in 80’s and in anytime similarly, believes that he has to carry on his shoulders most of the responsibility for the family. Steven Yun characterized this father very deeply. On the contrary, mother always has children in her mind and heart. It is not that father doesn’t care about children, but he views caring children in a different way than mother does. He usually thinks if he earns enough money, all the family can be happy. Often times in the Korean family, husband and wife quarrel about this. The quarrel reflects their love for their children. Ye-ri acted such a typical Korean mother so beautifully and realistically. She in the movie made me cry the most. When she said to husband that she couldn’t go with him any longer, it expressed Korean mother’s decisive caring attitude about children. So the contrast made, I think, the movie so realistic and to the point about a Korean family, between Yun who brought his products even into his son’s Doc’s office and Ye-ri who was totally focused on her sick son. Another very Korean thing of the film which made me sympathize with and praise the director and the scenario was the fire scene. The husband lost himself to rescue from the fire as much product as he could. That could be seen normal to all other people. But when Ye-ri, the mother, was doing the same thing, or more, even though she said to her husband only several hours ago that she would not go with him any longer. That showed the heart and spirit of the mother and wife in a Korean family. Mother is the one who sacrifices the most in the Korean family, even because of the mistakes the husband makes. I don’t know how other people than Koreans who grew up in a typical Korean family, immigrant or not, will feel about the dynamic of a Korean family depicted in this film. But as a Korean, a father and husband of an immigrant family, I felt this film was so realistic, and excellent in details, and so very soothing. I appreciate all the people who contributed for this film to come out to the world. Also I am very proud of and want to show my deep respect to Korean immigrant fathers and mothers.