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Blur - Strange News From Another Star

Minari 미나리 (2020) dir. Lee Isaac Chung

“You’re crying over anchovies?”… it felt so true and so human and something that expresses a lot of where Monica, the mother, is emotionally, how she’s been feeling, everything that’s been pent up inside of her as she’s missing home. … I didn’t know if anybody would really connect to it. But I’ve been surprised that lots of people have been crying about the anchovies, joining in with her. And that’s been a real joy because it’s not just the Koreans or the kids of immigrants, but it seems like everybody kind of understands that feeling. Food is powerful. You know, that really hits so close to home for all of us.

Lee Isaac Chung in an interview with NPR’s Fresh Air (March 3, 2021)

Being Korean-American seeing this film, you just didn’t realize that you were sitting on so much grief. And watching the film lets it go, a little bit, and I think for us it’s something really great to celebrate… I think this film is specifically talking to me. When Monica eats the gochugaru, I burst into tears because it’s something that is so specific, and it’s almost like, oh I never knew that I needed that gift.