By Gordon Foote.
If I take nothing else away from my time at battleroyalewithcheese, it will have gifted me a far greater appreciation of South Korean cinema. Not that I mind, I’m finding I rather enjoy the nation’s approach to cinema…even if it does always appear to be family drama. Anyway, this week’s far Eastern offering, for me to hungrily slurp down like so much Ramen noodles, getting sauce all over the tablecloth as I do, is Song Hai-Sung’s Boomerang Family, a domestic drama set around the exploits of three siblings as circumstance forces each of them to return home to their mother’s place to live for a spell.
Our trio is comprised of eldest son, In-Mo, a failed director whose marriage has come to an end and starts the film with suicide firmly in mind, Han-Mo, an ex-con who has spent several terms in jail and is a member of the local crime syndicate, and Mi-Yeon, a single mother, cafe owner and serial divorcee. The interplay between these three is always believable and often fun, as each vies for their place in the newly re-formed family home. The two brothers, In-Mo and Han-Mo, particularly are given plenty of screen time to cement their characters and relationship wonderfully, very quickly establishing a pair whose fate you care about, watching to ensure they get through the next scrape intact. Mi-Yeon also becomes a strong character, and an important part of the family dynamic, but to a lesser degree than the others, given less time and more mundane problems to circumvent.
The plot charts the ups and downs of the three over an unspecified period (though events within the film would suggest it’s about a year, or so) and does a superb job of highlighting family tensions, the difficulties inherent in three people, used to living their lives their way, reconvening under someone else’s roof, and the bubbling rivalries which simmer just below the dignified surfaces of family facade.
Song Hai-Sung skilfully guides the film through its 112 minute run time, keeping the storytelling tight, and the characters engrossing. Song is also on writing duty for this one, and his script does an admirable job in forging three unique individuals who bounce off each other well. He does this, in part, by writing about the issues which plague all families; the fear of letting down parents, having your failures weaponised by your siblings, and the underlying glue which keeps us all bound together through the tough times, regardless what else is happening.
The emphasis on unity and loyalty are pushed right to the fore, with many examples of the family switching quickly from internal bickering to defending each other against an external transgressor. The maxim “we can screw each other over, it’s not a courtesy we extend to strangers” jumps to mind, and gives the family a very real feel when compared to the nuclear, perfect families seen in many movies.
Song symbolises this unity within the film well, by focusing on the dining table. Several scenes are centred around food, specifically mother’s cooking and its ability to sooth the savage beast; bringing silence and appreciation from the three on several occasions, as well as Mi-Yeon’s smart-mouthed teenage daughter, Min-Kyeong. To western sensibilities, the notion of family religiously meeting up for an evening meal, or indeed, that being the films motif for togetherness, might seem a little outdated, casting an eye back to the sixties, or even earlier, but the notion still resonates and offers a rather touching, calming juxtapose to the antics of the siblings the rest of the time.
All-in-all, Boomerang Family is an enjoyable, highly entertaining film with a handful of good performances, and more than enough happening throughout it maintain your interest. The script sculpts believably characters whose situations you will care about, and the direction does nothing to hold back the story.
4/5
GF
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