Little Forest

Do not let the Korean subtitles dissuade you from watching this. It's five stars all the way, telling the personal story of a young woman's move back home from the city to her rural roots, where she comes to an understanding of herself and her estranged mother. It's a tour de force of Korean cooking, as she remembers the lessons learned in her mother's kitchen, all set in the lush countryside. Superb acting and casting. Don't miss it.

This film was truly magnificent! Rife with metaphors for maturity, soundness of mind and self-development, food takes on a major meaning in the movie. Relationships of all kinds are nurtured and understood through food and the sharing of it, a breaking of bread, if you will. I was especially overjoyed to see that it was a very clean film, unlike Ms. Kim's salacious lesbian romp known as "The Handmaid." Although Ms. Kim is a very beautiful young woman, it's best to take her seriously as an actor if she keeps her clothes on.

The film has qualities other than being a rural menu. Although Director Yim Soonrye's film is artfully slow-paced, it retains our interest thanks to excellent seasonal photography and Kim Tae-Ri's likable performance as Hye-Won. Moreover, there is no fuss about her exceptional supporting cast. Little Forest isn't everyone's movie. Being patient with its graceful, detailed narrative, I found it to be a delight. The film reveals how cuisine can have a meaningful impact beside taste. It offers us positive qualities in individuals who make the best of life in spite of setbacks and disappointments.