A Model Family review: Korean answer to global twisted family-dynamics-craze is brilliantly tame

4/5

A father steals a bag full of cash and buries all the evidence related to it in and around his family home out of sheer desperation. South Korean dramas are on the brink of attaining constant global domination just like their K-Pop cousins... all in sweet time, we say!

Once wealthy and sought-after, Park Dong-ha now has a pitiful existence—his frustrated wife Eun-ju is open about her decision to divorce him over money troubles owing to his own faults; the kids (Hyun-woo and Yeon-woo) are made aware of their father's misdeeds and the impending death of their unified family life, and one of the children has a heart condition that needs him to earn all that lost moolah back. So when he chances upon a van with two dead bodies and a box full of cash, he scoops it all up and runs to safety. And what do you know, both the dead and the dough belong to men from some of the darkest alleys of South Korea. The heartbreaking part of it all is that the family Park Dong-ha is messing with the baddies for, may not be worth the fight after all (or, are they?)

Make no mistake, A Model Family is every survival-family-drama-turned-ganster-thriller ever that you have already watched in the last few years (especially the Hollywood material) and swooned over: Ozark, Breaking Bad... the list is endless! But, trust the Korean industry to add their own local nuances to the mix and the rehashed version of whatever it is that they choose to do with the western material seems to be authentic and refreshing. That said, Korean dramas are also a legit vibe right now. 

A Model Family has a simple and flat storyline with most of the episodes, and there are 10 of them ready to be devoured, leaving you craving for more: more of the twisted family dynamics that seem to be working the world over, more of questioning the audience's intelligence and thus getting them all the more curious and invested in the process, and of course, more of grey anti-hero characters that we all love to hate. And, hate to love. 

What sets A Model Family apart and prevents it from being a complete rip-off of its western counterparts is, however, the chain of events leading up to the saitsfying climax. The actors, too, are too soft in their demeanour to pass off as hardened individuals: neither the grey-ish aspect of their personas invite crowd hatred, nor does the 'model family' narrative feel imposed. They simple are. 

A Model Family is South Korea's contribution to the already expanding pool of dark family mystery-thrillers that works across all societies, regardless of what new addition is made to the subgenre. And by that, we are not implying it is the next Squid Game or Money Heist in any possible way. 

To all the K-drama fans out there, if you enjoy the violent and satirical aspect of the Korean film industry as much as you like the sapppy ones, then, by all means, go right ahead!