THE STORY – Successful attorney Jae-wan takes the case of a wealthy executive’s son who ran over a man and gravely injured his daughter. To defend a killer is part of Jae-wan’s profession. His younger brother is a pediatrician who consistently prioritizes the health of his patients. When unexpected circumstances involve their teenage children, the brothers’ consciences are tested.
THE CAST – Sul Kyung-gu, Jang Dong-gun, Kim Hee-ae & Claudia Kim
THE TEAM – Hur Jin-ho (Director), Park Eun-kyo & Park Joon-seok (Writers)
THE RUNNING TIME – 116 Minutes
It can be fascinating to witness a story unfold in a manner that always keeps you guessing. This intrigue is born not just from the obsession to understand what new developments will be unearthed but also by figuring out how certain pieces of this puzzle fit together. It generally can be a sign of strength that the breadcrumbs are subtly dropped at first, giving the audience a challenge to make connections themselves and create an intellectually stimulating experience. That is the initial atmosphere created by “A Normal Family,” which starts off with a very dramatic sequence that spawns an entangled web of characters to be introduced. Figuring out how these interactions will result in consequential developments is a promising and engaging introduction. Unfortunately, much of that mystique soon dissipates, and what’s left is an overwrought melodrama whose good performances barely keep it afloat.
An enticing premise is already instigated when a road rage incident ends with the brutal death of a man and the serious injury of his daughter. The perpetrator seeks the legal counsel of Jae-wan (Sul Kyung-gu), a ruthless and high-powered attorney whose affluent lifestyle is but a means to cover his own insecurities, especially with his much younger second wife Ji-su (Claudia Kim) having just welcomed a newborn baby and causing strain with his eldest daughter Hye-yoon (Hong Ye-ji). His brother Jae-gyu (Jang Dong-gun) is a doctor who works at the hospital treating the girl, and his domestic life fares no better. Tensions are rising, his wife Yeon-kyung (Kim Hee-ae) is caring for his ailing mother, and his son Si-ho (Kim Jung-chul) becomes distant and antagonistic. The dynamic between this family unit comes to a breaking point when an incident involving the children comes to light. A brutal attack on a homeless man has been reported, with a video showing unknown perpetrators who bear a resemblance to Hye-yoon and Si-ho. All participants are now faced with a dilemma, and choosing whether or not to take responsibility for protecting the family or retaining morality is put to the ultimate test.
The initial setup is one that, from its inception, has an arresting notion. A random act of violence occurs, which pulls in a host of participants who are all connected through their various professions and associations, and that can be a particularly riveting path to follow. It’s a propulsive start that, even though somewhat difficult to track the characters being introduced, is an engrossing prospect. However, interest quickly dissipates when the sense of momentum that began this tale suddenly weakens. Director Hur Jin-ho can assemble some striking moments, whether the quiet tension that builds in hushed conversations or the way the colorful lights of the city streets can be both vibrant and haunting. But he also struggles to keep the material compelling at a consistent pace. The tonally imbalanced score doesn’t help, often sounding more fitting for a quirky mystery-thriller than a sobering dramatic piece. The directorial efforts try to craft a captivating aura, but there’s a lethargic energy that persists.
It’s not ideal that this screenplay never finds its own footing to explore this space in a manner that is all that alluring. The screenplay from Park Eun-kyo and Park Joon-seok is adapted from the Herman Koch novel The Dinner, a piece that has already seen several adaptations before. This particular effort is overwrought with melodrama as a means to give these characters greater backstory but ultimately results in blunt dialogue that undermines whatever nuance could have been mined. There’s nothing innovative about these dynamics either: the moral center of a lawyer and doctor soon become flipped as they interrogate their intentions, the wives coming to terms with their status within these familial units, the children wrestling with the sense of identity and friction with their parents. The source of conflict is familiar and doesn’t evolve in any meaningful way, which is a frustrating dynamic with a foundation that seems interested in exploring more complex topics. The tiny bits of information that are unspooled as the story unfolds are certainly provocative, but only in a cosmetic sense, the way anyone would be invested to simply know basic details of where the story is headed. The scene at the beginning is not the consequential anchor, with the storytelling pivoting to another act of violence that only produces bland discussions of ethical dilemmas.
The actors are a sturdy ensemble that makes the most of their roles, though some have greater issues breaking free from the writing they are given. Kim Hee-ae is the one who makes the greatest impact, most impressively. She manages to capture a tumultuous mental state, one that is fearful for the safety of her family and defiant at any obstacle in her way. Every moment is an opportunity to showcase her internal strength but also fragile vulnerability, and she ends up creating the only layered performance with any kind of absorbing nature. Sul Kyung-gu also makes an impression. Though it takes a while for the steely exterior to finally reveal a more emotional core, it is quite effective once seen. Jang Dong-gun is serviceable in his role, again weighed down by a broadly drawn character, and the same goes for Claudia Kim. Hong Ye-ji and Kim Jung-chul have it even worse, as their roles have very little depth, and their portrayals suffer as well. There is an intimacy in how each of these actors play off each other, almost theatrical in a sense, which should create a stimulating spectacle. Instead, it mainly produces unextraordinary results from a capable cast that never feels exceptional as a whole.
There is so much promise at the start of “A Normal Family” that it means to pull you into a complicated web of daring conversations. It’s a promise that never lives up to its full potential, quickly drowning in melodramatic revelations and direct dialogue that doesn’t leave much room for more interesting discovery. The actors do their best, but the few significant standouts can’t save this sluggish enterprise from wallowing in shallow themes and banal portraits of stock characters. What began as a gripping examination quickly turns out to be a tiresome venture with so many wasted promises of a more enthralling analysis.
