Minari Trivia Quiz

Answer: To run a farm

The film opens on the Yi family as they make their way to their new home. Monica is with Anne and David in the family's station wagon, following behind Jacob, who is driving a moving van. They travel down a dirt road and pull into a large field in front of a trailer home. David sits up in the back seat and stares at the strange house with wheels. Monica gets out and stands in front of the car. "What is this place?" she asks Jacob in Korean. "Our new home," he replies. Monica hesitates before the front door, as there are no steps and the entrance is three feet above the ground. "This isn't what you promised," Monica says to Jacob, as he offers her a hand. She climbs in on her own and surveys the interior, which is sparsely decorated. "It just gets worse and worse," Monica remarks. "Kids," Jacob says with a smile. "Want to see something better?" They go outside to explore the meadow. Jacob cannot contain his pride at their land. "Take a look at this," Jacob says to Monica as he grabs a handful of dirt. "Look at the color. This is why I picked this place." Monica is confused. "Because of the dirt color?" she asks. "This is the best dirt in America," he says. Monica just crosses her arms, unimpressed. "David!" Jacob shouts. "Daddy's going to make a big garden." Monica reaches out and smacks her husband on the arm. "Garden is small," she says in English. "No," Jacob replies. "Garden of Eden is big, like this!"

Jacob's dream becomes a source of tension between him and Monica, who has more practical concerns. She questions Jacob on why they are living in the boondocks, when they could be living closer to other Koreans in the city. "But what about the deal we made? You can work here, and I can build a garden," Jacob says. "You can get five acres in Rogers," Monica points out. "Five acres is a hobby. But my dream is 50 acres," Jacob says. Later, when Jacob buys a second-hand tractor, Monica is worried if they can afford it. "It's an investment. Don't worry, we'll earn it back. This is how you farm in America," Jacob says. Monica begins laughing. "So it's not a garden. It's a farm," she teases. "Garden, farm, it's all the same. Just think of it as growing money," Jacob replies.

Answer: Chicken sexing

Jacob and Monica work in a chicken hatchery in Arkansas. On their first day, the foreman introduces Jacob to the other workers as an expert chicken sexer, due to his 10 years of experience chicken sexing in Seattle and California. With both parents working, Anne and David accompany them to the hatchery and are installed in a meeting room with some encyclopedia volumes to occupy their time. At their workstations, Jacob sorts through a bin of chicks, separating the males from the females. "I've never seen anyone as fast as Mr. Yi. Must've made good money in California," a co-worker remarks to Monica. "He did. But I wasn't fast enough to work there," Monica replies. "In any case, you're fast enough for here. You came to the right place," the co-worker says. David suddenly appears - he is bored. "Let's go," Jacob says to his son as he finishes with his bin. "Daddy can take a break."

Outside the hatchery, Jacob has a cigarette as David plays in the loading dock. David stares up at the smoke coming out of a tower at the side of the building. "What's that?" he asks. "Male chicks are discarded there," Jacob explains. "What is 'discarded'?" David asks. "That's a difficult word, huh?" Jacob replies. "Male chicks don't taste good. They can't lay eggs and have no use. So you and I should try to be useful. Okay?"

Answer: A tornado

Jacob is driving home one evening when he notices something odd. "That's strange. The sky is green," he remarks. A huge thunderstorm breaks out, with strong, howling winds. The roof shakes above Monica as she moves the contents from a kitchen cabinet with a leak. Jacob enters from outside, drenched from the rain. "Okay! The car is ready. We'll assess the situation before we escape," he says matter-of-factly. "Escape? Why?" Monica asks, wide-eyed. "If the tornado hits, this house will fly away," Jacob explains. Upon hearing this, the children stop what they are doing and look at their mother in alarm. "Stop staring. Go to the car," Monica barks. "We need to wait here and watch," Jacob says, referring to the television. "The news is tracking the tornado. Look." Monica turns to look at the TV, just as the power goes off and the house is plunged in darkness. When the electricity comes back on a few moments later, both Anne and David are clutching at Monica, terrified. "See?" Jacob says, as he consults the news in relief. "It's a 'tornado watch', not a 'warning'. We worried for no reason." Monica grabs a cushion and hits Jacob with it. "Are you crazy?" he asks. "Who's calling who crazy?" she replies. The children run to Anne's room as their parents argue, and fold paper planes with the message "Don't fight" scrawled on them. When the planes are ready, Anne and David throw them at their parents, and then run back into Anne's room. "We said we wanted a new start. This is it," Jacob says, after they have each made their points. "If this is the 'start' you wanted, maybe there's no chance for us," Monica replies, wiping tears from her eyes.

The next morning, Monica seems strangely at peace during breakfast. "Anne said we have to move. Is that true?" David asks. "Dad and I talked last night. We're not moving. Grandma will come to live with us instead," Monica says. "Mommy's mom?" Anne asks. "Yeah," Monica replies. "She'll finally meet David. Isn't that nice?"

Answer: Herbal medicine

David is apprehensive even before Soonja arrives, as he associates his grandmother with most of his parents' arguments. When he finally meets her, she isn't what he expected. "She doesn't look like a grandma," David whispers to Monica, which Soonja mistakes for a compliment. She rewards David with a pack of Korean playing cards, and tries to feed him a chestnut, but ends up traumatizing him by biting into it first to check if it has gone stale during her long flight. David has to share his room with Soonja, and initially he complains that she "smells like Korea". Soonja doesn't fit the stereotypical image of a grandmother that David has from growing up in America. She is crass, she gambles, and she loves teasing her grandson. "You're not a real grandma," David tells her at one point. "What is a real grandma?" Soonja asks. "They bake cookies! They don't swear! They don't wear men's underwear!" David explains.

When Soonja first arrives, she prepares some herbal medicine for David. "What's in it?" Monica asks, as she strains it through a cheesecloth. "Anything good for you. It has everything. Even deer antlers," Soonja says. "David, you're so lucky!" Monica says excitedly, as Soonja pours some out into a bowl for him. "I don't want it," David says, handing the bowl to Monica. "Drink it. Grandma brought it from Korea," she urges. He takes a sip. "I don't want it," he says again. "It's expensive. Drink it all," Monica says. David does as he is told. "Grandma?" he says when he is finished. "In the future, never ever bring this again." Monica thinks this is adorable. "Stop, David," she says with a smile. "You'll drink one cup every day." The shocked look on David's face as she ruffles his hair is priceless.

Answer: He keeps wetting the bed.

David wakes up one morning and feels something is off. He pulls back the bed covers and feels around - he's wet the bed. He does his best to conceal the problem by covering the damp parts of the bed and hiding his wet underwear under the mattress. Monica admonishes him when she finds the underwear. "Something must be broken down there. What is his thing called in English?" Soonja asks. "Penis," Anne says helpfully. "Mommy, sometimes I dream I'm peeing in the bathroom, but I wake up in my bed," David explains. Monica squats in front of David so that they are at eye level. "Then ask yourself before you pee, 'Is this a dream? Is this a dream?' And pinch yourself like this. Okay?" she says, as she pinches his cheeks gently. David nods. Soonja goes up to David and points at his groin. "Penis broken. Penis broken," she teases playfully in broken English. "It's not called a penis. It's called a ding-dong!" David protests, before storming off.

David meets Johnnie, another seven-year-old, at church and they become fast friends. David goes over to Monica and asks if he can sleep over at Johnnie's house. "You should sleep at home, with Grandma," Monica replies. "But I don't like Grandma!" David says in English, as Soonja is standing right there. "Don't say that," Monica replies in Korean, her tone unmistakable. "No? Why can't you?" Johnnie asks David innocently. Soonja points at David again. "Broken ding-dong. Ding-dong broken," she says in broken English. A confused Johnnie looks at David, who just stares daggers at Soonja.

Answer: Water

A dowsing specialist offers his services to Jacob, who dismisses it as nonsense. He digs his own well, and uses the occasion as a teaching opportunity for David. "Korean people use their heads," Jacob tells his son. "Never pay for anything you can find for free. For the house, we have to pay for water. Huh? But for our farm, we can get free water from the land. That's how we use our minds. Got it?"

Jacob plants his crops - Korean fruits and vegetables - and they grow well, but eventually the well runs dry. He uses an auger to check the well levels, but only brings up clay. Desperate not to lose his crops, Jacob connects the irrigation lines to the water mains for their home. The crops get the water they need, but Jacob has to pay for it. When he runs out of money after a customer from Dallas cancels their order, the home's water supply is cut off, and they have to resort to collecting water from the nearby creek. "There's been no water all day?" Monica asks, when she sees pails and containers of water in the kitchen. "I should check the pipes," Jacob says quietly, as he leaves to work the fields. "He thinks I don't know," Monica says to Soonja after he leaves. "We can't afford more water. He used it all on the crops."

Answer: He played a trick on Soonja.

Anne and David love to drink Mountain Dew, but once Soonja arrives, David's daily portion is replaced with the herbal medicine. A curious Soonja enquires about what Anne is drinking. "It's water from the mountains. Dad said it's good for your health," Anne explains. Soonja tries it and likes it. One day. Soonja is watching wrestling on TV when she asks David to fetch her some of that "mountain water". When he refuses, she teases him until he gives in. David has an evil idea. He takes his bowl of herbal medicine and pours it down the sink, and places the empty bowl on the toilet seat. He pinches his cheeks and asks out loud, "Is this a dream? Is this a dream?" as he relieves himself. He then brings the bowl over to Soonja. "Good boy, good boy," Soonja says, distracted by her show. David makes his way quietly to the front door to put on his boots. He waits for Soonja to reach for the bowl and take a sip. She yells and spits it out, but David is already out the door.

That evening, Jacob and Monica deal with David. "Raise your hands! Keep them apart!" Jacob instructs, as David kneels before them. "That's enough. Now apologize to Grandma," Jacob orders. David only manages a half-hearted "sorry". "You call that an apology? Do it properly!" Jacob barks. "She's not even a real grandma," David objects. Oddly, David's biggest defender is Soonja. "It's okay, it's okay! Just don't do it again, okay? I'll try to be a real grandma from now on," she says soothingly. "Go get the stick," Jacob says quietly. "Why would you hit such a sweet boy? He's only a child. Who cares if I drank a little pee? It was fun!" Soonja says to Jacob, as David solemnly fetches the cane from the top of a curtain railing. He slips and falls coming back with it, and hands the broken cane to his father. "Go outside and get a new one," Jacob says. David heads out dejectedly. He returns a few minutes later with the thinnest reed he could find. With a laugh, Soonja walks over and hugs David. "Such a clever boy! Good job. You won. You're the real winner," she tells him. Even Monica and Jacob can't help but be amused by this.

Answer: A snake

Soonja had brought some minari seeds with her from Korea, and one day she goes out exploring with the children to find a suitable place to plant them. They end up at the banks of the creek near their house. "The minari will grow well here," Soonja says, as she places her hands in the water. That evening at dinner, Soonja tells Jacob about her idea. "I'll think about it," he says. "What's there to think about?" Soonja mumbles to herself. "I'll just plant it."

David accompanies Soonja to check on the minari, which grows well by the creek. "David, you've never eaten minari before, huh? Minari is truly the best. It grows anywhere, like weeds, so anyone can pick and eat it. Rich or poor, anyone can enjoy it and be healthy. Minari can be put in kimchi, put in stew, put in soup. It can be medicine if you are sick," she says as she weeds the minari. "Minari is wonderful, wonderful!" she says in English. "Minari, minari, minari... wonderful, wonderful minari," David repeats, making up a song as he plays by the creek. "Grandma, look at that!" David exclaims, spying a water snake slithering over a nearby log. He picks up a rock and throws it at the snake, but misses. "Stop! David, leave it alone. It might crawl away and hide," Soonja advises, as David picks up another rock. "David, it's better to see it than have it hide. Things that hide are more dangerous and scary," Soonja explains patiently. David considers this for a moment, then drops the rock.

Answer: "I've lost my faith in you."

After Soonja has a stroke, Jacob and Monica disagree on their plans for the future. Monica wants to move back to California for better access to healthcare, but Jacob isn't ready to abandon his dream in Arkansas. The family travel to Oklahoma City so that David can get a check-up on his heart murmur, and where Jacob has a meeting with a Korean grocer. "Life was so difficult in Korea. Remember what we said when we got married? That we'd go to America and save each other," Jacob says to Monica, as they wait in the hospital for David's test results. "I remember," Monica says. "Instead of saving each other, all we did was fight. Is that why he's sick?" Jacob wonders. "Jacob, can't you come with us? I can't do this without you," Monica pleads. "You're the one who wants to leave," Jacob replies bitterly. Monica points out that they will eventually go broke living in Arkansas and they could easily pay off their debts in California, but Jacob doesn't want to be a chicken sexer all his life. "Think about the kids," Monica says. "They need to see me succeed at something for once," Jacob argues. "Isn't it more important that we stay together?" Monica asks. "You go ahead and do what you want. Even if I fail, I have to finish what I started," Jacob says stubbornly.

The doctor gives them the test results and it is good news - David's heart murmur is getting better, and might resolve on its own. Jacob keeps his appointment with the potential customer, who is thrilled with the samples of Korean vegetables and fruit, and they make a deal for Jacob to begin supplying the grocery store. As they leave, Monica asks the children to wait in the car so that she can speak to Jacob. "What is it?" Jacob asks, as they step out of earshot of the kids. "You're really asking because you don't know? At the hospital, you chose the farm over our family," Monica replies. "It's different now. Everything worked out," Jacob points out. Monica disagrees. "We can live together when things are good, but when they're not, we fall apart?" Monica asks. "Let's just stop, okay? Now, we can make money and live without worries," Jacob says in frustration. "So you're saying we can't save each other, but money can?" Monica asks. "Jacob, things may be fine now, but I don't think they will stay that way. I know this won't end well and I can't bear it. I've lost my faith in you. I can't do this anymore." Jacob turns away, resigned, as Monica wipes the tears from her face. "Okay," Jacob finally says. "It's done." They stand there in silence.

Answer: Jacob and David harvest the minari that Soonja planted.

The family have been burning all their trash in a large fire barrel as they live in such a rural area. With everyone in Oklahoma City for the day, Soonja busies herself with clearing spoiled produce from the barn. She empties the trash into the fire barrel and tends to the fire, but a box tips over and falls to the ground. Soonja is unable to put out the small fire that starts and spreads through the dry grass. The rest of the family return to the smell of smoke and the barn on fire. Jacob runs inside and attempts to salvage the crates of produce, as Monica helps Soonja to safety with the children. She then runs into the barn after Jacob. They move crates of produce, but the situation is getting increasingly hopeless. Through the smoke and fire, Jacob suddenly can't see Monica. He yells out for her, and eventually finds her on the ground. He grabs her hand and runs with her outside, where they collapse on the grass, coughing and watching helplessly as the entire barn is engulfed in flames.

After the fire, Jacob pays the dowsing specialist to locate water for a new well, as Monica looks on encouragingly. Later, David and Jacob go to the creek to harvest minari. "It's growing well on its own," Jacob remarks, as he sets his bucket down and contemplates the plentiful crop. "Grandma picked a good spot. Looks tasty," he says, as they begin to gather the sprouts. We see Jacob and David working silently, as the screen fades to black. The film ends on a hopeful note, after the renewing effect of the fire, which writer-director Lee Isaac Chung describes as an example of where "certain things are burned away and there are things that last and are stronger because of it". Chung also learnt in his research that, like the male chicks at the hatchery, the first harvest of minari is usually discarded to encourage a more bountiful second harvest, an apt metaphor for the sacrifices that immigrant families often have to make for their children.