How many times have I started The Bros? Four times? Six times? More? A comedy you don't find funny is always a tough film to finish, even if it's the only Korean feature in the Netflix lineup that you haven't seen. Yet today, I am committed. And so, once again, I cue up the movie, hit play, and watch the story of two antagonistic brothers seeking resolution and riches at their grandfather's fortune-making funeral. Brother number one is Suk-bong (Ma Dong-seok), an impoverished history professor in search of two gold Buddha statuettes; brother number two is Joo-bong (Lee Dong-hwi), a low-level exec who works for a development company that wants to plow through the hometown.
Once the family secrets come out, as they often do at such occasions, nothing will be as it was: bloodlines will be questioned as well as who is alive and who is dead. Despite the dire predicaments, a happy ending seems inevitably ahead. But this comedy of manners requires a greater understanding of Korean cultural rituals and mores than I have, even with my many years of reviewing Korean movies, in order to generate laughs. Would the slapstick, fashion choices, family dynamics in Jang You-jeong's silly satire be riotous if I understood the references, taboos, and transgressions throughout? Until I get there, I'll have to settle for a kooky mom (Lee Hanee) and fraternal love.
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