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AHFW’s Top 20 Films of 2020: #17 ‘Minari’

Jeff Mitchell

17. “Minari” – Director/writer Lee Isaac Chung helms an autobiographical feature of his childhood – or a small sliver of it – from the 1980s.  Jacob (Steven Yeun) leads his family to the middle of nowhere in Arkansas to start a farm and grow Korean vegetables.  Without much of an economic safety net, he realizes the slim chances of actually lassoing the American dream.  His wife Monica (Yeri Han), her mother, and their two kids feel the monetary friction in a frank, authentic struggle within the home.  “Minari” feels similar…

AHFW’s Top 20 Films of 2020: #18 ‘I’m Your Woman’

Jeff Mitchell

18. “I’m Your Woman” – Director Julia Hart’s atmospheric noir lives and breathes in the 1970s, as Rachel Brosnahan helps navigate this cinematic time machine to a seedy Pittsburgh crime world.  Jean (Brosnahan) finds herself on the run, crossing into the unknown without grasping the reasons.  Since she’s managing a baby in tow, Jean is more vulnerable than Bambi on the first day of hunting season.  Her limited options are a microcosm of women’s rationed opportunities during that period, but co-stars Marsha Stephanie Blake and Arinze Kene play hopeful allies. …

AHFW’s Top 20 Films of 2020: #19 ‘The Climb’

Jeff Mitchell

19. “The Climb” – Real-life pals Michael Angelo Covino and Kyle Marvin star in a “Sideways” (2004)-like comedy on an indie budget about two loveable losers who wrestle with life in Upstate New York.  Actually, Covino – who directed the picture – had enough cash to film in France as well.  His character – Mike – isn’t very amiable because he regularly sabotages his best buddy Kyle (Marvin), but hey, what are friends for?  “The Climb”, with an awfully witty script and a pitch-perfect supporting cast, proves that friendship is…