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A Normal Family

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A Normal Family
Theatrical release poster
Hangul
보통의 가족
Hanja
普通의 家族
Lit.An ordinary family
RRBotongui gajok
MRPot'ongŭi kajok
Directed byHur Jin-ho
Written byPark Eun-kyo
Park Joon-seok
Based on
The Dinner
by Herman Koch
Produced byKim Won-kuk
Starring
CinematographyGo Rak-sun
Edited byKim Hyung-joo
Music byCho Sung-woo
Production
companies
Distributed by
Release dates
  • September 14, 2023 (2023-09-14) (TIFF)
  • October 9, 2024 (2024-10-09) (South Korea)
Running time
109 minutes[1]
CountrySouth Korea
LanguageKorean
Box officeUS$6.4 million[2][3]

A Normal Family (Korean: 보통의 가족) is a 2023 South Korean psychological thriller film directed by Hur Jin-ho and written by Park Eun-kyo and Park Joon-seok, based on the 2009 novel The Dinner by Herman Koch. It is the fourth film adaptation of the novel, following the 2013 Dutch film Het Diner, the 2014 Italian film I nostri ragazzi, and the 2017 American film The Dinner. The film stars Sul Kyung-gu, Jang Dong-gun, Kim Hee-ae, and Claudia Kim.[4] It centres on two wealthy families who meet for dinner to discuss and decide how to handle a violent crime committed by their children.[5]

The film premiered at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival on September 14, 2023,[1][6] and was released in South Korea on October 9, 2024.[7]

Plot

[edit]

A road rage incident leaves a man dead after a sports car driver runs him over while attempting to escape an attack with a baseball bat. The victim's daughter is critically injured and undergoes surgery performed by the principled doctor Jae-gyu, while his older brother, the successful defense lawyer Jae-wan, represents the driver in court. Although the case provokes widespread public outrage, Jae-wan argues that his client panicked and momentarily lost control of the vehicle, seeking a conviction for manslaughter rather than murder. The brothers' contrasting moral outlooks are also reflected in their personal lives. Jae-gyu lives modestly with his wife, Yeon-kyung, their teenage son Si-ho, and their mother, who has dementia, while Jae-wan enjoys a more affluent life with his younger second wife, Ji-soo, their infant child, and his academically gifted daughter Hye-yoon from his first marriage.

During a family dinner, long-standing tensions surface as the brothers disagree over placing their mother in a nursing home and over Jae-wan's request that Jae-gyu persuade the victim's family to reach a settlement with his client. While the adults dine, Hye-yoon and Si-ho attend a party. Feeling isolated, Si-ho becomes intoxicated, and on their way home the two teenagers viciously assault a homeless man, leaving him critically injured. The attack is captured on CCTV and broadcast on television. Yeon-kyung notices blood on Si-ho's clothes and realizes that the attackers shown in the footage are her son and Hye-yoon, quietly washing the evidence in panic. Around the same time, Hye-yoon indirectly confesses the incident to Jae-wan by claiming it happened to someone she knows, leading him to recognize that his daughter was involved.

Jae-wan shares his suspicions with Jae-gyu, who confronts Si-ho in a rage and nearly turns him over to the police before stopping himself. After speaking honestly with his son, Jae-gyu reluctantly decides to conceal the crime alongside Yeon-kyung. Meanwhile, Jae-wan, who had initially dismissed the homeless victim's life as insignificant, begins to experience growing guilt. After the victim dies from his injuries, he secretly attends the funeral and later leaves money at the victim's home. His unease deepens when Hye-yoon calls to celebrate her admission to a prestigious overseas university and reacts to the man's death with indifference, seeing it only as an inconvenience before asking about a reward for her achievement.

Before another family dinner, Si-ho visits Jae-wan's house, while Hye-yoon excitedly asks her father to buy her a car. Reviewing footage from a home security camera, Jae-wan overhears the teenagers privately discussing the assault. They rationalize their actions by claiming the homeless man would have died soon anyway and openly acknowledge that, as juveniles, they are unlikely to face serious consequences. Realizing that neither child feels genuine remorse and believing that shielding them will only ensure they continue down the same path, Jae-wan announces during dinner that he intends to take Hye-yoon to the police and plays the recording for the others. He argues that confessing now is their "golden time" to change before it is too late.

Jae-gyu desperately tries to dissuade his brother, even offering to persuade the family of Jae-wan's road rage client to accept a settlement if he remains silent. When Jae-wan refuses, Jae-gyu threatens to kill him if he reports the children and storms out with Yeon-kyung. As Jae-wan and Ji-soo wait outside the restaurant, Ji-soo briefly returns inside after forgetting her phone. Moments later, a black car accelerates into Jae-wan, fatally striking him. Ji-soo emerges in horror to discover that the driver is Jae-gyu, while Yeon-kyung sits in the vehicle in stunned silence. The film concludes with memories of the extended family posing happily together for a photograph, contrasting their former unity with the irreversible consequences of their choices.[8]

Cast

[edit]

Release

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The film was officially invited to the Gala Presentation section of the 48th Toronto International Film Festival, where it was screened on September 14, 2023 worldwide, and was invited to 19 overseas film festivals, including the 26th Udine Far East Film Festival, the 18th London Korean Film Festival, the 35th Palm Springs International Film Festival, and the 26th Taipei Film Festival. It won Best Screenplay Award at the Director's Fortnight at the 44th Fantasporto International Film Festival and the Screenplay Award at the 39th Mons International Film Festival. It had domestic premiere in the 'Korean Cinema Today - Special Premiere' at the 29th Busan International Film Festival in October 2024, before its release in theaters.[11]

Accolades

[edit]
Award Year Category Recipient(s) Result Ref.
Baeksang Arts Awards 2025 Best Supporting Actress Claudia Kim Won [12]
Blue Dragon Film Awards 2025 Best Actor Sul Kyung-gu Nominated [13]
Best New Actress Hong Ye-ji Nominated
Buil Film Awards 2025 Best Supporting Actress Claudia Kim Nominated [14]
Best New Actress Hong Ye-ji Nominated
Yu Hyun-mok Film Art Award Jang Dong-gun Won [15]
Director's Cut Awards 2025 Best Director (Film) Hur Jin-ho Nominated [16]

References

[edit]
  1. 1 2 "A Normal Family". Toronto International Film Festival. Archived from the original on September 27, 2023. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  2. ↑ "A Normal Family". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved December 10, 2025.
  3. ↑ "KOFIC, KOBIS (Korean Box Office Information System) The Box office: Korean films of 2024". KOFIC. Archived from the original on July 8, 2024. Retrieved October 22, 2024.
  4. ↑ Brzeski, Patrick (July 24, 2023). "Korean Drama 'A Normal Family' Inks Distribution Deals Ahead of Toronto Premiere". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on August 11, 2023. Retrieved July 26, 2023.
  5. ↑ Rosser, Michael (July 25, 2023). "Korean drama 'A Normal Family' lands key deals ahead of Toronto debut". Screen Daily. Archived from the original on August 12, 2023. Retrieved July 26, 2023.
  6. ↑ D'Alessandro, Anthony (July 24, 2023). "TIFF Lineup Unveiled Amid Strikes: Awards Contenders 'Dumb Money', 'The Holdovers', 'Rustin'; Starry Pics For Sale With Scarlett Johansson, Kate Winslet, Michael Keaton, Viggo Mortensen & More". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on July 24, 2023. Retrieved July 26, 2023.
  7. ↑ Kim Bo-young (September 11, 2024). '보통의 가족' 10월 9일 개봉 확정...아이들의 살인, 4인의 균열 ['Ordinary Family' confirmed for release on October 9th... Children's murder, cracks in four people]. Edaily (in Korean). Retrieved September 14, 2024 – via Naver.
  8. ↑ "A Normal Family". Toronto International Film Festival. Archived from the original on 2023-09-25. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Peter Debruge (September 14, 2023). "'A Normal Family' Review: Two Korean Couples Face Tough Choices When Their Kids Break the Law". Variety. Retrieved October 25, 2023.
  10. ↑ Yang Yu-jin (July 26, 2023). 신예 홍예지 주연작 '보통의 가족', 제48회 토론토 국제영화제 초청. MyDaily (in Korean). Archived from the original on October 23, 2023. Retrieved October 25, 2023 – via Naver.
  11. ↑ Jo Yeon-kyung (August 27, 2024). 해외 도장깨기 '보통의 가족' 韓서도 영화제로 최초 공개 [Overseas stamp-breaking 'Ordinary Family' to be released for the first time at a film festival in Korea]. JTBC (in Korean). Naver. Archived from the original on August 31, 2024. Retrieved August 31, 2024.
  12. ↑ Jeong, Han-Byeol (April 7, 2025). 다음 달 열리는 제61회 백상예술대상방송·영화·연극 부문 후보 발표. Hankook Ilbo (in Korean). Naver. Archived from the original on April 14, 2025. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  13. ↑ Kim Na-yeon (October 21, 2025). "46회 청룡영화상 최종 후보 공개..'어쩔수가없다' 12개 부문 노미" [The 46th Blue Dragon Film Awards final nominees have been announced. "Inevitable" wins 12 categories]. Star News (in Korean). Naver. Retrieved October 21, 2025.
  14. ↑ Kang Hye-min (July 24, 2025). 이병헌, 현빈→김고은, 이혜영...제34회 '부일영화상' 주인공은?. MHN (in Korean). Archived from the original on August 23, 2025. Retrieved July 24, 2025 – via Naver.
  15. ↑ Kim Ji-hye (September 11, 2025). "장동건, 제34회 부일영화상 '유현목영화예술상' 받는다" [Jang Dong-gun receives the Yu Hyun-mok Film Art Award at the 34th Buil Film Awards.]. SBS Entertainment News (in Korean). Naver. Retrieved September 11, 2025.
  16. ↑ Kim Mi-hwa (April 22, 2025). 유아인, 남자배우상 후보→여자배우상은 김고은vs김고은 [디렉터스컷 어워즈]. Star News (in Korean). Naver. Archived from the original on April 22, 2025. Retrieved April 22, 2025.
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