Return to Seoul, Rye Lane, and the trial of Gwyneth Paltrow

From Seoul to London, plus the ski slopes of Park City, Utah

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Apr 4, 2023

Hello!

On this week’s episode of Criticism Is Dead, we discuss Return to Seoul and Rye Lane, two films with a strong sense of place.

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02:22 At times discomfiting, at times revelatory, the film Return to Seoul — playing in select theaters — is a distinctive spin on the journey of an adoptee.

Return to Seoul takes a somewhat familiar idea — an adoptee returning to her country of origin to find her birth parents — and fleshes it out in a way that probably hews closer to the truth of what this experience is really like: often uncomfortable, tense, with jagged edges. Here, the main vehicle for such a complex portrayal is the protagonist Freddie, a character whose frustrations and flaws make her feel fully realized. There’s no unnecessary exposition or dialogue here; the film trusts its viewers to read between each thing left unsaid, to nice effect.

26:19 The pleasant rom-com Rye Lane, streaming on Hulu, does a better job highlighting the charm of a city than any chemistry between its leads.

Rom-coms tend to live and die by the sparks that fly between their two stars, and in Rye Lane, the sparks are a little more akin to the fizzes of a great friendship. Nonetheless, it’s a cute movie, with some nice humor, a straightforward — maybe even a little formulaic — story, and a sense of ease that keeps the whole thing moving along. But be forewarned: The way that this film is shot may or may not be a turn-off for you (for me, it was fine; for Pelin, it rang too commercial-like).

39:29 Plus, culture notes about how Gwyneth Paltrow litigated her way into stans’ hearts.

Pop Base @PopBase

Gwyneth Paltrow whispered “I wish you well” to Dr. Sanderson, the man who sued her over ski crash, as she left the courtroom with her $1 victory.

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