Gook

Eli and Daniel are two Korean American brothers running the women's shoe store left by their dead father. The store is in a largely Black neighbourhood of Los Angeles and is barely staying open. Eleven-year-old Kamilla skips school to come and sit with them; among the three is a friendship nobody can quite account for. On the morning of 29 April 1992 the riots begin and they have no choice but to defend the store. Justin Chon shot the film in black and white, and it draws in part on his own family: his father's shoe store was looted in 1992. The narrative does not explain the riots as a political event; it shows the daily form of the tension between two communities. Chon directs and plays Eli. Simone Baker plays Kamilla. The film won an audience award at Sundance. Who it's for: Viewers who like American independent cinema, narratives of immigrant experience, and black-and-white photography. Who it's not for: The final section is harsh and hopeless. Some supporting characters are also left as types.